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Communicating Results to Parents, david-pennington-T-GjUWPW-oI-unsplash,…

- - - - Establish a positive relationship right from the get-go.
        
        Be warm and friendly and displaying genuine enthusiasm for the year ahead.
      - Step Two: Maintain Open and Direct Lines of Communication
        
        Step Three: Schedule a Conference
        
        Provide the parents with options for times that work best for them
        
        Ask the parent how you can best support their child.
        
        They are the experts!
        
        Begin the conference by sharing genuine, positive traits about their child
        
        This shows the parents that you understand the child’s personality and appreciate him or her as an individual, which will help the parent be more receptive.
        
        Give the parent a chance to share their concerns first.
        
        Try to listen without responding or interrupting until the parent is completely finished. You can then use what the parent said as a springboard for what you need to discuss.
        
        Share what you are already doing to support the student
        
        Have concrete examples of how you are already assisting the child in his/her lessons as they work to improve their assessment scores.
        
        Be gentle and factual when sharing the assessment results.
        
        The teacher should ensure they thoroughly understand the test materials and prepare for any questions the parent might have. The teacher should have the test on hand for the parent to review.
        
        Step Four: Plan Follow-Up Meetings
        
        Plan for another conference in four weeks to review their child's progress.
        
        Schedule weekly phone calls to discuss the student's improvement and share success stories.
        
        This is also an opportunity to keep in contact about how the parent is seeing improvement in their child at home,.
        
        Share regular accomplishments on Class Dojo
        
        Parents can see their child's behavioral log and can note how many points their child receives for completing classwork, achieving a high score on a spelling test, etc.
        
        When sending home graded work, use positive reinforcement and encouraging praise as parents' may be hyper-sensitive to your feedback.
        
        Encourage the parents to reach out to you with any concerns or any noted improvements they wish to share.
        
        Share resources
        
        Have resources on hand for the parent to use with their child at home.
        
        Connect parents to the classroom via classroom apps such as Class Dojo.
        
        The parents are able to review and download their child’s behavioral log and view their child’s points for completing classwork.
        
        The teacher can also post photos and announcements on Class Dojo for parents to ‘like’ and comment on.
        
        Send home a monthly newsletter.
        
        The newsletter can include photos, upcoming events, awards, and any upcoming assessments.
        
        Keep in touch with the parents regarding their child's progress.
        
        Regular phone calls and emails about academic and behavioral progress ensure there are no surprises after report cards/assessments.
        
        Foster a positive relationship
        
        Sharing regular accomplishments, not only concerns, helps develop strong parent-teacher relationships which makes any difficult conversations easier.
      - Discover the parents’ priorities for their child.
        
        For example, are their priorities for their child to succeed academically or do they wish to focus on improving their child’s well-being and behavioral skills?
      - Send home a parent survey
        
        This can help determine how a parent prefers to be contacted throughout the school year
      - Host a 'meet-the-teacher' night.
        
        The teacher can present their vision for the school year, as well as share personal information such as where they are from, cultural background, teaching background, etc.
        
        This helps build common ground between the teacher and the parents
        
        It's also a good opportunity to build a line of open and honest communication with students’ families.
      - Open a direct line of communication.
- - - - Put them at ease from the beginning by saying hello, smile, and maintain a friendly attitude throughout the conversation.
    - - Learn how they like to be addressed and how to pronounce them correctly.
    - - Find out about their child’s interests, abilities and needs.
    - - Determine how a parent prefers to be contacted throughout the school year.
    - - Open the conversation with something positive.
    - - An excellent way to encourage a positive relationship with parents is to ask them for their feedback.
    - - It can be tempting to make assumptions regarding parents that seem uninvolved or apathetic.
    - - Show parents that you’re interested in their feedback, by soliciting anonymous surveys from each parent.
    - - If a parent approaches a teacher with advice or suggestions, they should listen with an open mind and let them know that they hear them and care about their concerns.
    - - This will give the chance to explain what teachers do in the classroom and what a typical day looks like. It will also allow parents a time to ask questions and learn anything they want to know about their child’s education.
    - - Monitor Your Students Closely
        
        It is recommended that the teacher constantly circulate throughout the classroom to check on students' progress and give quiet suggestions in the event anyone is struggling with their work. This keeps children focused on the task at hand and keeps them from falling victim to distractions that cause misbehavior.
      - Model Appropriate Behavior
        
        Set a positive example by showing high levels of patience, organization, courtesy and enthusiasm.
      - Have Regular Class Meetings
        
        If multiple members of a classroom are struggling with the same problems or if a particular issue gets out of hand, call a classroom meeting. Make it clear what is unacceptable about the students' behavior and why. Ask the class for suggestions on ways to improve the situation and to keep it from coming up again. This gives students a chance to participate in the problem-solving process and contribute their own ideas on how to stop misbehavior from happening.
      - Use Nonverbal Cues
        
        Create nonverbal reminders to let your students know you need their attention. Ring a bell or come up with hand signals that alert students to quiet down instead of raising your voice to settle commotion. Discuss these cues with your class before you implement them so students know exactly what they mean and how they should respond to them.
      - Step 3: Schedule a Meeting with Parents
        
        Be friendly
        
        It’s a mistake to be grave or overly serious when speaking to parents, which causes them to put up a wall of defense before you even get to the purpose of your meeting. Put them at ease from the beginning. Say hello, smile, and maintain a friendly attitude throughout the conversation.
        
