Parent-Teacher Conferences - February

 

It's Conference Time!  

Here are some tips and tricks that may assist you as we move into our upcoming conference week:

• Assume positive intentions that parents/families are doing the best that they can.  Recognize there can be anxiety involved, sometimes due to life situations you are unaware of.  Set the tone by beginning with positive information and strengths.
• Most parents/families want to generally know how their child is doing socially and academically, so think in general terms (approaching grade level, on track, exceeding expectations, etc.).  Support this with the FastBridge data.
• Continue to learn about the student from the parent/family perspective.
• Show how much you care for the student by sharing something that shows that you know their child personally.
• If students are not going to be at the conference, try to find a way to incorporate their voice.
• We still have a lot of time left!  What are some strategies school/home can work on collaboratively to help support the student?
• If things ever get uncomfortable, it's OK to stop the conference, and suggest meeting another time - and then invite me (or others) to join you.
• Have an opening and closing line for each conference:
• I'm so happy to connect with you and learn more about your child.
• What woud you like to share about your child that would be helpful for me to know?
• We have about 5 minutes left before our conference ends - have we addressed everything?
• In order for me to keep my schedule with the other families, we're going to have to wrap up for tonight.  Would you like to set up another time to connect?

Consider gathering information ahead of time...

Soimetimes it's better to know what questions/concerns families might have ahead of time, so you have time to prepare and it doesn't overtake your conference time.  Consider sending something home to families before conferences, to gather important information.  Example of Pre-Conference Form

Please let me know if you'd like me to talk through any of your conferences, or if you'd like me to  attend any of your conferences - this is a great opportunity for me to get to know students and their families as well.  

Good luck with your conferences the next two weeks - what a great time to continue to build connections with your families!
Sue