4th grader got a C

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I care more about effort than grades. Did she try her hardest?

This is a terrible mentality and will set them up for failure later.

[Anonymous]

You disown her. Find a mediocre family to take her. No failures allowed in the family!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter has been on the honor roll her entire school career. recently she received her first C, which was in math.

If you have high academic standards for your kids, how do address lackluster grades?

I tell them that C’s get degrees. Because they do.

Ah hun, elementary is really easy these days. That quote is for college.

Cs in elementary mean Larla is having trouble learning to read or do basic math.

[Anonymous]

Not true...
My own kid got his first C. This is at a parochial school where Cs aren't hard to get.
I talked to his teacher and his test scores were all good.It turned out that he wasn't putting his completed homework in the basket. I asked if she could remind him and she said part of 4th grade is taking responsibility for your own homework.
So I just try to remind him at dropoff every morning to put his homework in the basket. There's not much else I can do.

[Anonymous]

Oh for goodness sake, she's what 10? Find out what happened, help where needed and move on. Whether she'll get into Harvard remains a crapshoot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I care more about effort than grades. Did she try her hardest?

This is a terrible mentality and will set them up for failure later.

Agree. Math, especially at the elementary level, is unlike a sport where trying your hardest is all that's needed. If your kid is getting a concept wrong and continuing to reinforce that concept in the wrong way through "hard work" is detrimental. With academics, sometimes it's also about working smart.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter has been on the honor roll her entire school career. recently she received her first C, which was in math.

If you have high academic standards for your kids, how do address lackluster grades?

Oh my God, unclench and back off. It's 4th grade, it will not matter.

And stop posting at 2:30 in the morning about this. Are you losing sleep over it?

[Anonymous]

For a random C for a kid who otherwise gets As, I ask how I can help them, if there is something they didn’t fully understand, etc. for me, a random C is a sign that somewhere my kid needs support. Maybe they were sick the week the material was explained, maybe they did not fully grasp it. I don’t blame them, rather focus on how it can be improved going forward.

[Anonymous]

What elementary school has letter grades and honor roll?

My kid's school gives numbered assessments that coordinate with mastery of the material (a 3 means they are working at grade level, a 4 means they are working beyond grade level and have mastered grade level concepts). There are academic awards but no "honor roll" because kids don't have GPAs and therefor there can be no top percent of a grade. They give awards for certain academic mastery or accomplishments -- reading a certain number of chapter books in the year, an award for writing for 4th and 5th graders based on essays, there are math and spelling competitions, etc. And there are also awards for progress -- kids who improve their iReady assessment scores in math and reading by a certain amount get awards.

But there's no "honor roll" and no one is randomly getting a C in 4th grade for anything. If a kid gets a 1 or a 2 in any core subject, in any grade, there are mandatory consultations with parents and kids are put on a plan for improvement, usually involving participation in an after school tutoring program.

[Anonymous]

Have genetic test. Maybe she is low grade kid switched at birth. Does she look like either supposed parent.
Stop bothering with college savings.
Tell her to have fun in school and if she wants college she needs to go into military first.

[Anonymous]

Who is handing out letter grades in elementary schools? That's insane.

[Anonymous]

You spend time with them to see why they’re struggling and if more parental help isn’t enough, you get them a tutor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I care more about effort than grades. Did she try her hardest?

This is the answer. Did she try her hardest and earn a C? If so, then that tells me that we need to talk to the Teacher and understand how to support her learning and we might need to look for some additional supports in the form working with her at home, a tutor, or a program like Mathnasium/Kumon/Sylvan/or RSM. I would go with RSM but that is because my kid went there and I know it. I like the levels that they have and I like that the work packet is sent home with homework to do.

If she is not making her best effort, I would address that with her. Why isn’t she trying? Is she feeling frustrated and giving up? Is she finding it to easy so she isn’t doing the work or paying attention? Is she not following the Teachers instructions?

[Anonymous]

Chill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forget the grade

It doesn't matter.

It's really hard to get a C in elementary these days. For Msth,, figure out what she's doing wrong. Math is cumulative. You want.to nip any problems in the bud.

+1
Not what she’s doing wrong and if it’s not for a lack of effort, finding out what concept she does not understand. Get a tutor or extra help for her. Talk to the teacher.

This. Figure out the reason and address it.

This is your chance to teach her how to cope with a setback. 4th grade is the perfect age to introduce this concept and you are fortunate to have the opportunity to do this at an age before grades actually matter.

+1. Assuming we're talking a C on a report card and not one assignment, I actually think it is a big deal and I would get to the bottom of it. If we're talking a C on one assignment, I would calmly discuss/try to figure out what happened, but not make a big deal about it at all. I think, also, that you know your kid better than we do. How you deal with this in a Type A ball of anxiety kid who is hard on themselves is 100% different than how you deal with this in a chill kid who doesn't care or stress.