End-of-School Report Card: How to Handle Poor Grades

For many parents and their children, the school report card is a stressful subject—especially when it contains one or more poor grades.  

If it looks like a poor report card is in your child’s future, remember to keep things in perspective. A difficult semester or year doesn’t define your child forever, and no school problem is too big to overcome. Low grades are indicators that your child is falling behind or having trouble grasping concepts taught in class. Find out how you can get to the root of the problem and get your child back on track or get ahead.   

What should parents do when their child brings home a bad report card?  

For starters, have an open, honest conversation with your child about what went wrong this semester and year. Try to keep your emotions in check. Ask questions and listen without judgement.  

Talk to your child about the subjects that they like and dislike, how they feel about school and what they appreciate about their teacher’s approach. What felt good about this school year? What frustrated them the most? Getting your child to open up will help you understand their mindset and perspective. That’s crucial as you communicate with teachers and others about how to address the problems that are making school and learning hard for your child.  

Once you have a little firsthand information from your child, reach out to the teacher. Whether you’ve been in touch already this school year or not, this conversation is vital. The teacher will be able to speak to your child’s academic performance, of course, but make sure to discuss what else they notice, such as your child’s… 

• Focus  

• Attitude about learning  

• Ability to work with other students 

• Work habits  

• Quality of work and homework 

• Class participation 

Your child’s teacher is the best person to attest to their abilities as a student. Their observations and insights into what might be contributing to your child’s poor grades are very valuable. And chances are, they’ll have suggestions on what to do next—especially before the next school year starts.  

Summer tutoring will help your child boost their confidence and prepare for a great school year.  

A bad school report card is something your child wants to forget all about when the last bell of the school year rings. However, starting a new school year behind will set them up for another difficult year. The reality is, missing both academic and study skills will hold your child back and create new problems. The longer this goes on, the more your child will struggle. This can have a negative impact on their motivation and their self-esteem.  

Huntington can help your child with a one-to-one summer tutoring program. Our highly trained tutors help students rebuild their self-confidence and find lasting school success. We offer in-center and online programs of varying length to accommodate your family’s summer schedule.  

What should you expect from Huntington summer tutoring?  

The short answer: results. We have a long track record of helping students learn, and we know how to equip students with the skills and motivation to do their best in the next school year and beyond. Our proven methodology is a four-step approach:  

• Step #1: Conduct an academic evaluation. This comprehensive evaluation pinpoints a child’s strengths and weaknesses.  

• Step #2: Develop a personalized plan. Based on the results of the academic evaluation, we develop a customized learning plan targeted to meet the child’s needs.  

• Step #3: Deliver individualized instruction. An experienced, caring tutor helps the child learn at their pace and achieve their goals.  

• Step #4: Communicate progress. We meet regularly with parents throughout the program and can meet with teachers and school professionals during the school year too (with family permission).  

Give your child a foundation for success for the next grade with summer tutoring from Huntington. We offer a wide range of programs for students from kindergarten through 12th grade, whether your child is behind in a few specific subjects or wants to strengthen their study skills. Call us at 1-800 CAN LEARN today.