This doesn't need to be something earth-shattering; the question is more asking for a special attribute of your child. Not sure how to write a parent brag sheet for college? A Comprehensive Guide. Be honest. Parent brag sheets are becoming more popular, but many parents don't get much guidance on how to complete them. Ask below and we'll reply! ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score, How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League, Is the ACT easier than the SAT? Read about how to build a versatile college application here. Adjectives About Kids: Using the Power of Words to Increase Confidence, Adjectives to Describe a Childs Strengths, Adjectives to Describe a Kids Personality, No-Bake 4th of July Icebox Cake American Flag, 29 Classic Hand Clapping Games for Kids (+Videos and Printable Lyrics), Easy Cheesy Chicken Taco Spaghetti Recipe. Introduce yourself, your child, and your family structure. While its mainly written to help your guidance counselor, any time you need a recommendation from a teacher, supervisor, or coach, you can also hand them the brag sheet so that they know about all of the things that youve achieved. #11: How does your student react to setbacks? The positive characteristics of college students are not easy to measure. Within this article is a list of 100 words you can use to describe your child, and below that list we've added explanations of our top picks from that list, for your reading enjoyment. on-the-ball. You might mention creativity, optimism, problem-solving, perseverance, organization, discipline, ability to get along with everyone, etc. The absolute best way to create a strong parent brag sheet is to back up your assertions with examples. To give you some idea, here is a list of descriptive words and phrases I have collected over the years: A: Academic, adventurous, an advocate, analytical, animal-lover, animated, articulate, artistic, assertive, astute, athletic, autonomous, B: Balanced, brilliant, business-oriented, C: Can-do attitude, capable, caring, cerebral, good with children, class clown, community service oriented, compassionate, competent, concerned about others, confident, conscientious, considerate, courageous, creative, curious, D: Daring, dependable, detail-oriented, diligent, disciplined, down-to-earth, driven, E: Empathetic, enthusiastic, an entrepreneur, ethical, an explorer, F: Fearless, a finisher, fitness-oriented, flexible, focused, a foodie, friendly, doesn't suffer fools, fun, funny, G: Generous, gentle, genuine, never gives up, goal-oriented, goes beyond what is expected, good natured, good with the elderly, gracious, grounded, H: Happy, hard-working, health-oriented, honest, humble, GREAT sense of humor, I: Imaginative, fiercely independent, inspirational, an intellectual, intelligent, interpersonal, involved, K: Kind, has real know-how, knowledge-seeking, L: Good with languages, a leader, a fast learner, logical, loyal, M: Mature, mechanically oriented, methodical, modest, motivated, multi-lingual, musical, O: An "old-soul," optimistic, organized, original, outdoorsy, outgoing, his or her own person, P: Passionate, patient, persistent, poised, polite, popular, positive, has stage presence, a problem solver, R: A reader, reliable, a researcher, resilient, resourceful, respected, respectful, responsible, a risk-taker, S: Scholarly, scientific, a self-starter, science-oriented, sensitive to others, sincere, sparkling, spiritual, a sponge for ideas, a sports nut, stands out from the crowd, social, strong-willed, studious, supportive, T: Take-charge person, talented, a natural teacher, a team player, techy, tenacious, deep thinker, thirsty for knowledge, loves to travel, trustworthy, U: Unafraid, unique, unpretentious, upfront, W: Willing to step up, worldly, beautiful writer. <p>Ok, so I am filling out the "parent brag sheet" that D's high school Guidance Counseling department recommends parents complete for the Guidance Counselor Report that gets submitted to her college choices. #1: What has been your student's greatest accomplishment in high school? Lets take a closer look at the different sections. Those words and phrases will become a part of their identity and form a foundation of self-confidence and strength. I have worked as hard as possible in school. Just so you know, research suggests that knowing who you are is a first step in becoming a confident, effective adult. What's especially interesting about this list, which can be used to generate ideas for superlatives when writing letters, is how the adjectives most definitive of work ethic and character ("pace-setting," "tenacious," "on-the-ball") immediately suggest that . Adjectives describe, identify or further define nouns and pronouns. Objectives To describe the characteristics and clinical outcomes of children with fever 5 days presenting to emergency departments (EDs). At my first college admissions meetings with students, I ask parents to identify nouns, adjectives, phrases, and short stories that will help me know something about their son or daughter. How to Get a Great Letter of Recommendation, Extracurriculars Matter To You and To Colleges, Volunteering: How Helping Others Helps You. For example, if your child wants to become a psychiatrist, the counselor might use the letter to highlight the student's STEM skills and