School Report Cards- A Family Event

Report time can be either a great time for kids to show off their skills or a nightmare that becomes real. Regardless of the results, report cards can be a positive family event.
Let us step back and look more closely at this event that is so important to setting your kids on the right track. Both parents and children can experience joy, disappointment or any other emotion along the continuum between these extremes. For the child, it is the parents’ reaction which counts the most not what is written in the report card.
How should a parent react? The answer to that question is that the parent needs to react in a way that helps a child deal positively with whatever the document contains. This obviously is easier said than done. A first step is recognizing that the report card belongs to the child and thus the child needs to understand its meaning and take responsibility for its contents. The report card can sometimes become about the parents rather than the child. When parents react in this way they create a vicious circle of blame and recrimination that is destructive to the child and the family in general. On the other hand a good report card that is not given enough recognition can also end up becoming a negative experience for a child. How can parents avoid these common pitfalls that seem to cause so much family stress?
Here are a few hints to help get through the report card quandary.
- Review the report card with your child. Observe your child’s emotions. Work at not demonstrating your own emotional reaction to the results. If necessary, take a look at the results first with your partner and deal with your emotions before reviewing it with your child..

• Have your child explain

-his/her understanding of the results

- how he/she did so well in certain subjects
- what difficulties he/she has experienced

• Together:

- Set some realistic goals for the next school term
- Establish a plan of action with your child

• Follow through on the plan

Be a good role model! Remember, regardless of the results, receiving a report card can be a great time to make sure that your child is on the right track at school. You are their role model and you can show them the way!

Posted by Dr Pauline Mesher | Email a comment