        Inform
        
        The sole purpose of talking to parents about behavior is to inform. That’s it. Keep your thoughts, opinions, and advice to yourself. Despite what you may think, sharing them isn’t helpful. If, however, you’re asked your opinion after the conference, then proceed cautiously.
        
        Step 4: Follow up Meeting Plan
        
        Follow Up
        
        Take the time to thank parents in a letter or email. Students can write thank-you notes to their parents for attending and supporting their learning.
        
        Communicate Regularly
        
        Let parents know what's going on with their child in an ongoing fashion. Keep families informed about class projects, homework and other assignments, students' accomplishments, and any problems or concerns that may arise.
        
        Enhance Instruction
        
        Now that you know a little more about your students, use that information to make instructional decisions that will help your students achieve and grow in the classroom.
        
        Stick to the facts
        
        Tell the parent precisely what happened—or what has been happening—that prompted your call. Leave nothing out but add nothing more. Stick to only what you know to be true, leaving out any rumor, gossip, or innuendo.
        
        Watch Tone
        
        A common mistake teachers make is that they affect an attitude of “so what are you gonna do about it” when speaking to parents. It’s almost as if they expect parents to make sure that it doesn’t happen again. You should have no such expectation.
        
        Shoot Straight
        
        You can and should say, “This is the behavior I’m seeing, and any behavior, like this, that interferes with learning is not allowed in this classroom.” Don’t hold back in this regard. Be a straight shooter. The plain, unvarnished truth is the most helpful and influential language you can use with parents.
        
        Explain how you’re handling it
        
        After giving the facts of the incident/behavior, let the parent know how you’re taking care of the problem at school. Include what rules the student broke and how they will be held accountable. Assure them that you’re doing your part to help turn the behavior around.
        
        Be Brief
        
        Your conversation with parents should last no more than five minutes. As soon as you finish explaining how you’re handling the misbehavior, say, “Thanks for your support. Call me or come see me if you have any questions.” Then hang up the phone or lead the parent to the classroom door.
- - - - This lets parents know you intend to have a relationship with them. Make sure they know how to contact you as well.
    - - Applications like Class Dojo and Class 123 are great tools for messaging parents, sharing photos, quick messages, and for parents to track the points students are earning in class
    - - A Classting page can be a great resource for sharing announcements and accomplishments in the classroom to parents and students alike
    - - Elicit as much information from parents and PLCs at your school to compile useful background information about your students. Parent surveys can help with this
    - - Make parents feel welcomed and encouraged to contact you first if they have questions or concerns
    - - Just like an lesson should have clear learning objectives, a class should have a clear mission. Communicate it to parents early on through a friendly welcome letter
    - - Create and post a Weekly Plan detailing upcoming lessons and assignments
        
        This can be posted on the class social media page and school website. This plan can lay out learning objectives, lesson plans, and material covered. This keeps the parents in the loop about their children's studies
      - Post photos and updates on Class Dojo or Class 123
        
        Parents will love to see visuals examples of their children's progress. They will appreciate being kept in the loop about school announcements. These apps are great tools for ongoing updates.
      - Contact parents with good news often
        
        This helps establish open lines of communication. It also helps create and atmosphere where hearing from teachers has a positive connotation.
      - Host parent teacher conferences
        
        Most schools will hold these once a semester. Make sure parents feel welcomed and encouraged to participate. It fosters good relationships and is the ultimate way to learn more about out students
      - Step Three: Schedule a meeting with a parent whose child is not performing to ability
        
        Determine if there are any factors at home that could be contributing factors
        
        This is a sensitive top and should be addressed delicately. But it is also very important to know if there is a traumatic event going on at home that is impacting a students ability to work to their full potential
        
        Ask parents for their input as to what would motivate their child
        
        A parent knows their child better than anyone. Their input as to how to better motivate them through the use of positive reinforcement to reach learning goals should be included in plans strategies taken for improvement.
        
        Have examples of assignments, homework, tests, and projects on hand to give examples of where improvement is needed
        
        Tangible work in hand provides a useful visual for articulating examples of where a student is failing to meet their potential. In the case of students who are not working to ability, this can clearly demonstrate a student who is not producing the best possible work they are capable of.
        
        Be flexible to accommodate parents work schedules
        
        Try to expand windows of availability to be as accommodating as possible.
        
