Elementary Progress Reports

At Palo Alto Unified School District, we value strong partnerships between families and schools, with clear communication about your child’s progress being a key component of that relationship. Our elementary progress reports are designed to give you a comprehensive view of your child's social-emotional development and academic progress, aligned with district expectations and the Common Core State Standards. These reports highlight your child’s current performance, strengths, and areas for continued growth, all in relation to end-of-year grade level expectations.

We are continually working to enhance our progress reports to ensure they are clear, informative, and supportive of each child’s learning journey. This year, you may notice some updates to the reports, aimed at improving readability, clarity, and consistency across grade levels.

Below are links to blank copies of the 2024-2025 progress reports for each grade level.

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Progress Indicators

The elementary progress indicators have been updated for the 2024-2025 to provide a clear and comprehensive view of your child's social-emotional and academic progress, aligned with end-of-year grade-level standards. These changes help us identify early in the year students who may require additional resources or support to meet the standards. Here are some key things to know about the progress indicators:

When determining a student’s score, we consider both their evidence of progress and the level of support needed to meet grade level expectations.
Scores reflect your child’s progress toward end-of-year grade-level standards.
At the start of the school year, it’s common for students to receive fewer “Meets” or “Exceeds” scores as they are still developing skills.
One set of consistent performance level scores are used throughout the school year; the marker does not shift during the school year.
Separate indicator scores are used for reporting progress on Social-Emotional Learning grade level expectations.

The below table provides a summary of the Progress Indicators with descriptions for each performance level.

Academic Performance Levels
Name	Score	Description
Exceeds end-of-year standard	EX	Student consistently demonstrates evidence of exceeding the end-of-year standard Student independently applies and extends knowledge of this standard beyond end-of-year expectation
Meets end-of-year standard	MT	Student consistently demonstrates evidence of meeting the end-of-year standard Student requires little support to meet the end-of-year standard
Approaching end-of-year standard	AP	Student shows evidence of approaching (not yet meeting) the end-of-year standard Student needs additional time/practice to meet end-of-year standard
Below end-of-year standard	BL	Student shows limited or no evidence of approaching or meeting the end-of-year standard Student needs significant support to meet the end-of-year standard
Not taught or not assessed	NA	The standard has not yet been taught, or not enough evidence exists to determine student mastery

Social-Emotional Learning
Name	Score	Description
Demonstrating consistently	DC	Student consistently demonstrates evidence of meeting grade-level expectations
Making progress	MP	Student demonstrates evidence of making progress toward grade-level expectations
Not yet demonstrating	ND	Student is not yet demonstrating evidence of progress toward grade-level expectations

How to Access Progress Reports

Progress reports are viewable in Infinite Campus during the end of trimester grading window. Your school site will notify families when the progress reports are completed and ready for viewing. We recommend downloading and/or printing a copy of your child’s progress report during the viewing window.

Once the progress reports are available, Learn how to access the progress report

Understanding of the Standards

English Language Arts (ELA)

Teachers use the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) to guide their instruction in reading, writing, listening and speaking.

CCSS ELA Frameworks, written to align with the CCSS, provide teachers with guidance for ELA instruction.

Mathematics

Teachers use the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) to guide their instruction in mathematics.

CCSS math Frameworks, written to align with the CCSS, provide teachers with guidance for mathematics instruction.

The Math Practices are the same at each grade level, K-12, and the habits of mind that students should develop to foster mathematical understanding and expertise, skills, and knowledge. The posters below describe what the math practices look like at each grade level, K-5.

Science

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)
California Department of Education Science Framework

Social Studies

Teachers use these standards to guide instruction.

Music

Music teachers use the state standards to guide their instruction.

Physical Education (P.E.)

PE teachers use the state standards to guide their instruction.

Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)

Palo Alto Unified School District recognizes that social and emotional skills are critical to being a good student, citizen and worker. Elementary teachers are committed to providing a supportive classroom environment to help student build these skills and by embedding SEL lessons into classroom instruction across all content areas. The SEL descriptors on the report card are anchored in the research of the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL).

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