----This ended up being a real novel of a post (conciseness has always been my nemesis) so I’ve divided it up just so I can get it off and at least offer a few suggestions in case you’re interested tonight! More to come tomorrow! ----
During the first part of September, many schools offer a “Meet
the Teacher” or some sort of Open House
event. As a teacher, I’ll admit to
always being a little taken by surprise (why, I have no idea…it’s always been done and always will be done!) by this night, but I
suppose it’s because those first few weeks of school starting are always so
hectic.
Organized chaos is an understatement at this time of
year. Clubs and sports are starting,
classroom routines are being implemented, learning difficulties are being
assessed, year plans and personal growth plans are being demanded by the
powers-that-be. There seems to be so
many things taking precedence over a silly little evening where parents drop in
just to say “hi”, after all it’s not like we can give a fair assessment of
little Johnny when we’ve only taught him for 5 days!
Yet this is SUCH an important opportunity that teachers and
parents should never let pass because we all know how busy things get once all
those clubs, sports, routines, homework and challenges get going
full-swing. No one should miss this
opportunity to help get their child off to the best start possible, and make no
mistake, although teachers spend a great deal of your child’s awake hours with
them, the parent’s role and attitude towards their learning is paramount.
There are varying degrees of communication at any given “Meet
the Teacher” night. Some schools require
teachers to present certain aspects of their classroom and year plans and
parents just sit collectively and listen. While there is usually time for questions,
sometimes there may not be time for individual conversations. At the other extreme, some schools let parents
informally drop-in, seeking out the necessary teachers (usually one or two at
the primary level and other times five or six for teenagers) and let the
conversation go where it may.
If your school happens to be more like the former, this list
of questions may end up being answered in the presentation already. A paper copy of these questions can be
downloaded for free from my teacherspayteachers store (7 Questions Teachers Want You to Ask ) so you could just
print out this handout at home and write notes directly on it.
If the questions don’t end up being answered, I would still seek out the
teacher at some point and ask them. For the
school with a more casual approach, this may be helpful because your teacher
may end up being a tad like me and without a prescribed checklist of things to
cover, ends up scrambling for child care that same night and barely managing to
put on a clean shirt! (Oh, of course I have my classroom perfectly organized, my
year plans color coded and my reward systems posted, after all that was
necessary for the students on Day 1, but to think about and distribute parent-focused material??…that’s
a different story!) So, again, here are
some great questions that might just get overlooked and will help start a
healthy, quality dialogue between you and your child’s teacher.
1. How can I help my child read/study?
No one needs to tell you how important reading is. If your child is just learning to read, the
teacher may have specific books and allotted times that he/she wants the
children to read. (ie. 15 min each
night, book taken out from class library)
If your child is older and reading is now expected in order to study for a
variety of subjects, ask what resources might be helpful. Perhaps the teacher has some supplementary
books/texts/magazines/websites/audio material that he uses for hisr
specific subject. Also, finding material
that your child likes to read “just
for fun” is also vital. Pick your
teacher’s brain for ideas. This is
especially important if your child doesn’t enjoy reading. Again, this is a starter question and can lead
to passing on helpful information if your child has problems in some area of
literacy, is disinterested or has trouble concentrating.
2. Where does my child sit?
This is crazy-important
and can explain a lot of things if troubles arise. If your child wears glasses or has any
trouble hearing, a spot near the front may be imperative and the teacher may
not realize how weak a child’s eyesight or hearing is just by looking at them. Obviously, easily-distracted students will
find windows, class pets on the shelf and even posters disrupting. Even a best friend nearby can be a worst
enemy when it comes to concentrating on a lesson. Usually,
one of the first consequences of not listening or interrupting a lesson will be
a desk move, but if you can help the teacher avoid even that, by letting them
know of possible difficulties, I’m sure they would be most grateful. If nothing else, it’s nice to just have your
own visual of your child in the classroom.
3. Where do the students go for recess/break and which areas can my child play/hang-out in?
I like knowing this as a parent, but often take this
information for granted as a teacher because it becomes so habitual to teachers
so fast. After all, we usually have
minimum three breaks a day, not to mention before and after school
arrival/pick-up so teachers (who usually supervise these breaks) and students
get to know these places immediately. As
a parent you might be interested in this for a few reasons:
a)
Physical Challenges. Is your child a dare-devil? Like, not just curious, like a real kamikaze-energy-bomb that pays zero attention to consequence. Say so. While the teacher probably knows this
already (those things tend to rear their heads in the first 10 min of
class) it’s not a bad idea to throw this out there just to let them know
that that delightful teeter totter over there likely looks more like a catapult
to your darling David and he may need to be encouraged (by you and teachers) to
play games on the ground. You’ve been
playing with your child at parks for at least five years now, so you know
better than anyone what they’re drawn to and capable of!
b) Bullying. Be pro-active with “bullying”. Because this is such a volatile buzzword
these days, I’m quoting it and am now
about to qualify. An ounce of prevention
is worth a hundred pounds of cure. Or
maybe a thousand. While there are umpteen ways I can suggest to avoid
your child becoming a bully-target, I will leave that to another post. I will however indulge a little in
bully-friendly locations. Bullying often
doesn’t happen two feet in front of a teacher in plain daylight. Under a jungle gym, around a corner, behind a
building…not every schoolyard is perfect and these places are hot spots. Teachers know that and are aware of them, but
they are also only one person. One person in a sea of sometimes
50 or more little bodies, running around carelessly, scraping their knees,
falling off swings, throwing garbage on the ground or bickering amongst
themselves – all things that demand their attention.
And then there are the students that like, or even need, to be
alone. If you have a child like this,
you’ll know it. Unfortunately, the same places they go for refuge are are the key places a snide remark or a
hurtful shove will start. Visit the
child’s playground after school one day or on the weekend and do a walk-about
to show them possible trouble spots where bullying may occur. I feel this is especially important if your
child is a bit of an introvert because even
though they thoroughly enjoy or maybe even need some quiet-time to themselves,
it can also be an invitation for trouble.
For older students, lower level hallways, bathrooms and change rooms are
always the red-flags, but be aware of classrooms far from the staff lounge or
even a courtyard area that students are allowed to hang out in in good weather. Identify these locations and figure out ways
your tween or teenager can avoid these places, especially if they’ve
encountered teasing in the past.
c) Peace of mind. Again with the visual…I like having a real-life
place where I can “see” my child playing, not just an abstract term called
recess.
If you have your teacher meeting tonight and would like the complete list of questions (minus the commentary) download the word doc from here:
