Keeping old papers/workbooks

[CynthiaOK]

Is there any real need to keep old workbooks (spelling, math, vocabulary)? I kept most of my oldest ds's, but when he started college, I threw them all out. Now, looking at the huge stack that just keeps getting bigger with the other boys, I'm wondering if I'm crazy!

Have you ever encountered a need to use/show old work your students have done prior to junior/senior year in high school?

I could have quite a bonfire for Halloween :D

[Kareni]

My teen is in the midst of the college application process. We have encountered a few requests for portfolios which might include lab reports, papers, reading lists, etc. None of the colleges have asked for workbooks, so you have my permission to bonfire away!

Regards,
Kareni

[Nan in Mass]

I suddenly have to supply a portfolio for the end of the year assessment. I've found keeping things helpful when making course descriptions for courses we did a few years back. Would you need the work if your child suddenly decided to play high level college sports? And I'm irrationally scared that I'll suddenly have to prove we did something to the school system. I'm keeping the elementry-level proofreading workbook my son did in 10th grade as proof that I was aware he had a weakness and did indeed try to do something about it... But I'm probably just paranoid. I might not feel so compelled to keep everything with the next one, whom I can probably count on testing well if I ever need to prove he's learning.
-Nan

[Myra]

I have a box (you know, the size that computer paper comes in) for every 2 years worth of school per box. That said....I toss in their the compostion notebook that he does his math in, science lab write-ups, best compositions, history research, reading list, my lesson plans, etc. - things just in case I'm asked to "prove" work. Never have been...but!!! I don't include textbooks (as I sell them when my kids are finished with them) but I do keep a list on texts per grade with isbn, author, etc.

[Martha]

I don't keep anything except tests or end of chapter review type sheets and samples of their best writing assignments and art work. That's it. No workbooks are ever saved. On the rare years when I gave an evaluation test of sorts such as the CAT or IOWA, I tossed all but the very best work for the year and the test. I figure as long as the test shows they are fine, then no one has any business asking for a portfolio of work. Not that anyone in my state has the right to ask for any of that anyhow. I keep it more for me to be able to see the progress they've made or need to make. I find my kids like it too. They get a real kick out of seeing how they have advanced over the year(s).

[Tammyla]

I'm learning to ditch them at the end of the year. I've started keeping once a month work or anything worth saving. Getting rid of some of the old ones was difficult because I'm sentimental. So I'm hoping to save the best of the best and free us of the rest.

[Margaret in CO]

I keep it all. I found that I had to have stuff from ALL 4 years of highschool for NCAA. I found I needed all 4 years of highschool papers once I found I needed NARS or something similar. And again, I needed all 4 years again for NCAA for #2. I'll definitely need to go through the NCAA process with #3, so we have it all!

[CynthiaOK]

What about the pre-high school years? I have boxes of workbooks, papers, etc. from K-8. We test quite often so I have documentation of 'learning'.

[Ellie]

You don't need to keep pre-high school stuff.

[Nan in Mass]

Ellie - I keep meaning to say that I'm grateful to you for posting here, with all your experience.

[Ellie]

Aw, thanks. You're too kind :-)

Folks hsing now have all sorts of information and experiences way beyond what I did (and my contemporaries), especially relating to things like scholarships, and what people in other states can/should do. And the Internet. What a wonderful resource that is! We barely had computers when my dc were little, lol.

[Moni]

Have you ever encountered a need to use/show old work your students have done prior to junior/senior year in high school?



No. And I have never "kept" any of it.
If someone asks for it, I'd just say I don't have it.

Who is going to ask for that stuff? :001_huh: :) :)