Sometimes I do not fully understand them, but at other times they are such a great gift to teachers.
While I haven't had Parent-Teacher Conferences yet, I feel like I have had a good amount of contact with parents. Whether it was through questioning emails or while at basketball games or simply at the local gas station. I have had the pleasure of having great contact with several parents before the actual conferences.
This has been a great experience for me. It is so different being in a small, tight-knit community where everyone knows everyone and if you are new you stick out in the crowd. At the last few basketball games I've been to parents have stopped and said, "Are you a teacher here?" I quickly explain that I am student teaching in math class. There are several different reactions to this, but most say, "So how's insert child's name doing?" It really has been like an informal parent-teacher conference at several of these games and fundraisers. Luckily my CT was there when the president of the school board asked me about his student.
One of the greatest moments that I have the opportunity to experience was when I got to congratulate a parent for her daughter getting an A on a recent test. I was surprised when the parent said she had no idea that her daughter did that well. It was great to bring an unexpected surprise to a parent about the success of their child. I look forward to more interaction with parents.
What interaction have you had with parents outside of conferences?
That is great about being in a small knit community/small town! That is great. I have had a lot of parent relationships throughout the quarter with just sending emails home when a test is coming up or when students have not been turning in homework and we need a little reinforcement! Most parents are awesome and we can get on the same team but then their are some parents that we can never get ahold of or they say they will try to help out on their side and never really do. But the most we can do is keep trying to build that relationship!!
ReplyDeleteWorking in a small community is very different. It's great that you are enjoying the experience, it's also going to be good during PT conferences to already have met some parents.
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ReplyDeleteThat's awesome you've had the chance to meet a lot of your students' parents already! I had parent teacher conferences the first week in February, so I was only teaching 2 classes at the time. My CT did a lot of the talking which was great because I hadn't been there long enough to know about the students, but I wish we could have them again now that I do know them all! It's a good thing your CT was there and you didn't say anything bad about the president of the school board's kid! :)
ReplyDeleteOne story I have from parent teacher conferences is my CT had a cough so in the middle of talking with a parent, she had a coughing attack and had to step away. It was the parent of a student in a large class of 31 students that I hadn't started teaching yet, so I had absolutely no idea what student we were talking about. Luckily, before my CT had to step away, she had said how good of a student he was and how he works hard, etc. so when the parent asked me about his child, I was able to repeat some generic responses and I think I played it off pretty well, even though I couldn't even picture their child in my head! Even though this experience was pretty comical, it made me realize how important it is to build those relationships as soon as possible. When we're on our own, we'll have to do all the talking and have something to say about every student!
I have not had any interactions with parents outside of school but I live across town and don't venture over by my school much. However, with parent teacher conferences this week I have had a lot of fun being able to brag about my students. Do you coach basketball or just attend the games? Have you had any not so great interactions?
ReplyDeleteThat's neat, I've had similar experiences myself since I am also at a smaller school. I keep meeting people who know people. At a basketball game, one student's mom came up and was speaking with my friend and it turned out that her daughter and my friend's little sister were best friends back in another town before they moved. I have also had parents randomly stop in the classroom during planning period to come in and introduce themselves and chat. I am really enjoying the small town atmosphere! I hope you are too!
ReplyDeleteAt our parent teacher conferences, my CT spoke to a family of one of our diff algebra students. She carried her conversation with great pride and continuously praised the student (while she was sitting there). The great thing was that it appeared as if her parents hadn't known how spectacular their daughter was in the math room. The smile on her dad's face was priceless. We all know that our diff students are great, but to hear how great you are in front of your parents is a wonderful feeling.
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