My step daughter just finished the 4th grade. Different times of the year they have Award Ceremonies. She has got awards in the past for things like perfect attendance and such. Well, they just had there end of the year one. She did not get any awards. Well, the last day of school she get her report card, and she says she got all A's, and that teacher had to of made mistake, that she should of got Honor Roll. She has not brought over report card. yet from her moms house (that's where she attends school, she is with us on weekends), so I have not had a chance to look over it yet to see why maybe she did not. She says teacher had to of made a mistake of not giving her honor roll. I She seems truly upset that the school or teacher did not give her the award of Honor Roll. So, I know they could of made mistake on not putting her on list, But I also think that there has to be certain "qualifiers" to get on Honor Roll. So asking you mommies, what they are? We are extremely happy that she did so well and very proud of her, but if she did not make honor roll for some reason, then next year going into 5th grade, we can all beware of what qualifies as honor roll. Thanks in advance!
Edit: At her award ceremony, they did give out awards for everyone who made Honor Roll. That is why she was upset, because after getting her report card, she thought she should have been on list to receive the award. Since this is the 1st time this has come up, I don't know the what qualifies. She is 100% positive she made it and they made mistake. I think, yes they could have but also if she did not get honor roll, there is also good chance she did not make it for whatever reason. Her dad just goes along and says it must be a mistake that she must of got honor roll like she says. She does awesome in school, and tries very hard. She has been in Advanced classes. So this is a huge deal for her.
My thought is though if she did not make honor roll and it was not a mistake, she needs to know going into 5th grade what all goes into making honor roll, so she is not upset over something that did not happen.
It may differ from school to school, but in general I think you have to make a certain grade point average, sometimes as high as 3.8 or 3.9. She may very well have made all As last quarter and still not have had a high enough GPA over all to make honor roll.
Her Mom should contact the Teacher.
E-mail her or call her.
All it takes is asking the Teacher about it. Not guessing.
Just ask, the Teacher.
And, every school has different qualifiers for what makes "honor role."
Every school is different, just call/email the teacher and ask for clarification.
At my kid's school there is no honor roll until high school. There is a pseudo honor roll in middle school but it in no way means anything. They must have a 3.2 or higher.
I keep hearing a lot of she says. You don't get a progress report at the end of the year, you get a report card so who really care what she says her progress report says, ya know?
We didn't have Honor Roll in elementary school. We do in middle and high school. You have to have all As and Bs (for the academic classes) and Ss and Os (for the specials classes like PE and Art). That gets you Honor Roll. If you make straight As and Os, you get Distinguished Honor Roll. Same for HS, except there are no Ss and Os, just A - F. So many kids make Honor Roll that it's a "whatever" for us. And there are no awards ceremonies. They just bring home a certificate (I don't even know where they all are - in some pile of papers somewhere probably).
If I were you, I'd send the teacher an email asking your very valid question. "I'm curious as to what the criteria are for making Honor Roll. Could you please clarify it for me?" And if it turns out your daughter DID make honor roll using their standards, bring it to the teacher's attention that she missed out on getting the award. It really could have been a mistake, but you won't know unless you ask. And if it wasn't, you'll have something concrete to tell your daughter.
Also, your daughter should start to learn that success in school isn't necessarily the grades and awards, but what she actually learns and accomplishes. She should be proud internally of what she accomplished without some award telling her so. She doesn't need other people telling her "good job". *She* needs to be able to say "I worked really hard and I did a good job." It's a tough lesson for 4th graders and she's young still, but this would be a good place to start.
I am not sure how it works, but my daughter received all A's, but still had areas that needed improvement. It just meant she tested and accumulated an A, but can still improve in things like details. Perhaps it is a similar situation.
Every school or school system will have its own requirements for Honor Roll, so there's no way that any of us (at least anyone not living in the same community as your step daughter) can answer this question. More importantly, however, you and SD's father might want to take the opportunity to help her develop a different attitude towards school. Yes, it's nice to get public acknowledgement for one's work, however at the end of the day, the important thing should be having DONE the work well and learned something along the way. Maybe there was a mistake and she 'should' have gotten honor roll. Who knows, maybe the school will catch the mistake and put her on the honor roll later. But it shouldn't matter. If the adults in her life help her to focus on the fact that she did great work and learned important information/skills, she will get something much more valuable in the long run than the award of Honor Roll. Now, good luck doing that... I know it isn't easy. I'll be interested to hear how it works out for you all.
