I Sucked at Grading

You know what I sucked at as a teacher? Grading! Every year I told myself I would stay on top of it, or I would only collect what truly needs graded. PFT! I would still find anything else to do but grade. To make it worse, admin started to mandate we needed one new grade a week! I was always doomed. 

No matter how "techie" I was, I did not like grading and inputting data at the same time. It was too much for me. I needed to focus on one thing first, and then the second step. It made the work longer, but I had a lot less errors. 

Even if I couldn't get around to grading right away, which we knew I wouldn't, I liked to organize by name or student number. From there I would use my homework tracker to show if they had turned it in. This enabled me to track if they turned it in on time, complete, if it was missing, or late. I only needed to do this for physical assignments. So....whenever I eventually made it around to grading I could remember if they actually turned it in on time.

I've always valued hand-written notes too. We can use the schools communication system, like ParentSquare, to send family messages, but I also like to send a physical note home. I know as a busy mom I always check their folders, but somedays I'm too busy to check all communication formats. A simple hand-written note can be super helpful. 

Someday, I will improve my grading track record. At this time, it's not there. I will continue to use tools to help me stay organized for when I do get around to grading. If you are like me and need a better system, use the link below to grab your own set!