Parent/Teacher Conferences are quickly coming up in October! To have effective communication with parents, it’s imperative that you follow certain steps. As a teacher, you have a laundry list of topics to go over during the conference, but you only have 20 minutes to fit it all in. Twenty minutes will go by quickly, but by following the tips below you will be on the path to successful and beneficial conferences.

Ways to Effectively Communicate with Parents

Tip 1: Be Prepared

This is a very simple tip but you can quickly make your anxiety go up and overwhelm yourself when you’re not prepared.  Trying to simplify the data you will need to go over with parents is difficult but can be done. First collect the following data about each student.  The child’s reading level, phonics screener, math assessments, and writing samples. Then look for and provide a “glow”, which is a positive academic comment and then a “grow”, which is an improvement academic comment pertaining to an area that needs improvement. These two comments can lead to great conversations which is imperative when discussing a child’s progress.  Even if a child is making great progress in your classroom you can still give them a grow in an area that may not need improvement, but simply be an area where you feel they can further challenge themselves. Parents like to know and feel that their child is being not only educated but challenged every day.

Tip 2: Be Direct and Honest  

Do not throw out big teacher terms that a parent would have difficulty understanding.  Think of when you take your car to a mechanic. When he starts talking about compressors, intakes and manifolds on your car you can easily get lost in the jargon when he uses words you have never heard let alone spell daily.  When the shortcut statement is a belt that rotates a pulley broke and is making your vehicle run hot. Have that in consideration when a parent is sitting across the table from you. Don’t start throwing out acronyms and assessment studies they’ve never heard of. Parents come to parent teacher conferences to get to know you better and understand how they can help their child in school. Not to learn the curriculum.  You also want to never hide information from a parent just to appease their feelings. Being honest with a parent about a difficult child, learning disability, or behavioral concern is a nerve racking process. But you have to remember that it’s your job to help guide the parent through the schooling process. You have the degree to help explain to parents when their child needs help. Do not be afraid to ask for support from your administration, speech, special education, or gifted and talented teachers. They are there to support you and help explain to parents the next steps in helping their child. Remember the child is your first priority.

Tip 3: Being a Listener

Before the conference begins I either email out or have copies of a positive note sheet for parents to describe their child.  The parent brings it with them or can fill it out while they wait for their conference. I love giving the note to their child the next day! It makes the child feel loved and proud of what their parents feel like they have accomplished. This, which can be a different perspective than your own, can be taken into consideration as well. If you have a helicopter parent that brings in all of their child’s work from the beginning of the year this is a great time to answer his/her questions. Remember even the hardest parents only want the best for their child. Allow a few minutes at the end of the conference to go over questions or expectations that the parents might have. This will give you time and an opportunity to get to know the parents more.  You can always suggest to set up another conferences if you feel like the questions the parents are asking might go longer than 20 minutes. Knowing parents helps prepare you for working with them all year long and can definitely help out if special situations arise!

Tip 4: Take Homes for Parents

The number one question I always get from parents is what can I do at home with my child. Prepare copies of a flier filled with websites, apps, book list, and activities they can do with their child at home. I make a list for reading, writing, and math at home assignments. After conferences, I attach this list on my website and newsletter. Just in case they misplace the paper.

Tip 5: You Got This

Parents can be very demanding, but remind yourself that parents only want the best for their child just like you’d want the best for theirs. Don’t let demeaning parents, nor criticism get to you. Remember you went to school to be an educator. Be proud of your time and use those tools you’ve learned on how to be a successful teacher. You wouldn’t have gotten this far if you weren’t capable remember that.

 

September 18, 2018 | 2 Comments