I can't believe parent teacher conference season is already upon us. It feels like it was just the first day of school and now we are already ready for conferences. How is this even possible?! Time flies when you are having fun, or when you are super stressed and want more time. Here is a little survival post. Take the ideas that work. This shouldn't be a time to stress. It should be a meaningful time to meet and communicate with parents. Let this little post help you stay calm and communicate away.
Before Conferences
Make sure you are giving out grades based on the standards and not based on what the parent will think of you if you grade them low or high. A member on my grade level developed a rubric and we gave grades based on the rubric. It really helps for everyone get on the same page. We want to set students up for success and we want to give parents a clear picture of how their child is doing. It does not help to inflate grades or deflate grades based on emotion (although there has been times when I am like, "Man, if I just give this kid a high grade I won't have to hear a rant about why I am such horrible teacher and how little Johnny was doing amazing last year, and now he is failing, so it must be my fault.") If we are all grading based on the standards we will be setting that child up for success.
Make sure you notify your parents with plenty of time before the actual conference. Some of you may work in schools where it is very hard to get parents to show up to conferences. I understand. I have been there. I offer my students a really BIG incentive for getting their parent to the conference, and low and behold, they all show up. Do what you have to do to get them to come to the conference. You will also want to send a reminder the day of the conference as well. I know as a parent I really appreciate the extra reminders.
During Conference Week
Okay, everyone has been notified and it is conference week. I like to set up a space that is comfortable for adults to sit in my classroom. I usually clear off my teacher desk (I don't use it much as a 2nd grade teacher) and get comfortable chairs for parents to sit in. I know you can sit on the tiny 2nd grade chairs at the small group table and that works too, but I like to be comfortable since I'm going to be sitting for awhile. I also like to set up an area outside my room for early arrivals. I put water bottles out with some reading material. Put a sign on your door as well. That way they won't be wondering where you are. If your door is closed, you are inside doing a conference. Be mindful of your scheduled times. If you only scheduled twenty minutes, make sure you keep to twenty minutes. If your parent showed up late, then you need to make sure you shorten the conference, so your next parent has enough time to conference with you. You can set a timer if you aren't facing the clock.
I do twenty minute conferences with five minutes in between them, so I can review paperwork. Here is the schedule I use for a typical conference:
Positive
Reinforcement- always start with stating something positive about the child
|
1-2
Minutes
|
Going
Over Report Card – Give your parents a couple minutes to look through the
report card or go through it with them quickly, ask them if they have any
questions.
|
5-7
Minutes
|
Go
Over Assessment Data – Take some time to go over the test data you have
gathered to determine their grades
|
5-7
Minutes
|
Question
and Answer Time – Always ask the parents if there are any questions or
concerns
|
1-5
Minutes (depending on the parent)
|
Give
them a Tool to Take Home – Always give the parent a document that they can
take home and use to support their child at home
|
1-2
Minutes
|
I think the starting with a positive comment about the child is the most important thing to do. Many parents just want to know that you care about their child, and giving them that positive comment (no matter how hard it may be) is really important. It really sets the stage for the rest of the conference.
After the conference
Keep a list of notes you gathered during conferences and make sure you honor requests from parents in a timely fashion. It really makes a difference to validate their concerns or give them extra support if needed.
Take a breath, it is over, unless you have to do two conference sessions a year. This is my first year in over ten years of teaching that I only have do conferences once. Happy dance!!! It is important to keep communication with parents open even if you are not formally meeting, but conference week is a great way to open that communication.
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Wishing you the best conference week EVER!!!!!
Tomorrow's Teacher
