If your child's Language Arts teacher sent home a note...

[Briarmom]

riddled with errors, what would you do?

This is not the first time this has happened this year.

She ONLY teaches Language Arts.

How many errors in a note from the LA teacher is too many? I don't expect her to be perfect, but I do expect her to have a grasp of the English language.

 

[MomPOM]

Hmmm... that's a tough one. I'm a stickler for that kind of stuff and I've been horrified on a number of occassions at the writing of some teachers.

Is this a public or private school? The only reason I ask is that if it's public I can't really see anything coming from complaining. My son goes to a private school and you bet your sweet bippy I'd bring the letter to the attention of the principal. If it's a math teacher or an art teacher or something I'd have a bit of slack but this person is teaching Language Arts. How can you teach what you don't know?

Also, what grade level is she teaching? Is this pre-school or early grades? If so, I'd probably let a bit more slide than a middle school teacher.

What kind of errors are we talking about?

 

[Boston Tea Party]

Post it. I want to see if it is anything that I have written....

 

[maelstrom]

I would correct the errors and send it back.

 

[Briarmom]

Here is the most offending paragraph:

***Please note that 5th grade leveled reading books come in various sizes. They can be short novels, long, thick chapter books (Like Harry Potter) and picture books. I advise the students' to only pick a book, they are confident; they can read in the acquired time and can can comprehend.

 

[minkydog]

O.m.G. I'm appalled. Those mistakes are quite basic.I would expect more attention to detail from a LA teacher. I do believe that note would have to find it's way to the principal.

 

[Cinderella94]

Yikes! At first I was thinking to just let it go, but then I read the paragraph you showed us as an example...that's pretty bad. I'm a junior in high school and my AP Lang teacher would be all over me if I wrote that way.

 

[fraggle551]

I would be up there first thing tomorrow morning getting my child in a different class. I am a very laid back, hands off, let the teacher be person usually, but that letter is just awful. I cannot believe they are allowed to teach children Language Arts!

 

[DVCLiz]

O.m.G. I'm appalled. Those mistakes are quite basic.I would expect more attention to detail from a LA teacher. I do believe that note would have to find it's way to the principal.

minky, no apostrophe needed in its in your last sentence - I don't want to have to send you to the principal!!!

 

[Cinderella94]

This just occurred to me...maybe (and this is a BIG maybe) she had a (very unqualified, albeit) student teacher/teacher's assistant write it for her, and she chose not to proofread it? Pretty unlikely, but just a possibility. Either way, it's bad.

 

[mchames]

Here is the most offending paragraph:

***Please note that 5th grade leveled reading books come in various sizes. They can be short novels, long, thick chapter books (Like Harry Potter) and picture books. I advise the students' to only pick a book, they are confident; they can read in the acquired time and can can comprehend.

That paragraph reads as though written by someone whose first language is not English. Is that a possibility?

 

[Briarmom]

This just occurred to me...maybe (and this is a BIG maybe) she had a (very unqualified, albeit) student teacher/teacher's assistant write it for her, and she chose not to proofread it? Pretty unlikely, but just a possibility. Either way, it's bad.

I wish. I emailed her last week about 2 spelling errors (that lost my son 6 points) and her reply was very similar.

 

[DVCLiz]

Here is the most offending paragraph:

***Please note that 5th grade leveled reading books come in various sizes. They can be short novels, long, thick chapter books (Like Harry Potter) and picture books. I advise the students' to only pick a book, they are confident; they can read in the acquired time and can can comprehend.

Honestly, those look like typos made by someone in a hurry, not mistakes made by someone who doesn't know better.

leveled = level
students' = students
book, = book
confident; = confident
acquired = required
can can = can

It looks like the kind of thing you would send out if you typed something quickly and didn't proofread.

 

[Stevania]

That paragraph reads as though written by someone whose first language is not English. Is that a possibility?

MTE. A quick search shows the OP to be living abroad. I would cut the teacher some slack.

 

[C.Ann]

Here is the most offending paragraph:

***Please note that 5th grade leveled reading books come in various sizes. They can be short novels, long, thick chapter books (Like Harry Potter) and picture books. I advise the students' to only pick a book, they are confident; they can read in the acquired time and can can comprehend.

Ouch!

 

[disneymom3]

I wish. I emailed her last week about 2 spelling errors (that lost my son 6 points) and her reply was very similar.

Wait a minute. Your son was marked off 6 pts because of HER errors?

MTE. A quick search shows the OP to be living abroad. I would cut the teacher some slack.

No, she lives in the US now.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Actually leveled isn't a typo.

In the reading program that our school uses, books which have been assigned a level have been "leveled", they are, therefore, "leveled books". Most teachers have a library of "leveled" books that children can check out for assigned reading. They may also have a library of "unleveled" books that students can read just for fun. "Fifth grade leveled books" would mean the entire collection of leveled books that one would find in fifth grade, whereas "fifth grade level books" would mean a much smaller collection of books, those that have a DRA level starting with the number 5.

Confused? Yes, which is why I don't love it when teachers use "educatorese" in letters to parents, but not a typo.

I think there are lots of careless errors here, the kind that your fingers make when they're going faster than your brain. I'm not defending it, I think teachers need to pay attention to what they write if they expect their students to do the same, but not an indication that she doesn't know how to write and edit, just that she didn't take the time to do so.

 

[Briarmom]

That paragraph reads as though written by someone whose first language is not English. Is that a possibility?

No.

MTE. A quick search shows the OP to be living abroad. I would cut the teacher some slack.

A quick search would be wrong.

Wait a minute. Your son was marked off 6 pts because of HER errors?

Yes, but then she threw that whole worksheet out, so it was fine. She did not make the worksheet, so I don't consider that her fault.

 

[SilverL]

At first, I thought I would probably let it slide. However, after reading that paragraph, I would have a fit. Any LA teacher should proofread any note they send home. There really is no excuse for errors like THAT! Sometimes it's easy to overlook a typo when you proofread, but that paragraph was simply difficult and painful for this English major to slog through.

 

[Beca]

Seriously....I would let my child write their name at the top of the paper and correct the mistakes in red. Then, I would probably have them write the text correctly beneath the incorrect one.

If anything was ever said, I would play dumb and say, "Oh, we thought it was just another homework assignment. You mean, that was a REAL note?"