willingness to help other students with homework and group projects. University applicants who demonstrate the following qualities of a good college student have more to contribute to a school: Leadership. That's why you need to think about your goals, accomplishments, and personal values. Be sure to explain how your child took charge and what the positive outcome was. Many schools ask for a brag sheet - either from a student, parent, or both, and the formats can vary. I have seen behaviors, attitudes and self-esteem completely transformed in my classroom just by carefully choosing words to describe kids in a positive light. As you start working on your college applications, youll learn that letters of recommendation from your counselor make up an important component of the process to distinguish you from your classmates. warmhearted, strong character, analytical, creative, truth seeker, fair, engaged, hard-working, innovative problem solver, committed, loyal, a fount of minutiae for a wide spectrum of subjects, smart, willing to help, a good advocate, quirky, funny, intelligent, fair, determined and curious. This exercise is the beginning of a process to come up with word messages students want colleges to "get" about them as they fill-out applications, write essays and have interviews. Read the complete guide to peer recommendations here. A teacher who knows you well can give insight into your leadership ability or your collaborative approach to team projects. That said, dont say anything that reads as completely over the top. Jam-packed: full of fun school activities and people. Affectionate. to find out how we can help you get accepted. Here are seven words to describe your childs bad traits to someone, like a teacher: Your childs quirky traits are what make him/her unique. College admissions get more and more competitive every year, so you want to present yourself with the best application you can. What is your greatest strength as a student and a person? Add a line or two about what you do as part of each role. Then, what do admission officers look for? Include specific details about what separates your childs achievements from other applicants. An adjective is a word that describes or modifies nouns or pronouns. My ideas and advice has been shared by Parents Magazine, Good Housekeeping and Women's First.Read more about me! The number of questions varies, but it's often around five to ten. 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Think about what your counselor would want to know that they could then use for their letters. After the meeting, I email the list of the words to the student and parents, so they can keep adding words. Read the complete guide to peer recommendations here. As a result, she became the club's first community liaison. If youve had a job in high school, mention it on your brag sheet, briefly describing your role, job responsibilities, as well as specifying how long youve been working and whether the position is paid. List of Words To Describe Children active adaptable adorable adventurous affectionate aloof ambitious animated annoying anxious articulate artistic assertive attentive authentic aware beautiful bold brash brave bright calm careless caring cautious challenging charismatic charming chatty cheerful cheery clever clumsy communicative compassionate If your schools. This could range from your student taking on a difficult course load during junior year, to finding ways to stay organized and balance getting enough sleep while still impressing with extracurriculars and schoolwork. There can be a lot of pressure, feeling like this is your one chance to make the letter strong or that you have to squeeze all of your childs characteristics into one form. "We want to see the kind of curiosity and enthusiasm that will allow you to spark a . Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here: PrepScholar 2013-2018. We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. But be strategic about your tone. Counselors are reading dozens, often hundreds, of these brag sheets, so don't hand them a novel. The parent brag sheet is a way for the student's parent to highlight their child's strengths so the counselor can include an honest, in-depth, and strong recommendation letter with the student's college applications. This means helping your children appreciate their strengths, and grow through their challenges or perceived weaknesses. Our new student and parent forum, at ExpertHub.PrepScholar.com, allow you to interact with your peers and the PrepScholar staff. We also go over common parent brag sheet example questions and explain how to answer them. Tell us the type of college environment that you think will bring out the best in you as a student and as a person. Describe an academic experience that has strongly influenced you in high school. Make sure you dont repeat anything youve already listed, as the counselor has many of these documents to read. We used it to highlight things that might not have made it onto the transcript or teacher recs. Extracurricular activities: What you do outside the classroom reveals a lot about you. These traits arent necessarily bad, but they can be a little weird when compared to other kids. Every college application season, parents of high school seniors are asked to fill out a questionnaire called a parent