I went to my very first ever parent teacher conferences last week. They both went well. My 6th grade daughter's teacher had nothing but good to say about her. She said that if all her students were like my daughter, teaching would be easy. She participates, she helps in the classroom, she has taken a new student under her wing to show her around, she's very smart, catches onto things quickly and she is an amazing reader. They have a battle of the books competition in March with about 20 books that the kids can read and then they'll answer questions about them in teams, and my daughter only has about 3-4 books left to read. There are a lot of Newberry Award winners on the list and other pretty good books, so her teacher is impressed by that. The only thing she could probably work on is handwriting and organization- she really is a lot like me-- organization has not been my forte either!
My 4th grade son's teacher was also glowing in her report. She said she is really glad to have him in her class, before he came there was only one other boy she could trust in the class, now she has 2. I'm not sure how I feel about that-- good?? for my son.. but what's going on with those other boys? Anyway, he's doing great in math, his writing ability is fine, he's slightly above reading level although with his stubborness it's hard to find books that will interest him-- she said she can help with that-- and he does seem to be reading more now. He's one of the best at turning in his homework. She said she can tell he's still trying to figure out the friend thing, but he does have a few friends.
Parent teacher conferences for my 8th grade daughter in middle school are in a couple weeks, but I expect to hear the same sorts of things. She has straight As so far, except for math, there must be an assignment or test that she didn't take factored into her grade- her teacher is looking into it. Anyway, she is really enjoying it, but also recognizing the disadvantages of it. She really feels sorry for kids in her science and math classes who feel like they can't do it and have given up. Math has not and still doesn't come easy to her, but she can do it with a lot of hard work, and she wishes those kids could have that opportunity also.
So this whole experiment is turning out exactly as we'd hoped. We hoped the kids would go to school, have their curiosity satisfied, be able to see for themselves the benefits of both public school and homeschool, gain confidence that they have learned and done what they needed to these past years of schooling. Yay!! I miss them, and I miss homeschooling them- especially the flexibility. But I think they are learning valuable lessons in school that they couldn't get any other way. It's all part of their overall education and preparing them for adulthood, and helping them make their own decisions and choices. Phew!! So far so good!!
My 4th grade son also got a glowing report.
Wow! It's so great to have teachers validate all the hard work you have put in over the years. You knew you were doing a great job, but it's awesome to have proof. lol Sounds like a lot of good things are happening in your lives. But we miss you!
ReplyDeleteI think you'd say the same things as their teacher :)
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