Did your kid get an ES in reading? First or Second Grade?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This obsession with ES seems exceptionally misguided to me. Don't these parents pay attention to their child's actual progress? If your kid is reading above grade level, are you less proud of them because they didn't "score" high enough for you?

My 1st grade son got an I in writing, which I completely expected. However all I have to do is compare his writing to the start of the year to see the tremendous progress he's made in just two months, and I am so proud of his improvement. It doesn't even occur to me to share his progress report with him - those aren't "grades" for him to earn, but a measure of his developmental progress. He's an I because his fine motor skills are still forming, did goodness sake! We do extra writing practice to help his development, because the I indicates to me it's an area of extra work for him. The idea that I would get upset about an informative I is ludicrous.

I am thrilled we've moved away from As, Bs, C's, etc for this age. I wish parents could readjust their mindsets to fit the improved program.

Good for you that you feel that way. I am totally proud of my kid and her Ps. And, if she gets an I, I have her work her butt off until she gets that to a P. Honestly, I feel that the bar in ES is set pretty low, and my kid better be living up to those expectations. An I in one subject two report cards in a row is an issue that needs to be addressed.

It's fine if you think differently, but just as you think that my interest in what constitutes an ES is misguided, I think your acceptance of Is is misguided. Your post comes across as condescending an obnoxious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Slightly OT, but what about math?

Do kids commonly get ESs in Math? What are they looking for to determine an ES in Math? Any ideas?

They look for the same things.. inferences, connections to things that the teacher hasn't taught. My DC has gotten ESs in math (and Reading/Writing), although it was in 3rd now 4th (DC didn't go to MCPS for k/1). It's not about getting all the answers right on a worksheet. t's way more than that.

[Anonymous]

My kid is in 4th grade at one of the Highly Gifted Centers. He is doing compacted 4th-5th grade math and just tested to be reading at an 11th grade level. HE NEVER GOT A SINGLE ES in all of 2nd or 3rd grade. For what it;s worth....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is in 4th grade at one of the Highly Gifted Centers. He is doing compacted 4th-5th grade math and just tested to be reading at an 11th grade level. HE NEVER GOT A SINGLE ES in all of 2nd or 3rd grade. For what it;s worth....

Same here (but mine is in 5th). He has gotten ESs in specials, though. And at the HGC they say that to get an ES requires ES level work two years ahead (so a 4th grader would need to be doing the ES level work of a 6th grader).

I think part of it is that the teachers enter the grades numerically. To get an ES on the report card is tough because the child needs to have half of the assignments or more receive an ES for the grade to be an ES.

[Anonymous]

Unicorn.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Unicorn.

I guess they are real then because my DC did in 2nd grade. In HGC now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is in 4th grade at one of the Highly Gifted Centers. He is doing compacted 4th-5th grade math and just tested to be reading at an 11th grade level. HE NEVER GOT A SINGLE ES in all of 2nd or 3rd grade. For what it;s worth....

Ditto that. And my son has similar level for math. No ES util got to the HGC. Home school does not give ES except for specials.

[Anonymous]

I don't think they really give ES's for reading. My kid has always been one to two full grade levels above the standard, and I think she got an ES once for some component of the reading thing.
Don't get hung up on the ES versus P thing. It's basically meaningless. Just keep an eye out for I's or N's. If you want read feedback on how your child is doing, ask the teacher.

[Anonymous]

One of my kids gets ES's on almost everything, on the report card and in the classroom. It's a real thing, and given the work I can understand the grades. DC is in 4th grade, but has consistently gotten these grades the past two years. My third grader gets P's and I's and no ES's, and it also makes sense given the work.

FWIW, the only grade I really comment on or worry about is the I's. I agree with a pp that these are concrete feedback and give you areas to focus on with DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One of my kids gets ES's on almost everything, on the report card and in the classroom. It's a real thing, and given the work I can understand the grades. DC is in 4th grade, but has consistently gotten these grades the past two years. My third grader gets P's and I's and no ES's, and it also makes sense given the work.

FWIW, the only grade I really comment on or worry about is the I's. I agree with a pp that these are concrete feedback and give you areas to focus on with DC.

So is your DC in the HGC and, if so, is he or she still receiving almost all ESs?

[Anonymous]

All this bickering over why your kid did or didn't get an "ES".

This is exactly why they don't even list the "GL" genius level grade on report cards - too many parents will be clamoring "why didn't MY kid get a GL ?"

If you get one, the school contacts you. Otherwise, forget it, they don't exist. It's just a unicorn.

[Anonymous]

If a P is "good enough," does that mean average like a traditional letter grade C? If an ES means that they exceed the standard, what standard are they exceeding? Exceeding the average standard? That doesn't sound like aiming high. It sounds like aiming for the middle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One of my kids gets ES's on almost everything, on the report card and in the classroom. It's a real thing, and given the work I can understand the grades. DC is in 4th grade, but has consistently gotten these grades the past two years. My third grader gets P's and I's and no ES's, and it also makes sense given the work.

FWIW, the only grade I really comment on or worry about is the I's. I agree with a pp that these are concrete feedback and give you areas to focus on with DC.

So is your DC in the HGC and, if so, is he or she still receiving almost all ESs?

DC was waitlisted, so no. But DC has been well-served by home school (individual enrichment and compacted math, etc.) so it has been fine to stay in place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If a P is "good enough," does that mean average like a traditional letter grade C? If an ES means that they exceed the standard, what standard are they exceeding? Exceeding the average standard? That doesn't sound like aiming high. It sounds like aiming for the middle.

Again.. you cannot equate the N, I, P, ES grading to the A,B,C grading. It's not the same.. apples to oranges comparison.

The standards are the 2.0 standards. They are listed on the MCPS website. If a kid can meet all of the standards, they get a P. Getting an A is meeting a standard, too. As someone on here once wrote - a P is like an A grade. An ES is like doing extra credit work way above grade level on your own, all the time, and getting it right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If a P is "good enough," does that mean average like a traditional letter grade C? If an ES means that they exceed the standard, what standard are they exceeding? Exceeding the average standard? That doesn't sound like aiming high. It sounds like aiming for the middle.

No. It means that they have learned what they were supposed to learn. Learning what you were supposed to learn is a good thing.

If my child gets 100% of her spelling words right on her weekly spelling test, she gets a P. Could she get an ES on her spelling test? I don't know how, and, really, I don't care, because I think that 100% is good enough. If that's settling for mediocrity, then so be it.