Annual Reports

Some states require standardized testing and others don't. Some will allow for a written narrative to annually evaluate the home schooler. Writing a written narrative as an annual assessment for your child can be easy to do if you have kept internal records throughout the year. One of the benefits of internal records is that they contain the information needed to fill out external records. Without the the internal records one has to rely completely on one's memory to write the written narrative or have standardized testing as the only annual homeschool assessment option.

In my state the written narrative can only be used in certain years. So when I can I use the written narrative option. The goal of the written narrative is to certify whether or not the home schooling child has made adequate academic progress. This can be easy to do if internal records have been kept by the parent and home schooling child.

Written Narrative

When one narrates, one tells a story. The narrative is a story told. A written narrative is made up of words telling the story. The home school written narrative tells the story of about the home schooling child's progress and how the one writing the narrative knows the child improved.

Proof of Academic Progress

For the sake of time and space I am focusing on the reading, writing, and spelling subjects but the same process would apply for whatever subjects taught. Pull out the internal records used during the home school year. Examine all the records but pay close attention to the first and fourth quarter reading, writing, and spelling Skills. Write them down.

Next, look through the home school record keeping journal for areas that needed improvement. Write theses down. Compare what is written to the fourth quarter internal records and home school journal. Notice the improvements. Determine whether the home schooling child progressed. Determine how much improvement the child made and write a sentence about it. Learn to see the records kept as proof of all the home schooling child learns.

The key to an annual written narrative is to provide written proof that your statement is true. Ask: How do I know the home schooling child improved? The answers are found on the internal records and journal records kept during the year.

Written Narrative Samples

Information for the sample written narratives comes from the internal home school records (daily lesson plan, record keeping journal, check off lists etc.) kept during the year. This example deals with spelling, grammar and writing skills but can also be used for other subjects.

Example 1

In the beginning of the year I would have described (child's name) as a reluctant writer. Now however she has actually expressed a desire to write. (Child's name) uses her own writing to identify nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, subjects and predicates. Currently I encourage her by telling her that she already knows what she needs to know to spell the word. I engage her in a dialog to help her think through the process (example: "How many syllables?", "What does the first syllable begin with?", "What do you hear next?", "Use two-letter /K/", "Use two letter /A/ that we may not use and the end of English words"). (Child's name) is often surprised that she did know how to spell the word. I believe her confidence in spelling will increase as she writes more and thinks through the spelling process on her own.

Example 2

As expected, (child's name)'s spelling has improved as a result of reading more. (Child's name) enjoys writing in her record keeping journal and writing her mystery story on the computer. She has learned to add details to her writing to create vivid word pictures as a result of working through homeschooling writing assignments.

Example 3

(Child's name)'s reading has improved through the year. Teaching her the phonograms has given her the added ability to decode unfamiliar words. She reads fluently and is pleased with herself during her independent reading time. On a few occasions (child's name) actually counted the number of words in the story that she read and was pleased to find out that there were over 300. (Child's name) also enjoys our read aloud times. Pinocchio by Carlo Colloido is her favorite. Her comprehension during the year has improved. She is quick to ask me to define any words she is unfamiliar with. She has recently taken on the assignment of reading to her baby sister. (Child's name)'s spelling has also improved as a result of the phonograms she has learned.

Example 4

In the beginning of the year (child's name) had trouble writing her letters. Many of them were reversed. Her penmanship has improved. She now writes the lower case quickly and accurately. (Child's name) enjoys creative writing and is easily able to convey her thoughts on paper. She enjoys writing poetry and dramatizing skits. She knows to start a sentence with a capital letter, and end it with a period. (Child's name) is also aware of when to use an exclamation point or question mark. She has learned the days of the week and the months of the year in order.

Exercise

Learn how to write a written narrative annual record

1. Pull out internal records for the year.

2. Compare the beginning skills with the skills learned at the end of the year.

3. Indicate whether or not the home schooling child made progress.

4. Give a couple of specific examples of how you know there was growth or improvement in the subject.

5. Repeat steps one through four. Do this for every subject you are required to teach.

6. At the bottom of the page certify whether the child has made adequate academic progress. This written statement is for academic progress for the whole year not individual subjects.

Write: I certify that (Child's name) has made adequate academic progress.

or

Write: I certify that (Child's name) has not made adequate academic progress.