brag sheet. The purpose of the parent brag sheet is to help high school counselors write letters of recommendation for students. Or follow me on Pinterest or Instagram, Your email address will not be published. self-driving. Include specific details about what separates your child's achievements from other applicants. They want innovators who are passionate about their pursuits and willing to take risks. ; They can describe quantity, color, size, condition, origin, appearance, personality, and time. Dig down deep and think about what separates your child from the rest. This means that applications are stronger when they have a common theme running through them, particularly if it ties into a future career. Or, "How do you think your daughter's (son's) friends would describe her (him)?". This exercise is the beginning of a process to come up with word messages students want colleges to "get" about them as they fill-out applications, write essays and have interviews. Give the trait, then add a few sentences of explanation to why it is important to your child's character. Finally, it's important to cover any challenges your child has faced and, most importantly, how they have overcome these challenges. It can also simply allow the teacher to get to know your child more. 100+ positive adjectives to describe a child Adaptable Adventurous Affectionate Alert Ambitious Amiable Astute Attentive Authentic Aware Awesome Bold Brave Calm Capable Caring Compassionate Confident Considerate Consistant Courageous Courteous Curious Decisive Dependable Determined Dexterous Diligent Diplomatic Dynamic Earnest Encouraging Energetic You see, if a child repeatedly hears someone describe them using positive words, eventually they start to believe what they are hearing. What has been your students greatest accomplishments in the past 3-4 years? #6: What activity or topic is your student most passionate about? This is a question that students often encounter in supplemental essays. This can be related to academics, such as an A in a math class they struggled with or winning a prestigious academic competition, but it doesn't need to. independent. You dont want a childs self-worth to be connected to the way they look. Below are 12 common questions included in high school parent brag sheet examples, as well as an explanation of what the counselor is looking for and what you should include in each of your responses. Have you participated in community service? For example, if your child began high school struggling with time management but has made great strides, that's also a great example. Maybe your child tore his ACL while playing football sophomore year and spent hours each week doing rehab so that he was able to play his senior season. Please list 3 adjectives to describe yourself and why 1. The Most Important Question in College Admissions! You should also mention here what youre looking at as your major. Although most come with pre-assigned sections such as Extracurriculars or Honors, if youre asked to write a brag sheet from scratch, you can still use the following format and create yours. Everyone is going to face setbacks throughout their life, and colleges want to admit students they're confident can roll with the punches. Remember that it. List three adjectives to describe your student. This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. The brag sheets that schools ask students to fill out instead of parents may or may not ask the above questions. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Here are seven words to describe your childs good traits; you can use them when describing your child to teachers and/or anyone whom you feel should know about your kids good qualities: 20 of the Best Words to Describe a Leader / Boss. The terms 'lively' and 'inquisitive' are not the only two words that describe the nature of children; there are multiple adjectives that can be used. This brag sheet is used by the student's guidance counselor to write a letter of recommendation or counselor recommendation form some colleges require. What do college admissions look for in an essay? Instead, be brief and try to put a positive spin on things by writing something like, My student has worked hard to maintain her GPA in her difficult classes.. I like to hear from both parents because moms and dads often have unique perspectives on their kids. Regardless of whether the form comes with preset prompts or not, consider what the student brings that most of their classmates dont. These positive adjectives to describe kids focus on character traits, not appearances. While answering the last portion of the question, dig deep to think about what you truly hope that your child gains from college. This could be academic, athletic, or extracurricular. Today we are sharing a huge list of adjectives about kids to increase self-confidence and esteem in children. Why do this? Then the other parent chimes in with more adjectives: "Caring, respectful, great with children." The essay you write as part of the application process is one of your best chances to stand out. Reveal your passions, talents, and character with a well-written essay. The parent brag sheet is a way for the student's parent to highlight their child's strengths so the counselor can include an honest, in-depth, and strong recommendation letter with the student's college applications. These words to describe your child should include good traits and bad traits. However, she wanted more opportunities for group trips, so she took it upon herself to contact 8 outdoor experience tour operators and arrange discounted rates for the group. