Honestly, the biggest thing to parents is communication. Parents WANT to know how and what their child is doing in school, the good and the bad. It's good for teachers to reach out to the parents and let them know what is going on in school. Regardless of what people say, parents do care about their child's education. They will call teachers on their own to see how their child is doing if you don't reach out to them first. A good trick is to make a plan to call so many parents a day, telling them good things if you can and bad if you must. Parents love to get phone calls about how good their child is doing in school or that they did something exceptional. Parents also want to make sure their child is on track. Even if you notice that a student is hanging out with a different group of friends, parents like to know. Sometimes they can even provide insight into why a student might be acting differently or in a certain way. While students are at school, teachers act as a second parent because school is a second home, a safe haven, for the students. Parents and teachers care about their students, and when they can work together and communicate, the student will be better supported.
All so true! I like your graphic, I had a similar one drawn in my notebook after the panel on Tuesday! I'm glad you emphasized that parents want to know about their child's friendships. Before the panel I would never have thought to call a parent about any besides academic achievements or academic areas of concerns.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Sarah, the parents defiantly want to know how their kids are doing in school. My worry is remembering to do this when i am a teacher. I can imagine how busy a teacher is, especially with 4 or 5 classes to teach. I did like the suggestion made to add it to the lesson plans to make sure you don't forget to do it.
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