Primary Reports by @MsHJS

Name: Anon
Twitter name: @MsHJS
Sector: Primary
Position: AHT
What is your advice about? Primary Reports

1. Start early. Gather evidence so that your report is personal to each child. Focus on positives and identify areas for development rather than weaknesses.
2. Read last year’s report first to avoid contradiction or repetition. Find the school style. Follow it.
3. Ask a respected colleague for good examples. Magpie effective structures or key phrases.
4. Get the children to collate their yearly highlights, targets, favourite bits in an appropriate way so that you can use this in your report.
5. Do a couple and get someone else to check them so you don’t waste time if you haven’t struck the right note. Plan a schedule. Stick to it.

Writing reports by @ramtopsgrum

Name: Graham Hartland
Twitter name: @ramtopsgrum
Sector: Secondary
Subject taught (if applicable): Biology
Position: Head of department
What is your advice about? Writing reports

1. When you mark a substantial piece of work, write strengths and weaknesses as brief comments into your markbook. Use these to help write longer reports.
2. If the report is tick box, then find out – and be consistent with how you use – the criteria for the tick box.
3. Be bold. Be honest. Be truthful. Be accountable. If you say a thing, have you the evidence to back this up in front of the parent later?
4. Comfort the afflicted; afflict the comfortable. But then you’d be doing this in class anyway. Reports should never be a surprise to the student.
5. Like exams, preparing for reports should start as soon as the student walks into your classroom. Observe and interact with your students. Make notes.

Writing reports by @AFosterTeach

Name: Andrew Foster
Twitter name: @AFosterTeach
Sector: Secondary
Subject taught (if applicable): History/Tougher Minds
Position: Head of Performance and Learning, Colfe’s School
What is your advice about? Writing reports

1. Allot an appropriate, finite amount of time for the task. Divide this by the number of pupils and stick to this time per pupil.
2. Write your reports shortly after completing the marking of the work of that class, preferably a piece that gives a broad view of their understanding of your subject.
3. Google “tabata timer”. Use one of the many apps or online versions to stick to your timings (or at least to see how far off you are).
4. Always include positives, *always*. If you want to change behaviour, you need to build rapport with both pupil and parent..
5. The bulk of the report might read like this: “In order for *pupil name* to improve in *aspect of subject*, they should *simple, practical HABIT*”. No habit, no likely change.

Writing Reports by Anonymous

Sector: Secondary
Subject taught (if applicable):
Position: Teacher
What is your advice about? writing reports

1. Learn the difference between practice and practise. Apply correct spelling consistently.
2. Save time by having a template, but after pasting triple check you’ve got the right name and pronouns for every kid.
3. Get a colleague to proof read your reports. This is essential if you don’t want your reports returned to you or someone else wasting time correcting them for you.
4. Meet the school deadline for submission so you get a reputation for being reliable and organised rather than the opposite.
5. Use SIMS (or your school’s equivalent) to check photos of students if you teach every kid in the year and aren’t EXACTLY sure who you’re writing about.