Thank you for all of the donations to CHiPS!
Dear PS 107 Families,
Your child’s first report card of the year will be released on Monday, 1/30 to your New York City Schools Account. Ms Rinah and I reviewed every student’s report card and are confident that it will provide you with very detailed information about how your child is doing in all subjects, along with clear next steps for the remainder of the year.
As a reminder, Parent-Teachers conferences are now disconnected from report card distribution, which was decided by our School Leadership Team last school year. Our next Parent-Teacher conferences are scheduled for Thursday, March 9th, and they will be here before you know it! Unless you have significant concerns that have not yet been addressed this year by your child’s teacher, please wait until conferences on 3/9 to have a conversation about your child’s progress. The intention is not for parents to schedule a third parent-teacher conference at this time.
As noted on the report cards, PS 107’s grading scale is as follows:
4: far exceeding grade level expectations
3: meeting current grade level expectations
2: approaching current grade level expectations
1: below current grade level expectations
All subjects are graded using this 1-4 scale, with the exception of Science, which is graded using P(ass)/F(ail).
I would encourage you not to get too stuck on number grades or reading levels. The comments your child’s teacher has written will provide far more information than numbers or levels, though I understand that numbers and levels feel straightforward, and we tend to gravitate towards them. We have a grading policy that is holistic and takes into account multiple measures — including formal and informal assessments, teacher review of exit tickets and daily student work, and teacher observations — when assigning grades.
Remember that your child’s reading level is but one measure of their reading skills. As we have started diving into learning about the Science of Reading as a staff, we have also learned that the leveling system that we so often refer to is not scientifically-based, and further, that reading levels were meant to be a teaching tool and not something that was ever intended to be shared with parents (or students). However, because our community has become accustomed to being provided with student reading levels over the years, we have decided to keep them in our report cards for now. As we learn about new reading assessment tools during our transition to structured literacy instruction, we will provide that information to you.
For directions on how to access your child’s first report card on your NYCSA, please see this video. Remember that it can take between 24 and 48 hours even after January 30th for your child’s report card to appear in your NYCSA. However, if your child’s report card is not there by Thursday morning, February 2nd, please reach out to Nadia Benlarbi for assistance.
Finally, we are looking forward to seeing many of you at this Friday’s second Family Morning! As a reminder, the second third of families from all classes (with the exception of 5th grade and K-106) will be joining us this Friday, 2/3. As in January, there continues to be a great deal of respiratory illness circulating, so we strongly encourage mask-wearing for all visiting families. As well, we encourage leaving younger non-school-age siblings at home where possible. Parents will enter school with their children, at their regular location. Please be ready to show proof of COVID vaccination, along with your ID, to the staff stationed at your child’s arrival location.
Have a wonderful week!
Warmly,
Ms Joanna