For a busy working parent, the prospect of staying in touch with your child’s teacher can seem terrifying and perhaps impossible. It’s true that it’s probably impossible to keep track of every little detail and piece of homework, but it’s important to keep in touch with your kid’s teacher, who know how he acts out of the house and sometimes even spend more time with him than you do. Teachers care about kids and will be a fantastic resource if you have trouble with your kids, providing the first warning signs and reinforcing good examples in the classroom.
You can begin staying in touch with your child’s teacher and what your kids are doing in school through a variety of methods. If your school has an “open door policy” like most do, you can talk with your child’s teacher before school starts if there is a minor issue, or make an appointment to talk if there’s a major issue going on. If your kid’s teacher or school sends out a newsletter or updates a school website, read it regularly and take note of reminders to parents that are often posted in them. Some schools hold parents’ meetings which allow you the chance to discuss learning and teaching issues with the teacher and other parents. These are a valuable time investment into your child’s education! Report cards and parent-teacher interviews are two more ways you can stay in touch with your child’s teachers.
The parent-teacher interviews are important enough that they deserve a separate mention. The first interview, usually scheduled sometime in September, is a chance to let the teachers know if your child has any allergies, learning disabilities, behavioral problems, and so on. In later interviews, your child’s teacher can let you know how your child is coming along socially and academically.
At parent-teacher interviews, you have the chance to ask your teacher any questions about your child’s academic or social development. For example, ask what your child’s strengths and weaknesses are, how skilled your child is at socialization with his peers, and what your teacher would like to know about your child that would help them teach him. The more clear you are with the teacher that you are willing to help and support from home, the more your teacher will be able to help your child learn.
The parent-teacher interviews also provide a chance for you to pass along to your child’s teacher specific pieces of information that have come up recently and may affect your child — family deaths, health issues, or other such changes. The reverse is true, too; ask your child if there is anything he would like you to pass along to the teacher or ask.
Even as a working parent, you can stay in touch with your child’s teacher and reap the many benefits for both your child and yourself that come along with this close relationship. There are many ways to keep in touch with your child’s education, and his teacher is the best source of information and help!
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Tags: Parents Teacher Collaboration, Parents Teacher involvement, Working Parents Teacher