        Be open to hosting a Zoom conference online if the meeting is taking place in a country where social distancing is going on.
        
        In the current climate, in person meetings may not be feasible or preferable in some places. Zooms meetings can also be useful for accommodating parents work schedules as mentioned above.
        
        Use the sandwich approach. Open off the conference with a positive before moving onto constructive suggestions for improvement
        
        This mindful approach helps keep create a positive tone. It also reinforces that the point of the meeting is to bring forth improvement specifically because of the potential we know the student has.
        
        Inquire about what the student is saying at home about their schooling experience
        
        This can also be critical in crafting an effective plan for moving forward. Find out of a student is complaining about a certain subject, classroom activity, classmate, or assignment. This can help us zero in on what is working, not working, and how best to bring about improvement. Be especially on the look out for an ELL student who is saying they feel overwhelmed by reading activities. This could be a sign that a students reading level should be reevaluated.
        
        Have a proactive plan in place. Convey that you are coming from a place of helping their child. reach their full potential
        
        Remediation plans should have clear objectives. They should be built around positive reinforcement. The goal is motivate the student to reach full potential. Suggestion can range from weekly learning logs which closely tracks a students progress and which rewards positive achievement, to supplementary work on the area of focus, to alternative extra credit assignments geared towards a students specific talents and learning styles.
        
        Make sure you are on the same page with parents in terms of expectations
        
        It defeats the purpose a proactive plan based meeting if the goals are not the same. Make you and the parent understand each others goals as an effective starting point for moving forward
        
        Use a positive and optimistic tone
        
        As with any professional meeting- politeness, warmth, and positivity should be the cornerstone of our communications
        
        Be truthful, honest, and informative
        
        Parents will appreciate a teacher whom they feel is leveling with them. Go into a meeting prepared, with notes, and with facts.
        
        Consider socio-economic factors and cultural differences when speaking to parents
        
        This is especially important when living abroad. Be aware of how different cultures approach education, success, achievement.
        Another area to focus on here is if a student is not working to their best ability because of a lack of technology or materials at home. If this is the case, see what steps can be taken to makes these resources that much more available at school, and suggest this at the meeting.
        
        Have a translator present if there is a language barrier
        
        If a parents native language is different than our own, determine if they feel fully comfortable communicating with you in English. If not, offer to arrange a translator who can bridge caps and avoid miscommunications.
        
        Plans for follow up meetings and communication
        
        Be equipped with tangible updates
        
        Just like the first meeting, bring subsequent examples of work in hand. This will help deliver a clear view into the progress that is, or is not, taking place
        
        Don't wait for another physical meeting to keep parents updated
        
        With all the technological tools we have in place, we needn't wait for another meeting to have a meaningful conversation with parents. Utilize the tools at your disposal
        
        Be in more frequent contact with the parents.
        
        Communication is key. This helps bridge the gap between the students' home life and the classroom. Being in greater contact with the parents helps measure progress and creates an open and ongoing conversation
        
        How do the parents prefer to be contacted?
        
        Find out how the parents prefer to be contacted. Determine whether email, texting, phone calls, or Zoom calls is best for them and accommodate their wishes
        
        Look for improvement to build on
        
        Much like the sandwich approach, avoid being all doom and gloom. It's more than likely that a students of potential is doing something positive in the classroom. Use this is a point to build from.
        
        Do not sugar coat performance if the problems linger
        
        While positivity is an important hallmark of dealing with parents, so is delivering honest results. Nobody benefits if poor performance is not adequately addressed. It may be tough for parents to hear, but honesty, when delivered in a thoughtful way, is still the best policy. An example of this is delivering the suggestion that a student should move down to a lower reading level.
        
        Make changes or enhancements to plans which strive to deliver greater results
        
        If a set of strategies are working, address this as grounds to continue on this path. If one or more is not, consider what adjustments might be useful to further motivate the student. Include the parents in this process
        
        Remain open to parental input when formulating strategies
        
        Parents and teachers can accomplish greater results when working as a team to get the most out of young learners and keep them motivated.
        
        Be factual
        
        Give an honest assessment about what has taken place since the last meeting. Have notes and facts to back this up whether positive or negatve
        
        Be consistent
        
        Employ the same sense of warmth, professionalism, and positivity that was established in the first meeting.
        
        Establish a clear cut plan for following up.
        
        Parents should exit a meeting expecting when and how they will be contacted again to follow up on progress.
      - Keep parents updated about students' performance and progress in the class
        
        Let parents know how students are doing throughout the semester. This will prevent parents from feeling blindsided if issues arise which need extra attention
      - Host open classes where parents can watch observe a typical lesson in the classroom
        
        Open classes are a fun way for parents to see a day in the life at their students school. Plan an interactive and fun lesson which showcases the students talents. This is also a great opportunity for face to face contact and in person meeting with families