To know this list is to know me as a teacher.
1. Grades are not how I value you. You are not awesome because your grades are awesome. You are not bad because your grades are bad. Just do the best you can, but understand that doing the best you can will not always result in an A+. I recently had a student write, "I know you don't hate me considering I haven't failed English yet." What I tried to explain to this student is that some of my favorite students did not receive good grades; it had nothing to do with how I felt about them.
2. I cannot grade as much writing as you should be writing. I will not assign as much reading as you should be reading. The only way to become a better reader and writer is to read and write. Write a rhetorical analysis a week! Read an op-ed every day! I know you're busy, but even when you feel like I gave you way too much work, remember that, from my perspective, I'm not assigning you enough work. Your music lesson is longer than our class. Your lacrosse practice is longer than our class. You need more practice reading and writing (and listening and speaking).
3. Breathe. I know this seems stressful, but in the scheme of your life, this is not a big deal. Take a deep breath and know that you will get through this. By "this," I am referring to whatever is stressing you out right now. I promise that it will get better.
4. What I want is sincerity. I want truthiness. I want you to be engaged.
5. This part isn't my philosophy; it's just more information about your grades (which is what some people care about the most).
A) A rubric is not a checklist; it's still subjective.
B) You cannot arrive at your average by dividing the numbers you see on the portal. Different assignments are weighted differently. I just let the computer figure it out. If I input one of your grades wrong, your average will be wrong, so make sure you tell me about that, but the math is always correct.
1. Grades are not how I value you. You are not awesome because your grades are awesome. You are not bad because your grades are bad. Just do the best you can, but understand that doing the best you can will not always result in an A+. I recently had a student write, "I know you don't hate me considering I haven't failed English yet." What I tried to explain to this student is that some of my favorite students did not receive good grades; it had nothing to do with how I felt about them.
2. I cannot grade as much writing as you should be writing. I will not assign as much reading as you should be reading. The only way to become a better reader and writer is to read and write. Write a rhetorical analysis a week! Read an op-ed every day! I know you're busy, but even when you feel like I gave you way too much work, remember that, from my perspective, I'm not assigning you enough work. Your music lesson is longer than our class. Your lacrosse practice is longer than our class. You need more practice reading and writing (and listening and speaking).
3. Breathe. I know this seems stressful, but in the scheme of your life, this is not a big deal. Take a deep breath and know that you will get through this. By "this," I am referring to whatever is stressing you out right now. I promise that it will get better.
4. What I want is sincerity. I want truthiness. I want you to be engaged.
5. This part isn't my philosophy; it's just more information about your grades (which is what some people care about the most).
A) A rubric is not a checklist; it's still subjective.
B) You cannot arrive at your average by dividing the numbers you see on the portal. Different assignments are weighted differently. I just let the computer figure it out. If I input one of your grades wrong, your average will be wrong, so make sure you tell me about that, but the math is always correct.