Grades, Scores, and Percentages Clarification

Greetings!

I've had an e-mail from a parent with a great question about the percentages and scores. I would guess that some of you have the same or similar question, so I thought I would do my best to clarify how the scores and percentages are figured.

For the past two years I've been using Engrade, an online grade book.  With this program, I can assign a category to each assignment, for example, Writing, Literature, Grammar, Assignments (in-class work.)  Engrade figures percentages for total scores and for scores within each of these categories. 

However, the four categories used for Writing 1 and Writing 2 did not have the same number of assignments, so a straight averaging of the scores does not give an accurate total percentage/grade.  For example, the Assignments category had 19 scores, and 17 of them were small, 5-point Quick Writes.  Writing section had fewer assignments, but the scores were higher per assignment.

Though the categories are not exactly even, I feel that dividing the scores like this is helpful because it helps parent, students, and teacher have a better picture of the work done in the semester.  For example, if a student scores 100% on this Assignments section, I know that he showed up and participated well in class.  A low score in the Literature section is most likely a sign of a significant number of missing assignments.  Likewise, a low score in grammar could be because assignments were not handed in, or it could be a lack of knowledge in this area. As it is with all homework assignments for any subject area, the scores reflect a mix of quantity and quality. 

I hope I haven't further confused the grading for this class.  Working with students to help them develop into first-rate thinkers and writers is my  primary goal.  Points, scores, percentages, and grades are only small parts in the learning process.

Have a very Merry Christmas!  My house is filling up with family; it's loud, active, and completely delightful! 

Be blessed,

Tammy Prichard

Thoughts about Grades

Dear CHAT Writing 1 Students & Parents,

I've just finished calculating the grades for this first semester, and you should find them in your inbox.  As tutors, these are suggested grades for you as homeschooling families to consider.

For those who are new to my classes, let me share my thoughts on grades.  As I homeschooled, I didn't give my children grades.  I felt that grades were far too subjective.  I taught my own children for mastery.  We didn't proceed with a topic until they were ready no matter how long that took. 

Letter grades are a funny thing.  For some students, it becomes the only motivation for doing well.  For some, it becomes a measure of their worth as a person or as an academic learner.  I personally don't like these "side effects" of the grading system.  On the other hand, grades can be a valid reward for working hard, being diligent, and understanding the materials.

When teaching students to be good writers, I give a lot of consideration for growth and improvement. Each student has a starting place; over time I look for him or her to learn the mechanics of grammar, good writing techniques, and analytical thinking skills.

For this class, I gave points for attendance, participation, short assignments and longer essays.  We did a few grammar exercises and a “quiz.”  I tend to be an "easy grader" and like to see my students encouraged to do their best.

Each student (and parents) has received an e-mail with percentages and suggested grades for this semester.   As I mentioned in the e-mail, the writing portion of the class is of primary importance.  I’ve seen each student improve with each paper.  Good Work!

Blessings,

Tammy Prichard

Writing 1 Class Notes -- Week 15 (December 11)

Greetings!

Our last day of the semester!  We’ve done some great reading and writing as a class these past 15 weeks.

Our Quick Write, meant as a reflection on our work, answered two questions:  1) What did you learn this semester? and 2) What would you like/need to learn?  We had a great discussion as I heard answers from the students.  With this great group of students, I’m looking forward to working with them next semester as they learn more about writing style, grammar, and literature.

I had two “reader’s theater” opportunities for the class.  One was a Book-A-Minute version of AChristmas Carol, and the other was The Twelve Days of Christmas Vacation. 

Our final activity for the day was a Progressive Story exercise.  Below are instruction used for this game/writing activity: 

Pass around stories. Write three lines of notebook paper's worth of a story. Fold back the top two lines and pass to the right. (The next person can only see the last line). The next person continues the story with three additional lines and folds back the paper to leave the bottom line only. Each student begins a story so everyone is writing the whole time. When the student's story returns to themselves, they write a closing line (looking only at the last line written.). Then read the stories aloud. Most are quite funny.

Finally, the students handed in their Final Drafts of their History/Biography Essays along with any remaining homework.  I will go through the Final Drafts and hand everything back when we meet again in January.  Once I’ve graded the essays, I will send out grades to students and parents.  You’ll hear more from me and what I think of grades.

This week's blog

Have a wonderful Christmas!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 1 Class Notes -- Week 14 (December 4)

Greetings!

This week's class was a word-focused time, which shouldn't be surprising since this is a writing class.  Our Quick Write for the day was spent coming up with sentences for contronyms, or Janus words.  (See this link for 75 Contronyms)  These are words that have opposite meanings.  Or, in other words, are their own antonyms.  For example, to clip something means to connect (as with a paper clip) and to separate (as in clipping the hedges.)  Or garnish means to add (as with food preparation) or to take away (as in garnishing wages.)  The students were to write sentences using both meanings of a contronym.

