ISY Elementary School Blog - November 5, 2021

ISY Elementary Blog

Reports & Conferences

Mike Simpson, Elementary School Principal

November 5, 2021

I hope that you were able to take the opportunity to chat with your child(ren)’s teachers in our Parent Teacher Conferences. If you were unable to, please reach out to your child(ren)’s teachers and they will be happy to make a time to meet with you.

We schedule our Parent Teacher Conferences for the halfway point of each semester as we can use what is shared in the conference to maintain or improve your child(ren)’s academic progress in the second half of the semester. Our teachers are available to meet with you at any time throughout the year and will always be happy to hear from you.

Elementary School Reports and Conferences

Last week we provided your with your child(ren)’s Quarter 1 Progress Report. We trust that you were also able to meet with your child(ren)’s teachers to discuss their progress at this halfway point in our first semester.

This progress report was the first of four written reports that you will receive this year to provide information on your child(ren)’s progress in academic achievement and in their development of the ISY Learner Attributes.

These reports are aligned to our two semester academic calendar which is further divided into four quarters. In the Elementary School we have two types of reports that report on the same academic standards – Progress Reports and Semester Reports.

Progress Reports provide information about a student’s academic progress and the development of the ISY Learner Attributes in the middle of a semester. Academic grades are not assigned in these reports. These reports are important as they provide information that can be used to maintain or improve a student’s academic progress in the second half of a semester. Importantly, these reports are followed by Parent Teacher Conferences.

Semester Reports provide information about a student’s academic achievement over a whole semester and academic grades are assigned in these reports for Grade 1 to 5. These reports are important because they provide an official record of academic achievement.

COUNSELOR’S CORNER with Ms. Patty:

Talking with your Child about Conferences

Last week, you had the opportunity to talk with your child’s teacher and learn about your child’s academic progress. These meetings are a powerful way to better understand your child’s strengths and areas for improvement and learn how you might be able to support your child’s learning. Now you have this information, you might wonder how to talk with your child about it.

Be honest and share what was discussed. Often students worry or are curious about what you and their teacher talked about. Explaining the details can lessen their anxiety.
Start with sharing the strengths the teacher discussed and highlight the positives.
Be direct about problems or concerns. Often your child knows areas they struggle with. Ask them how they think the issues might be addressed. Often parents feel punishment will solve a problem but often a team approach better engages your child and produces better results.
Share the plan for moving forward. Students need to understand that steps are being taken to address the concerns or issues. These plans require everyone’s participation to be successful.

If you have any questions or concerns, Ms. Patty is available to support your family. If you’d like to talk with Ms. Patty about your child’s progress, you can make an appointment by contacting her at escounselor@isyedu.org

Patty Amundson-Geisel

Pre-K to Grade 6 Counselor

Success: Our Children Need to Know the Truth

Many of us, especially children, observe the talents and successes of others without an appreciation of what led to them.

Without that appreciation, it is easy to believe that we are either good at something or we are not. And if we believe that, we do not challenge ourselves or give up on ourselves. What is the point of working hard to master a new or difficult skill if we think that our talents and potential are fixed and predetermined?

Here is a link to a ‘success story‘ that I shared with the students of my previous school.

Success is more often than not preceded by embarrassment, frustration and failure. Developing in our children an understanding of this and that success is a product of learning is crucial for our children to be able to embrace challenges, learn from mistakes and seek advice. This was the reason why I shared my ‘success story’ and I believe that the more success stories our children hear like this, the better – however embarrassing it is for the storyteller!

Internet Issues

Offline Learning Activities

Every Friday, your child’s homeroom teacher will email you a PDF of offline learning activities that your child will be able to do if they lose access to the internet.

Please only use these plans if your child is unable to access the internet. If you have the internet, your child will be able to attend online classes as usual.

To make sure the offline learning activities stay connected to what is happening in class, our teachers will review and, if necessary, update the offline learning activities each week. Please download the PDF document attached to the email as soon as you receive it on Friday. The email will also have a link to this instructional video:

Previous Elementary School Posts