A lot of us have experienced that sinking feeling of receiving a behavior note home from school. It often signals a negative incident, a disagreement, or a disruptive behavior. But what if I told you that these behavior notes can be transformed from mundane reports into powerful communication tools that promote understanding, collaboration, and positive ... Read More about Break the Cycle: Transforming Behavior Notes Home into Powerful Communication Tools
Parent involvement matters. In this post, the benefits of having parent support are shared. Parent handouts for teachers are included.
Is it about that time for you? Time to get ready for those parent-teacher conferences? Luckily, I had mine about two weeks ago. I have the same system I follow each year to prep for conferences and it honestly makes life super easy and stress free! When I prep for conferences, I pull out a file folder where I keep student work for the year. I keep things like math tests, sight word data, writing examples and reading assessments. When I am doing a conference I simply pull that stuff out to show progress and help parents understand where we need to go next in order to help their child grow. I also like to have a conference outline. I have 15 minutes per conference, so I need to stay on track! I also let parents take this outline home as reminders of things we are working on at school and ways they can help at home. When I fill out the conference outline, I use my little prompters to help jog my brain. Let's face it, preparing for these things can make the brain go a little foggy! When it is time for the actual conferences. I put a sticky note on the outside of the student's folder with their name and the time of their conference. I lay them out in order, so when parents come in, I can just grab their folder and we can get started right away! There you have it! Super simple, but effective! Feel free to grab more conference stuff from me by clicking the product image below! It's full of FREE conference goodies!! Inlinkz coding: An InLinkz Link-up
As teachers, it's important to keep the parent teacher communication open. Learn how to build rapport with 6 ways to keep parents in the know.
Communicating with families is often the most difficult and overwhelming part of teaching. There's no handbook for teachers to use to improve communication with parents, but we know how valuable positive home-school relationships are to student success. Developing these relationships makes dealing with behavior and academic concerns much easier. This list is a few of […]
Communication is a big part of the teacher - parent relationship. However, during distance learning it becomes even more important.
When parents are upset it can be very stressful. Read for 5 tips to remember to make working with parents a little easier. Parent communication tips.
Are you struggling to connect with parents? Communicating doesn’t have to be hard. Make it easy on yourself and use these 5 tips to be successful!
My first few years of teaching, there was nothing I was more terrified of than parents. I was worried they would be upset with me and that I wouldn’t have the right answers for them. I was also worried they might second guess what I was doing, or not like the way that things were […]
It's getting to be that time of year again. Parent-Teacher Conferences (PTCs). I have to say that I love PTCs. Working at the school that I did, it might be the only time I ever saw and actually communicated with the parents of certain students. Yes it meant long days at the school and trying to find a nice way to say "YOU WANT TO SEE PROGRESS?!? TRY WORKING WITH YOUR CHILD AT HOME!!!", but it also meant that parents and I were coming together to try and help their child become better.
Communicating with parents as a teacher is beneficial at all grade levels. Read on for teacher-to-parent communication strategies and apps.
Looking for ways to prepare for the parent-teacher conference? These tips are for parents and teachers looking for successful outcomes.
Parent Teacher Communication Log! Just print and fill in the information to keep track of all communication with parents!
Need some parent communication tips? Here are 5 things for teachers to keep in mind when communicating with your students' guardians.
Ideas and tips for back to school teacher to parent communication that build a strong foundation for family partnerships
It is important to connect with parents constantly and communicate. Here are 3 strategies for successful parent-teacher communication.
Learn how to use these FREE Parent Communication Logs to document student behavior and academic progress in your classroom. Yay classroom management!
