Report card time means personal comments on for each student, a task that is time-consuming and cumbersome for many teachers. These comments are important as the can provide parents and other teachers with vital information about the child’s progress and needs.
Comments That Show Social Development
While not an academic task, the social development of a child is very important. Notes that demonstrate some of these social tasks that develop through the school years are helpful in allowing parents and teachers help the child continue to develop appropriately. Here are some specific examples of report card comments that show social development.
- Is learning to share and listen
- Is showing interest and enthusiasm for the things we do
- Volunteers often
- Has a great sense of humor
- Has a pleasant disposition
- Is hard-working
- Gets along well with other children
- Cooperative and well mannered
- Good worker and attentive listener
- Speaks with confidence to the group
Comments that Demonstrate Current Student Abilities
Parents are often most concerned with the child’s current skill set. Has the child improved? Does the child need improvement in some area? These comments should heavily focus on what the child can do as opposed to what the child cannot do, and thus should be worded in a positive light. Here are some examples of report card comments that demonstrate a current skill set.
- Has strengthened her skills in ___
- Has improved steadily
- Has shown strong growth in ____
- Follows directions well
- Excels in writing original stories and poems
- Has good organization of thoughts
- Is helped when there is opportunity to verbalize concepts
- Is helped by using hand or body motions to remember concepts
- Relies heavily on concrete objects
- There has been a noticeable improvement in _____’s study habits
Comments that Show Additional Work Needed
It is important that negative comments on a report card are paired up with a future plan. Parents need to have suggestions as to how to help improve those areas which are weak. Comments that show weaknesses are important to include, but in a way that provides hope. Here are some examples of comments demonstrating a need for future work:
- Has great potential and works toward achieving it. Encourage this by ____.
- It is possible for ___ to exceed grade expectations with some extra effort.
- Must improve work habits if ___ is to gain the fundamentals needed for ___ grade work.
- Has had difficulty with learning ______ so in the coming term we will focus on ______.
- Needs lots of repetition and practice in order to retain ___________.
- Please encourage him to do things on his own. This will help with his independence.
- Experiences difficulty following directions, encourage him to ask questions when unsure.
- Please continue during the summer with ___________ review and as many reading experiences as possible, this will help improve _________.
- ___________ would benefit from reading many library books this summer; this will help improve reading comprehension and fluency.
It is important that the comments on each child’s report card are accurate and specific. Praising specific areas of strength and suggesting specific areas for improvement will help increase parent participation and give each child the best hope for continued improvement through the school year.
Related Articles:
75 Report Card Comments - More report card comments for teachers to choose from when writing individual remarks on each child's grades.
Report Card Comments - Website dedicated to making report card time easier for teachers by providing how-to's and suggestions for report card comments.
Managing Report Card Time - Helpful tips for teachers on preparing to send home report card grades and how to manage parents who are not happy with the grades their child receives.
Data Collection Basics - tips for collecting and analyzing behavioral and academic data to have statistical backing to comments to parents.
Jennifer Wagaman - Jennifer is a mother of 2 and has both public, private and administrative experience in the education field.
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