End-of-Year Portfolios: Showcasing Student Growth Beyond Grades
- laura341988
- May 29, 2024
- 5 min read
When an academic year draws to a close, it is imperative to celebrate a student's growth throughout the year beyond just grades. At Forward Leap, children will have an end-of-year portfolio put together for them. These are for families to look at and see all that the children have accomplished.
In this post. we will discuss all about these portfolios and what is included in them.
What and Why of the End-of-Year Portfolios
The end-of-year portfolios at Forward Leap are collections of student's work, achievements, pictures, funny quotes and more. Everything is put together in a binder (of their favorite color) and given to you to keep.
After the portfolios are created, I arrange times to meet with the families and go over everything that is included in their child's binder. This allows me to provide explanations and context for the materials.
These portfolios are very beneficial and used specifically for the following reasons:
Growth- Having completed work done throughout the year in their binders will show the improvements that were made and how far they have come.
Whole-child assessment- Instead of just academic grades, the portfolios also show the children's abilities, social/emotional development and creativity.
Reflection- The children are able to look at their portfolios and reflect on their year at Forward Leap.
Closure- The portfolios serve as a comprehensive way to wrap up the year instead of just a good bye.
Next staff/school- If a student is switching schools, the portfolios can be shown to the staff so they can see the academic level the student is at.
What Is Included In The Portfolios?
Each portfolio will include a fair amount of things so you can get a really good look at all that your child did over the year. The following are the components of them:
Cover page- This will have your child's name, picture, grade and school year.
Table of contents
School statements- This will have Forward Leap's vision, mission, about section and approach.
School schedule- This will include our daily and full year schedule.
Student's attendance log- This will be marked everyday, showing whether they are there that day or not.
Individualized curriculum plan- This will include the child's curriculum and materials they used for the core subjects as well as the books that were read.
Group studies and curriculum- This will include the topics, lesson plans and activities for the group subjects (P.E., science, art, social studies and geography)
Work samples- This will include sample pages of work completed in each core subject.
Grades and assessments- This will include the child's progress reports made by me, IXL assessments and their standardized test results that they are required to take in Minnesota.
Teacher reflection and key takeaways- This is my write up of each child's growth, achievements and struggles over the school year. I will also put in my goals for them for the next year if they will be back.
Student reflection and interview- This will include their answers to specific questions I ask about the school year (i.e. "what was your favorite science experiment"?)
The portfolio Process
The creation of the portfolios is something that is done throughout the year instead of waiting till the last week of school. Here is part of the process:
Collect workbook pages- I choose workbook pages done mid month in the different subjects.
All About Reading write-up- Mid month throughout the year, I take pictures of each student working on their lessons. Then I take note of how they did during the lesson. I combine the picture and the notes into one paper and add it to the portfolio.
Art work- I either take pictures of art projects or include some in the portfolio.
IXL assessments- Every two months, I will print out their IXL assessments and include it in the portfolio.
Take pictures throughout the year- I take pictures of the students doing activities and projects and take note of what they were doing, Early in the last month of school, I put this all together in the portfolio.
Progress reports go right in- Right after I create each child's progress report, I will put them in the portfolio.
Attendance log updated daily- This log will be in the portfolio binder at the start of the school year and i will mark down their attendance daily.
Print lesson plans- I copy some lesson plans I created/we have done and put them in the binder. There will be at least one from each subject.
Time to think- In early May of the school year, I take the time to reflect on each student's year at Forward Leap. I then create the reflection write-ups and place them in the binders.
Fun reflection and interviewing- In early May, I take the children aside and ask them questions about their school year. I then, type up the answers and place them in the binder. This is a casual thing and the answers might even be kind of funny!
Celebration Day
Once all portfolios are completed, we will have an end-of-year celebration day in which they will be given out.
On this day, we will all meet as a group and I will have the portfolios spread out. Each child will find theirs and sit down with it. They will then flip through them and take turns discussing what is in them to the rest of the class. We will also reflect on the whole year as a group.
This day will include a movie and treat that we all decide on.
Sharing Sessions With Parents
I will be scheduling sessions during the last week of school for the portfolios to be shared with parents.
These sessions will involve the families and I going over everything regarding how the school year went for their child in addition to looking at the contents of the portfolio. I will block off enough time so we aren't rushed as I want to answer as many questions as necessary and also let everyone say all that they need to say.
We can do these in-person or virtually-whatever families are comfortable with.
In Conclusion
End-of-year portfolios at Forward Leap empower students to take pride in their learning and showcase how far they have come over the school year. As a micro-school, we embrace the use of them to foster a sense of community and show the unique experiences that occur within our alternative learning environment.
Are you looking for a different kind of school option for your child? Contact us today and see if Forward Leap could be a right fit for your family!
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