As was promised, this week we had our Word of the Day quiz/test.  I intentionally did not make it a hard test.  If I were testing specific vocabulary for a content area, the test would have been more difficult since knowing the vocabulary for a subject area is significant in understanding the subject.  Having our weekly Words of the Day, on the other hand, was intended to show that words are interesting and fun.  Expanding the students's vocabulary and, as on said, their horizons.  Therefore, the quiz was fairly easy.

I handed back the rough drafts of their History/Biography Essays.  My general practice is to discuss common writing and grammar mistakes that were in the papers.  I changed it up a bit this time.  I divided the class into 5 groups in order to discuss their papers in a small group and to look for themselves to find common mistakes.  They then came up to the white board and wrote what they felt were the top 5 mistakes/errors.  Using their lists, I covered some points of writing and grammar for them to consider when correcting and revising their papers.

The Final Drafts of their essays are due next week.  When they hand in their final draft, along with the rough draft, I would also like them to include either at the bottom of their final draft or on a separate piece of paper the following information:  1) the thesis statement, and 2) their top 3 mistakes.

Their only other homework for next week is to brainstorm their answers to these questions:

1.  What have I learned this semester about writing?

2.  How would I like to see my writing improve?

These questions will be the subject of our Quick Write next week.

I usually take the final week of this first semester to do some fun "stuff." I'll bring some Christmas cookies, and students may bring any treats if they want.

Assignments for Next Week:

-- Final Draft of the History/Biography essay

-- Thesis statement and list of Top 3 Mistakes

-- Brainstorm about what you've learned and how you'd like to improve

-- Christmas treats (optional)

This week's links:

Class Notes

Word of the Day "Test"

75 Contronyms

Fun with Words

Have a wonderful weekend!

Mrs. Prichard

Word of the Day -- Final Test

A.        Match the words from the Words of the Day list with its synonyms.

Thespian

Villa

Beau

Moron

Maestro

Bazaar

Thug

Carousel

Dimwit

Gangster

Conductor

Market

Actor

Merry-go-round

Boyfriend

Estate

B.        Circle the correct answer to complete the sentence

1.         A concierge is an employee at

a.        a  farm  

b.        a hotel or apartment building

c.        a church

d.        a playground

2.         An patron of the arts

a.        burns paintings by the masters

b.        borrows money from sculptors

c.        promotes recycling

d.        gives money and supports artists or organizations

3.         You can fill a carafe with

a.        cows

b.        beverages

c.        books

d.        laundry

4.        The “Paternoster” refers to

a.        smooth jazz

b.        the Lord’s prayer

c.        the “Do-Re-Mi” song

d.        people who eat waffles

5.        A shallow, pond-like body of water is a

a.        lasagna

b.        lariat

c.        lagoon

d.        lollapalooza

6.        When looking for a synonym, you look in

a.        a thesaurus

b.        the trunk of a car

c.        a bank vault

d.        the garbage

7.        If you are singing unaccompanied in a small group you are part of a

a.        madrigal

b.        hollandaise

c.        fermentation

d.        square dance    

8.        A vigilante might

a.         cook dinner for the neighborhood    

b.        do winter gardening

c.        take the law into his own hands

d.        play the harp in church

C.      Fill in the blank with the missing words of the sentence.

1.         The soldier used a ____________________ during the battle.  .

2.        A young, unmarried woman is a  ____________________.

3.        The cook put a _______________________ sauce on the Eggs Benedict.

4.        “Howdy _________________!” the cowboy said to the man. 

5.        The _____________________ sold popcorn at the carnival.

Concessionaire             mademoiselle                Hollandaise                   hombre              bayonet

D.       True or False

________  1.  The “Madonna” refers to the Virgin Mary.

________  2.  A carabiner is a spatula used by French chefs. 

________  3.  A béarnaise sauce is named after the French town, Bearn.

________  4.  Most people use a fork and spoon with their cappuccinos.

________  5.  The thesis of a paper tells the reader what the writer sets down to prove.

E.        Match the pirate phrases with their meanings.

Pax vobiscum

Carafe

Vinaigrette

Bazaar

Hoi polloi

Vigilante

Lariat

Spanish, la reata, rope

Greek, hoi polloi, the many

Latin pax, peace; vobiscum, be with you

Persian, bazar, market  

Latin vigilans, watchful

French vinaigre, aromatic vinegar

Arabic, gharrafah, a drinking vessel