Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Parent/Teacher Conference tips

As a parent, you are your child’s first and most important teacher.  You and Defer School have something in common:  We both want your child to learn and do well.  When parents and teachers talk to each other, each person can share important information about your child’s talents and needs.  Each person can also learn something new about how to help your child.  Parent-teacher conferences are a great way to start talking to your child’s teacher.  This tip sheet suggests ways that you can make the most of the parent-teacher conferences so that everyone wins, especially your child.

What should you expect?

Ø  A two-way conversation.  Like all good conversations, parent/teacher/student conferences are best when both people talk and listen.  The conference is a time for you to learn about your child’s progress in school:  share your child’s data notebook and see information about grades, test scores, and homework completion.  Find out whether your child is meeting school expectations and academic standards.  This is also a time for the teacher to learn about what your child is like at home.  When you share with the teacher about your child’s skills, interests, needs, and dreams, the teacher can help your child more.

Ø  Emphasis on Learning.  Good parent/teacher/ student conferences focus on how well the child is doing in school.  They also talk about how the child can do even better.  To get ready for the conversation, look at your child’s homework, tests, and their data notebook before the conference.  Keep track of any questions you may have that you would like to ask the teacher.

Ø  Opportunities and challenges.  Just like you, teachers want your child to succeed.  You will probably hear positive feedback about your child’s progress and areas for improvement.  Be prepared by thinking about your child’s strengths and challenges beforehand.  Be ready to ask questions about ways you and the teacher can help your child with some of his or her challenges. 

Cited from:
Harvard Family Research Project


This year the Defer conferences are scheduled on the evening of November 12th and all day November 13th.  Most parents set up a scheduled conference time at Back to School Night.  If you have not set up an appointment, please let your child’s teacher know right away so that a time can be scheduled.  The goal of the Defer staff is that we have 100% attendance at our Fall Conferences.