The Day Before the End of the Grading Period

Every teacher has a story. Or two. Or ten thousand.

Today, I discovered that my 31st student would be meeting me for the first time tomorrow. I found out when I logged into my grade book online and saw that red number, the sign that something has changed. I quickly requested an additional desk from the office (which was delivered during 4th, so way to go custodial staff! I expected to have to wait a few days) and shot out an email requesting this kiddo's grades. For fun, I composed a little poem to commemorate the moment.

It turns out that this new kid is friends with a student in my 4th period class. That student inferred what was happening when the desk was brought it and guessed the student's name which prompted him to tell me that the new student comes from a different high school.

The email was already sent, however, and my poem (below) was distributed amongst the other English teachers. Perhaps, if you read it, you'll begin to understand why teachers get flustered as the grading period closes or students transfer from one class/school to another.

Here it is for your own review.

The Day Before the End of the Grading Period
by Mrs. V

'Twas the day before the end of the grading period
and all through the school,
the children were slacking;
they thought it was cool.

The grades were all posted
on each teacher's door
in hopes that "What am I missing"
would be spoken no more.

I was keeping calm
as I entered late grades.
I opened the grade book
and stood - amazed.

For what to my bespeckled
eyes should appear
but a brand new student.
Oh, my. Oh, dear.

This is important;
this is my plea:
I really need his grades.
Will you please help me?


Maybe you don't love it but that's okay. Here's something you might find useful, however. If you find it necessary to move your child from one school to another, you might want to check their end of grading cycle dates at both schools. It's not as big of a deal at the first school as it is at the second. The second school has to wait on the grades to go through the central office and that can take some time. Often your kid will get an Incomplete because we do not have enough information to go on. That can be difficult to change later. By the time you find out what your child's grade was the previous grading cycle, the new cycle has come out and your student could be failing for the semester, risking the loss of credit. If your teacher had known, more attention could have been paid to your kiddo. If you had known, you would have been on him/her like make-up on a circus clown. Just a little something to keep in mind.