Have her mother contact the teacher by phone or email to ask if she was mistakenly overlooked. I am sure if she was, the teacher would be happy to correct it. If she was not supposed to be on the list, then ask what requirement she did not meet (tardy, unexcused absence, bad grade in citizenship???) Perhaps, someone was reviewing grades for people that got all A's and B's and she got left off because she got straight A's. It may have just been an error on the part of the teacher and the school. It happens. My son was left off the A student list in 6th grade in error and then was also not included in the A/B honor roll either. As soon as he got back to class, he asked his teacher why he wasn't on the list. She checked, apologized and then had the principal give him his A honor roll certificate in front of his home room the next day.
The only one who can answer this for sure is her school. The info may be published on the school's website, the student handbook, or you can just call the office. The office staff will be in for a few more days even if school has ended.
Typically "honor roll" is a list and not an announced award. Our schools do not post honor roll until middle school because they don't do letter grades until then and even then, it's just a list published in the newspaper months after the grades are actually posted. Typically "honors" is all grades a B and above while "high honors" is all grades an A- or above.
Perhaps the awards were for individual subjects such as outstanding achievement in math, English, science, etc. and only one award was given per grade?
Can you just ask the teacher? I have very open communication with the adults in my kids school, and it has served me well over the years. Just ask the question.
Has she had all A's all year? Or just on her final report? When I was in school, (back when we had to take notes on stone tablets with chisels), Honor Roll meant that you had nothing below a B AND maintained at least a 3.5 GPA every marking period.
sounds like she should have been on it. schools occasionally make mistakes. why hasn't anyone called them to check?
khairete
S.
In elementary school there is often an A Honor Roll and and A/B Honor Roll. A Honor Roll is for students who earn an A in all of their classes. There is typically an Honor Roll for each 9 week grading period, and then at the end of the year there is also typically a Superintendent's Award for those who maintained A Honor Roll status for every grading period throughout the year.
Those who earn ONLY all As and/or Bs, will sometimes be recognized as A/B Honor Roll. I am not as familiar with that, and it may require a certain grade point average (GPA) as well, so that a minimum number of As are required with a B here or there. You should check with the school for what criteria they use.
I urge you to call the teacher about this. No need to wonder and ask others not familiar with your school district. Go straight to the source. No one but the teacher or someone at the school can answer your question. I suggest having an answer the same or next day will reduce the anxiety and anger not knowing causes.
I wonder about the term Honor Roll. I'm only aware of Honor Rolls in the higher grades.
Call and ask tomorrow.
BTW you, as her step-mother, are able to talk with the school about things such as this. If you and her father are not involved in school things I urge you to do so now. As a grandmother I go to school events such as open houses, awards ceremonies, assemblies, parent information meetings. My grandchildren' s teachers know who I am And have always talked with me about how they were doing in positive terms.
If the birth mother has requested that they not talk with you, your step daughter's father will always have access.
Go online to the school website and see if the school handbook is on there. There may be requirements for extra stuff.
Every school district is different. We don't have honor roll for elementary students, only jr. high and high school.
Call the teacher and ask.
Go to your step daughter's school's website and read the handbook.
If a child has all A's, i would think that qualifies for honor roll along with perfect attendance. She deserves recognition (and in my opinion an apology).
Honor Roll varies by state, district, and sometimes by schools...some it is As & Bs, some by percentages, and others it's by GPA. For example there is Honor Roll (As and Bs or 90% or higher ) and High Honor Roll (could be be all As or could be like 95% of above). It is usually different for each school level (elementary, middle/junior high, and high school) too since grading policies are a bit different.
You should be able to look at the school or district handbook to determine what their policy is. Then actually look at your daughter's report card. If she did make Honor Roll, someone should contact her school (if the teachers are still there, that is who the first contact should be made with)...let them know that based on the report card she brought home she believes she made Honor Roll and is disappointed that she wasn't recognized. Asked if she can still get the certificate or whatever the award was that was given. Especially in elementary school, teachers and principals are all about making sure the kids are recognized.
at my son's school, it works like this..
All As: First honors
A, B : Second honors
B and Cs : Third honors..
different schools have different criteria. Many are listed on the school website so check there or contact the school. Some schools require the grades for the whole year, others just for a trimester/semester. Some have a gold for all A's and a silver for 3.5+ and a bronze for 3.0+.
My son just got an A honor roll award this week and he had to have all As on every report card every grading period all year. There was only one award day all year and that was it he never got an award after every report card. He is in elementary school.
