It is report card time!!! Not just any report card, but the very first in your child’s 2024-2025 school year! Here’s the thing, and I will be frank (because I always am) the very first is the most important of the school year! Why? I thought you might ask. The first report card tells us:
- How is your child performing in terms of grade-level expectations?
- Which areas does your child excel?
- Are there gaps in your child’s knowledge that should be filled for them to be successful for the rest of the school year?
All our children excel in areas that bring us great joy and this should be celebrated. It is the last bullet point I worry about. You see, knowledge gaps do not just go away, they widen as the year progresses. At Huntington, we focus on skills, confidence, and motivation and we often say, “Don’t wait.” Even small gaps in learning eventually create large chasms. Waiting quickly creates a situation where filling such gaps takes time. If skill gaps impact confidence in the slightest, the risk increases that a child loses his or her motivation for school. From here, it is an uphill battle. Here are two questions to ask as parents if this first report card shows ANY learning deficit:
- Within each subject, where does my child have difficulty specifically?
- Has there been any growth in the area(s) he or she struggles since the beginning of the school year?
I am going to be frank, again… If there are any gaps, they will not fix themselves. DO NOT WAIT! For example, if your 3rd or 4th grader is missing key phonics skills, this will impact reading fluency and comprehension, even the ability to succeed with math word problems. This is a large gap and gaps in reading lead to skill deficits in all academic areas. Future academic growth will be significantly impacted if not addressed.
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So, what to do???
- First, take a deep breath, examples like that listed above are common. At Huntington, we are seeing many students in the exact same situation described above and we are proud to be a part of the process of filling these gaps and in preventing the loss of confidence and motivation.
- Second, the gaps can be filled, but work outside the classroom will be necessary.
Wait, we didn’t say what to do yet. Here is the anticipated list:
- Sit down with your child’s teacher.
- What tools can your child’s teacher suggest to assist?
- Can extra homework (oh no) be assigned?
- Essentially, what can be done both at home and school?
- Sit down with your child.
- Does your child understand teacher lessons and classwork?
- Together, set a schedule for use of additional resources targeting the gaps.
- Utilize all the free educational materials provided by your school district.
- If the above options are not successful, seek out an outside resource. We prefer Huntington Learning Centers, especially as we directly communicate with student’s classroom teachers with permission from parents. We understand that many different options exist in our community. Please do your research!
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Huntington Learning Center:
Huntington has been the nation’s recognized leader in educational services since 1977. Our mission is to give every student the best education possible. At Huntington Learning Center - Weddington, we offer children, ages 5 to 17, tutoring in Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Study Skills, Phonics, Vocabulary, Science, and SAT and ACT Preparation. Our individualized instruction is developed from comprehensive academic evaluations completed at the center. We are committed to the success of each student through this personalized instruction with our certified teachers. Each program is uniquely designed to develop the skills, confidence, and motivation for the student. We are seeing great strides every day!
Huntington Learning Center - Weddington is located at 5945 Weddington Road, Suite 104 | Matthews, NC. You can reach them by phone at: (704) 243-5784 or find them on Facebook and Instagram.
