Tips for Parents:

Parent Teacher Conferences

 
Getting the most out of parent teacher conferences with Board Certified Educational Therapist Bonnie Terry. She talks about how parents should prepare for parent teacher conferences to get the most out of the conference. When you prepare as a parent for parent teacher conferences you help set your child up for a better school year. Taking the time to prepare lets your child’s teacher know that you are an aware parent that is caring and concerned about your child whether they are doing great and making all a’s or if they are struggling. There are some specific things you can do to create a partnership feeling with the teacher so that your child has a terrific school year.

Parents Checklist for Parent Teacher Conferences:

Here is the quick down and dirty list of what you need to let the teacher know during parent teacher conferences:
1. if your child has allergies or frequent ear infections
2. if you suspect any learning problems
3. how much time it has been taking your child to do their homework
4. If your child is under a 504 or an IEP, give the teacher a copy of the 504 or IEP
5. show the teacher samples of homework-
i) an assignment that was very hard
ii) an assignment the really enjoyed doing

Parent Teacher Conferences Tip 1

What are some things you want to tell your child’s teacher during your parent teacher conferences that will help your child learn easier?
If your child has allergies, has frequent ear infections or had them in the past, if you suspect there might be a learning problem, and how much time it is taking your child to do their homework – whether it is done very quickly or it takes a long time is important. If your child is completing their work correctly and quickly they may not be challenged enough. If they are taking a long time there may be a learning problem hindering there ability to complete the work in a reasonable amount of time. Again, parent teacher conferences give you the parent the opportunity to have these kinds of discussions with your child’s teacher.

Parent Teacher Conferences Tip 2

Why do you need to tell the teacher if your child has allergies or has had or has frequent ear infections during your parent teacher conferences?
When your child has allergies or ear infections their ears are often plugged up and then they aren’t hearing the instruction as clearly as they should, so teachers need to be aware of that – teachers can check to be sure they understood the instruction. Your child may need preferential seating to help out with this too. If your child had frequent ear infections when they were in the primary grades they may have missed out on some critical instruction regarding reading such as phonics. Their ability to speak clearly, spell, and sound out words may have been compromised by the plugged up ears. Sometimes children even need speech therapy as well as tubes in their ears to correct the loss of instruction they had during this time.

Parent Teacher Conference Tip 3

Why is it important to tell the teacher how much time your child is spending on homework – does that have anything to do with a possible learning problem?

The time element will help the teacher to gage how your child does their work independently. The time element also is an indicator of possible learning problems as is whether your child likes reading or math – you can do an informal assessment with our Learning Disability Screening Tool to see if there might be an actual learning problem happening.

Parent Teacher Conferences Tip 4

What is a 504 and an IEP? Doesn’t the teacher already have a copy of your child’s 504 or IEP?

They are both legal documents to help your child. The 504 is done for accommodations or modifications within the classroom. An IEP is an Individualized Education Plan when your child needs additional help through a resource class or a special day class. Your child’s teacher typically knows if your child is under a 504 or an IEP, but that doesn’t mean they have had a chance to read it to see what is in it. Remember, these are both legal documents that need to be complied with, so when you had the teacher a copy during your parent teacher conferences it lets them know you are aware and it gives them easy access to the document. you do not want to create an adversarial relationship with your child’s teacher but you do want to ensure cooperation and a partnership with them. Parent teacher conferences are a perfect opportunity for you to set that relationship up for the rest of the school year.

Parent Teacher Conferences Tip 5

Why should you bring in some of your child’s homework to show the teacher during your parent teacher conferences?
Obviously your child’s teacher has seen their work before, but they don’t have your feedback then and they don’t see how your child is doing the work when they are not in a classroom situation. So, you want to bring in an assignment your child really enjoyed or found interesting as well as one that was very difficult so the teacher can get an idea of how your child is learning at home – when they are independently doing the work. When the teacher knows this, he or she can and usually does adjust their teaching accordingly. If a lot of students struggled on a particular type of assignment, they can re-teach the concept in a different manner. If your child is the only one or one of just a few, the teacher can make some slight changes for your child or those few to be sure they understand the concept.

Remember, you want to have separate folders for each of your children that contains work samples and the checklist of items you want to discuss when you go to their parent teacher conferences.