‘Portfolio Day’ again made parents proud

The third-annual “Portfolio Day” at Robert Moore School here last Thursday was a huge success yet again.
Grade 7 and 8 students put together a portfolio to showcase a collection of their writing to their parent(s) or guardian(s), which included poetry, writing exemplars, expositories, narratives, speeches, letters, or anything else that they had written and felt comfortable showing off.
As part of the seminar, parents read their children’s writings with them in the gymnasium and then, over cookies, conducted a meaningful discussion about the importance of revising, the risks that were taken in the piece, and the improvements that had been made since the last time they saw their work.
For some, this was a rare and enjoyable experience since children generally don’t bring their work home to show their parents.
Grade 7 student Monty Visser admitted he rarely brings his writing home for his mom to see and so when she came to the school, she was so excited to see what he had been up to.
“It’s good that we’re learning what they’re doing in school,” Christine Visser enthused.
“I really liked the poem that he wrote about his sister. It was very funny,” she laughed.
Throughout their 20-minute block, mother and son were giggling and talking. She was clearly engaged in the writing that Monty had produced and was very proud of him.
Monty, for his part, was thankful of her approval and even proud of himself after the meeting.
“The kids really enjoy it and so do the parents,” said Sonja Bodnarchuk, a Grade 7 teacher at Robert Moore who was supervising last Thursday’s event.
“It is a very positive way to say something nice about their children and to get a glimpse at where they are at,” she explained.
Every single Grade 7 and 8 student participated, meeting with either their parent or guardian, or a volunteer.
Bodnarchuk noted about 90 percent of the parents did come in (if not more), but those students whose parents could not make it were matched up with someone who was willing and eager to see their work.
After meeting with the child, each adult was encouraged to fill out a response sheet and the comments recorded were very positive.
Parents admitted they had never realized their child’s skill or creativity, and that now that they are aware, they have been given even more reason to be proud of them.
Other comments included feeling moved by the writing—with some parents even compelled to tears upon the realization of their child’s talent.
Bodnarchuk said the annual event really just helped to show each and every parent that their child is creative and talented, and the parents were very thankful for the opportunity.