 Discuss importance of relationships  Pinpoint the purpose of conferences  Learn what teachers want you to ask  How to prepare for the conference  Find out the most important questions to ask  Learn what NOT to do during a conference

 Good relationships are the key to the most important interactions we have  Marriage, children, neighbors, doctors, insurance agent etc.  Good relationships are like grease on a wheel…keeps us moving smoothly down the road  Why not have a good relationship with your child’s teacher?  View your child’s teacher as a team member

 To get to know and build a working relationship with your child’s teacher  To discuss your child’s strengths and weaknesses  To gain understanding of teacher expectations  To better understand programs and curriculum goals  To establish a ongoing line of communication  To work together to ensure YOUR CHILD LEARNS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE!

 Make a list of things that will help the teacher better understand your child. For example:  Any special health problems or medical conditions  Outside of school interests and hobbies  Feelings about school  Strengths and weaknesses  Learning style  Tips for managing negative behaviors

 Make a list of things you want to find out from the teacher. Examples:  Discipline and grading policy  Homework policy  Services and programs offered by the school  Teacher’s goals for your child  Information about curriculum, testing, MAPS, etc.  Best way to communicate during school year

 The main purpose of a conference is…  to discuss progress or concerns  to meet parents and begin relationship building  to set goals for student  to answer any questions  to communicate with one another about needs of child

 The questions I wish all parents would ask are…  how is my child doing in class?  what can we do at home to help our child?  what can we do to help our child be more successful at school?  how can I reinforce what your are teaching at home?

 The best way for us to work together this year is to…  communicate with each other  keep an open mind  keep in close contact by agenda, , phone, and periodic conferences  stay in touch at least every few weeks with each other  look in your child’s folder each night and read the weekly newsletters

 Conferences do not go well when teachers…  are not prepared to share specific data regarding student progress  do all the talking  don’t know about circumstances that could be affecting a student performance  become confrontational when there is a point of disagreement  only talk about negatives, blame parents

 Conferences don’t go well when parents…  try to blame others for student’s lack of progress  don’t have high expectations for the student  are defensive and confrontational  do not ask questions  already have an opinion of teacher based on gossip

 Conferences goes well when parents and teachers…  are open, honest, and willing to try new ideas and suggestions  work as a team for the benefit of the student  develop a sense of partnership  set goals for the student  finish the conference with all questions answered  are both willing to talk and listen

 What would you say are my child’s strength and areas for improvement?  How is my child’s behavior?  How should I track my child’s progress? How will we know if my child is progressing?  Do you have suggestions for things we can do at home to better support my child’s learning?  How is my child doing socially?  What concerns do you have for my child?  What is the plan to improve areas of concern?  What is the best way for us to collaborate this school year?

 Don’t…  Show up late!  View your child’s teacher as an adversary  Pull a no show!  Focus always on how/what other children are doing…focus on your child  Create tension if there are points of concern or disagreement during the conference  Be shy or reluctant to discuss your concerns

 Share conference details with your child…starting with the GOOD news and then discuss areas for improvement  Discuss ways to improve areas of concern  Develop a system to monitor your child’s progress…checking agenda, homework, asking about test results etc.  Let your child know that you and teacher are working TOGETHER!  Stay in contact with teacher throughout the school year