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Simply Well Balanced with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. It's important to note that you may not be asked to write a parent brag sheet; many parents aren't. College essay: The college essay gives you the opportunity to show the admission officers who you are and how you will contribute to the college campus. Be genuine kids can tell when youre not being authentic. List the three or so activities your child cares most about. But, if your family has experienced a job loss or significant change in finances, this may be a good place to explain that your child is prioritizing schools that are cheaper and in-state. This doesn't need to be a detailed answer; a brief overview of your child's career goals is enough. Overtime, your child will begin to integrate the words they hear you use to describe them into their own sense of self worth. You want the counselor's letter to be part of that theme, which might affect what you choose to discuss in certain responses. The questions will ask about different aspects of your child's personality and accomplishments, and you should expect to spend at least 30 minutes on it. Tips and Examples, Guidance counselors are sometimes asked to supply letters of recommendation, ask teachers for letters of recommendation, colleges are more impressed by a strong spike in one area than being well-rounded in many different areas, This means that applications are stronger when they have a common theme running through them, a better chance at getting into their dream school, Get Free Guides to Boost Your SAT/ACT Score. Here are 20 words to describe your child; you can use these words for any child: There are so many things to love about your child, from the things he/she says to the things he/she does. If you need to complete one, chances are youre inclined to say only good things about your child. Think about what your counselor would want to know that they could then use for their letters. There is no statistically significant . For each, include how long they've been involved and some highlights of their involvement (such as awards won, a favorite memory, etc.) If your schools brag sheet doesnt ask so, you can talk about your athletic involvement in this section. This is often the first question on the parent. Community-minded Compassionate Confident Conscientious Consistent Constructive Cooperative Courageous Creative Cultured Curious Customer-focused Daring Decisive Dedicated Dependable Detail-oriented Determined Diligent Diplomatic Direct Discerning Driven Dynamic Easygoing Efficient Encouraging Energetic Enterprising Entrepreneurial Ethical Talk about their strengths and their . As for tone, its all about being honest and humble, while still bringing out the positives. Are you a mama who wants to learn how to create a home focused on quality time and fun as a family? 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Then, you can figure out how you can best express those in your applications. Your recommenders can also benefit from knowing whether youve been active for a long period of time, so adding the year you started an activity can help reflect your commitment. Choose four or five adjectives that describe your child. Again, maturity can indicate development both inside and outside the classroom. On the other hand, if your childs grades have dropped or stayed stagnant, try to avoid explaining why. To answer this question, state the event, the impact it had on the student (such as a dip in grades or prolonged absence from school), and (if applicable) progress they've made since then, such as grades going back up. Dont rant about how proud you are of your child. As for tone, its all about being honest and humble, while still bringing out the positives. More academic strength examples. Tell us what your friends would say are your three most admirable qualities. When answering this question, you want to be positive, original, and specific. Write the words on post-it notes and leave them for your child to find in their room, on the bathroom mirror or inside their favorite book. For example, "Jenna loved being part of her school's Outdoors Club because it allowed her to get more familiar with nature and be around peers with similar interests. When they review your application, admissions officials will also look closely at your extracurricular activities and what you did with your time during summer breaks. Making your answers clear and concise is the best way to ensure the counselor reads all the information and gets your main points. Focused. Even staying at home to help out with babysitting or household chores like cooking for the family shows character. In most cases, the ratio of student to school counselors is quite high, particularly in public schools where the ratio stands at 430-to-1. If this question isn't applicable to your student (and it won't be for most), feel free to write N/A and move on. Instead of rushing through, take some time to think of adjectives that will jump off the