Standards-Based Report Card

A standards-based report card (SBRC) shows how students are progressing on specific grade-level standards in each subject. Instead of a single overall grade, you see strengths and next steps for each skill.

• To give families a clearer picture of what students know and can do.
   
• To align with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and Holliston’s Vision of a Graduate.
   
• To provide consistent language across classrooms and grade levels.
   
• To focus on growth using multiple measures over time.

Academic areas (e.g., Literacy, Math, Science, Social Studies, and Specialist subjects) use a five-level proficiency scale. 

• Exceeding: The student demonstrates independence and applies skills in ways that go beyond grade-level expectations.
   
• Meeting: The student demonstrates consistent understanding and application of grade-level skills and concepts.
   
• Approaching: The student shows consistent development of grade-level skills and concepts and is on a trajectory toward meeting expectations. Continued support and practice are needed to apply these skills with accuracy and independence.
   
• Progressing: The student demonstrates some understanding of grade-level skills and concepts and is able to engage with grade-level content when provided targeted support.
   
• Beginning: The student is not yet demonstrating understanding of the expected skills and concepts and requires ongoing support to build understanding.
   
• Currently Teaching (Miller only): The student is learning this skill now, and it has not yet been formally checked or graded.

Teachers consider a body of evidence gathered over time: daily classwork and discussions, performance tasks and projects, reading/writing/math samples, observational notes, and common/benchmark assessments.

SEL reflects how students learn and contribute to the community so it is reported separately from Academics. SEL includes (examples): Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Responsible Decision-Making, along with Work Habits (e.g., preparedness, perseverance, collaboration, organization).

SEL Indicator Scale:

• Routinely - frequently and independently
   
• Sometimes - Occasionally, but not consistently
   
• Not Yet - an area of continued focus- happens rarely or sporadically

Keeping SEL separate ensures Academic proficiency reflects what students know and can do in each subject, while SEL/Work Habits highlight the behaviors and strategies that help them learn.

• Literacy (Foundational Skills, Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening)
   
• Mathematics (Practices, Operations & Algebraic Thinking, Numbers & Base Ten/Fractions, Measurement & Data, Geometry)
   
• Science and Social Studies
   
• Specialist Areas (Grades 1-5) Performing Arts, Visual Arts, Wellness (Health & PE), World Language (Spanish), Technology & Engineering, Digital Learning, Writing Enrichment (for French Immersion)

• Learning is organized by specific standards rather than a single subject grade.
• Student progress is communicated based on their movement toward mastery of end-of-year standards.
• Behavior, effort, and work habits are reported separately from academic performance.

Report cards are issued three times per year (trimesters). Progress reports and parent/guardian conferences may also be used to communicate growth between report cards.

Learning is a progression across the year. Your student’s academic indicators show where they are right now on their path toward the end-of-year grade-level expectations. Teachers gather evidence over time and the indicator may change as understanding grows.

Yes. Teachers provide concise narrative comments that point to evidence of learning, highlight strengths, and outline clear next steps for continued growth at school and at home.

It indicates the skill is being taught now and hasn’t yet been formally assessed. Once there’s sufficient evidence, your student will receive one of the academic indicators above.

• Ask your student to explain what they’re learning and to show evidence (e.g., a solved problem, a paragraph, notes, a project plan).
   
• Build work habits: consistent routines for packing materials, reading nightly, and chunking long-term tasks.
   
• Practice SEL in everyday situations: planning ahead, taking turns, using “I” statements, reflecting on choices, and repairing mistakes.
   
• Partner with your student’s teacher to align at-home practice with class supports.
   

Your school will share updates and resources via newsletters, school webpages, and family events. Please reach out to your student's teacher or the school office with any questions.