As teachers, one of our greatest resources can be the parents of the students we work with. It takes time and effort to foster strong relationships with parents, but it is often more than worth it in the end. I've worked with parents that are ready to jump right in and become a partner right away and others that needed more coaxing. There are several things you can do to create a welcoming environment that produces parent allies or even parent partners. This list is going to contain things I have done in my classroom, things my friends have shared with me, and things that I have thought about implementing when I get back into the classroom after my parental leave is over. Do not feel the pressure to do all of these things at the same time. You know your classroom and the parents you're working with best. You want to include them without overwhelming them. Do what feels right to you! Reach Out Right Away The easiest was to open a positive dialogue is to send a letter home before school even starts. Include something in the envelope for the student and something for the parents to introduce yourself. Give them your contact information and when you're available to take phone calls. Something I have not done, but I will consider doing in the future is including a photograph of myself and any other adult working in the classroom. My daughter's teachers did this and it lessened a lot of her anxiety as she prepared for the new school year. Teach Them About the Programs Often times, our parents have been out of the classroom as a student for years and have never been in the classroom as a teacher. Some of the programming may be confusing or overwhelming. I like to share which reading and math programs we will be using, along with any websites that may be helpful for them to use at home. Another thing I like to share with the parents I am working with is some information about the special education program their child is in. I created a Parent's Guide to Co-teaching that has been very helpful and well-received. If you're co-teaching, I encourage you to check it out! Accept Help When it is Offered How many times has a parent offered to help you and you politely declined? I know that sometimes it feels like it can be more work to find something for them to do, but often times the parents are literally willing to do anything to help! At the beginning of the year, create a list of things that you would be willing to hand off to a helpful parent, should they ask. Some of the help I have accepted (and offered as a parent) are running centers during rotations, organizing the classroom library, making copies, making play-dough, cutting out lamination pieces, and creating bulletin boards. Regular Communication Regular and expected communication is so important. Whether you send home a communication log, behavior charts, or newsletters, it is important to be consistent. When you have consistent positive communication, it will be easier to approach a parent about any issues that may arise. For some of my less verbal students, that means a daily communication log. I found that a lot of parents felt that the book was mine and they didn't feel comfortable writing in it so I created a printable version that I love! Not only does it encourage the parents to write in it every day, I can easily check off information and add in details as needed. Having a layout to write in saves me a lot of time when I have multiple logs to fill out at the end of the day. Newsletters are also great for communication! I know that as a parent, I love knowing what is going on in the classroom. I like to include a lot of photographs in my newsletters so that it makes the families I work with feel like they are a part of the classroom. Encourage Questions Welcome questions! Most of the time, when a parents is questioning something that you're doing in the classroom, they are honestly wondering the reasoning or research behind it. They want to know more so they can understand what is working and not working for their child. Take the time to answer their questions and alleviate their concerns. Make yourself approachable! Put Your Listening Ears On Do you know what goals the parents in your classroom have for their children? Are you aware of their short term and long term concerns? You may be the expert in education, but they are the expert in their child. They are a valuable resource and you will learn so much if you just listen. Before special education meetings, I like to ask for parental input. You can either call or ask on paper. I like to send home an IEP Parent Input sheet a few weeks before a meeting which gives the families enough time to really think about any questions, concerns, or goals they have. Do Not Judge or Take Offense Every family situation is different. Do not be judgmental if something is going on at home that you do not agree with, such as a child being allowed to stay up until midnight on a school night. You do not know the reasoning behind that decision or the parent may not know that is difficult for their child to focus after those late nights. Present your concern. Listen to the parent. Offer suggestions if opportunity arrises. Just like you, they are more likely to share their difficulties when they are confident they will not be judged. Do not take things personally. You are working with humans and sometimes it can become stressful for everybody involved. Sometimes harsh words are thrown in your direction. Do not take critiques or negative words personally. Take a deep breath and move on. Don't forget, that you are the professional. Of course, sometimes the negative comments can get out of hand. In this case, ask another teacher or an administrator to sit in on any contact you have with that parent to protect yourself. You can read more about how I handle difficult meetings in this blog post. Share Data Teachers are not the only ones that like data! When you do an assessment, send it home. If you are progress monitoring, keep the parents informed on how things are going. I have checklists upon checklists that are helpful in these situations. The parents you work with will thank you for the constant educational updates! I am always looking for more ways to involve parents in my classroom! I would love to hear what else you do to encourage parent involvement!