page and would catch the attention of admissions counselors reviewing the letters of recommendation. Explain, for example, that your daughter spent an entire summer working, without pay, for an environmental nonprofit to help provide your community with safer drinking water. If you believe nothing is relevant here, you dont need this section! ; Predicate adjectives follow verbs such as become, look, or seem. ; In certain situations, adjectives can become nouns, and vice . ambitious. These may also be a form where you have to fill in blanks that are more straightforward and resemble questions that you might be asked on the. Instead, they may focus on how your child is passionate about volunteering, for example. This is your chance to explain what your child is best at. Here are some tips on using adjectives to describe kids: When used consistently these words will become a natural part of your daily routine and your child will become accustomed to hearing themselves in a positive light every day. Colleges really do try to be as fair as possible during the admissions process, so if something happened beyond your child's control that negatively impacted them, they want to know about it so they can take it into account. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. For this question, you're often asked to state the adjective, then explain why you chose it. Guidance counselors are sometimes asked to supply letters of recommendation for students applying to college. Expect to answer about 5-10 questions; high school parent brag sheet example questions are discussed just above this section of the article. Alongside the above, students and parents may also encounter the following questions in their brag sheet: Finally, similar to the last two questions on the parent brag sheet, a student one may also ask if theres any circumstance thats affected your performance in high school or whether or not theres something else you want to share (if youre creating your own template, you can add such as section if applicable). Because it's not unusual for counselors to be assigned dozens, or even hundreds of students, they understandably may not know certain students well enough to write an in-depth letter, especially if they only meet with students twice a year or so. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, 2015-2023 Simply Well Balanced ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, A Giant List of Adjectives to Describe Kids. Instead, be specific. hbspt.cta.load(360031, '4efd5fbd-40d7-4b12-8674-6c4f312edd05', {}); Have any questions about this article or other topics? For more on the ins and outs of applying to college, check out this full step by step guide! For this question, you'll want to give one or more examples of your child overcoming a setback (such as not making a sports team, getting a low grade on a test or in a class, having plans cancelled because of COVID-19, etc.). Discover this list of positive adjectives to describe your daughter! hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(360031, 'c8b8e502-c285-4182-9589-5f8ae230e78a', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); Different counselors will create different brag sheet forms, but all will ask about the student's accomplishments, academic habits, and personal strengths. This is also a great opportunity to discuss weaker parts of your child's application (such as lower grades or a lack of extracurriculars freshman year) and give examples of how far they've come since then. It's all about what you've gained, what you've learned and how you communicate that. If your child is bad at math, for example, you could write something like, Math is not Johnnys strong suit, but his work ethic and willingness to work with tutors have enabled him to maintain a B average in precalculus this year.. Active Adorable Adventurous Alert Ambitious Anxious Artistic Astute Athletic Attentive Awesome Awkward Beautiful Capable Captivating Careless Charming Chatty Clever Just like Id advise them to think carefully about their responses and try to stay away from common answers, I suggest that you do the same here. They are seeking evidence that your presence will positively impact the campus community. It's certainly not bad to be an aspiring journalist who also plays the piano beautifully, but colleges are more impressed by a strong spike in one area than being well-rounded in many different areas. What are the things you like about your school? Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points? This is your opportunity to help your child in the admissions process. , you may be asked obvious questions such as name, date of birth, and contact information. Social: bringing together students with different interests and personalities. Some might even inquire about your family - whether you live with both of your parents, what they do for a living, and whether you have any siblings. Your counselor might want to relay this information so that the admissions officers can gain a sense of your maturity and dependability. Colleges are looking for students who will succeed academically, be involved, and use their talents to help others. Adjectives are describing words and you can pretty much guarantee that the words kids grow up hearing are the same words they will end up using to describe themselves as adults.