Day 3 - Family

It's Day 3 of the December School Day Photo Challenge!

Day 3 - Family

Family for me this week means parent-teacher conferences.  In fact, that's what I am doing today. We have two days for conferences.  Our students have half-days both days.  One day, we have afternoon conferences that begin pretty much as soon as the kids go home.  The next day, we have evening conferences.  I always wish we had a bit more time with conferences, but somehow we always make it work.

The photo-a-day pic above is the schedule that is hanging on my classroom door. I've blocked out the personal info for obvious reasons.  Since I work with several different teachers, I pretty much hop from room to room to conference with the homeroom teachers.  It makes for a pretty busy day.  I'm constantly watching the clock.  It can be messy sometimes if the homeroom teacher is running behind, but again we somehow always make it work! As I do travel to different classrooms, I put the location of each conference on the schedule.  It lets parents who may have forgotten know where they need to be, and posting the schedule lets any drop in parents know when I will be available in my room.  

Since I am busy with conferences this week, I am going to refer you back to a previous post I wrote in 2011 called "They're Back."  CLICK HERE  if you would like to read the post.  It pretty much tells how I run conferences, gives some tips on preparing for your conferences, and an idea for how to have a stress free conversation with your parents.

Happy Conferencing!

They're Back. . .

Next week, I have my first round of parent-teacher conferences.  I thought I would share some of what I do to prepare for conferences and how I mange to stay on time with a very tight schedule.

We have very good parent attendance for conferences in my school.  This is great, however it means we have to schedule each parent for ten minutes or we would be there for days. Ten minutes is not a lot of time.  My district offers two days for conferences.  One day are afternoon appointments, the other is for evening appointments.  To say that most of my parents request evening appointments would be an understatement.  In fact, this year I have ten minute conferences scheduled back-to-back from 5:50 PM to 8:50 PM with one ten minute break.

Needless to say, it can be tough to stay on time as the night goes on.  Over the years, I have found a way to manage it.  It is very rare that I run late.  I am usually able to keep my conferences moving acording to schedule while havng quality, informative conversations in a short amount of time.  Here are some of the reasons I think it has worked out for me:

I make a point at back to school night to let parents know I am always accessible and happy to talk to them at any time, not just at conferences.  I give out a magnet that has my name,  the school phone number, and my email address that they can stick on the fridge.  I find that if parents feel the door is always open, that they can always talk to me if they have a question, they are less panicked about getting it all in at conferences.  Most of my parents will email me if they have a question, and I make it a point to get back to them within a day. 

I'm fully prepared for the conference.  Each of my friends has a portfolio.  In it are examples of work, their most recent report card, and any papers or assessments that I want to address with a parent.  I also take the time to sit after school a couple of days before and fill out a sheet wtih the positives and negatives I need to address.  I make sure I have some student work in their portfolio that backs up any academic issues I am going to bring up.  It's hard for a parent to make an excuse for my friend when the proof is right in front of them.

Finally, I start all my conferences the same way.  I greet the parents at my door, welcome them in, and we sit.  I take out my friend's folder and pull out their most recent report card.  In my district, report cards always go home the week before conferences. I pull out my copy of the report card and place it in front of the parents.  I then say, "I know you've had a chance to look over Susie's report card. (Insert sentence here about something positive on report card.) She's done really well in science this marking period."  Then, here comes the magic sentence. . .   "Before we begin, are there any questions or concerns you have that you would like to talk about?" 

I find that by asking this question at the beginning of the conference, I have done a few things.  How many times have you gone through a conference only to have a parent drop some big issue on you just as you thought things were wrapping up?  Or, have you had a parent wait you out?  They have an issue, but they want to see if you bring it up first.  This eliminates all that.  It also lets the parent see that I am truly interested to know if they have any concerns and am willing to put them first. 

I find that most of the time the issue the parent wants to talk about is usually the very issue I need to discuss with them.  This allows me to get right to the heart of the conference.  Plus, I now know that parent is well aware of this concern, and I'm not in new territory.   There have been a couple of times where I've been completely surprised by what the parent brings up, but it's usually something I can easily answer.

For the parents that don't have anything they want to talk about, I can get right into what I need to say.  Either way, we save a lot of time.  There's no hemming and hawing around any issues.  They are on the table from the start. 

Beginning my conferences with this question has been a huge time saver over the years.  I also always end my conferences with the same phrase and a big smile, "You know our door is always open.  We don't have to wait until the next round of conferences to talk. Don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions or concerns."  Despite what you might think, I don't get inundated with emails and calls.  I think they just like knowing that I'm open to anything they may have to say. 

Then, I go home and collapse from talking to so many parents so late after teaching all day! 

Parent's Signature Required!

What papers do you have signed in your class?  In mine, all test papers are signed by the entire class.  I will usually check for signatures at the beginning of that subject's period.  But every once in a while, for whatever reason, I need to have an individual student have a paper signed by a parent.  I usually just write "Parent's Signature" with an X and a signature line above it. When I started teaching, I had to think of a way to see those signed papers without drawing attention to the one or two kids that needed to have a paper signed.  Let's face it, the other kids know it usually means that kid didn't do too well on that assignment.  So, how to go about it?  A Signed Paper Basket!

Here's how it works.  This basket sits on a shelf near my desk.  The sign on front reads "Signed Work  -  Place your signed work in the basket face down."  In the basket is a big paper weight that sits on top of the work.  If a student needs to have a paper signed, they know that within the next two days the signed paper must make it into that basket, face down.  Face down so that other students can't see whose paper it is.  After school, I will take a look at the papers in the basket to see what was signed.  I note it by putting a line through the grade in my grade book. This is my way of documenting that I know the parent has seen that particular grade. I then place the paper back in the student's desk.  No muss, no fuss!

The purpose of this is simple. It's a trust issue between student and teacher. We all have had days where our work is not up to par.  I wanted my students to know that if they have a paper that doesn't go so well, I'm not calling them out on it.  It's not True Confessions time.  I'm not going to ask for the signed paper in front of the whole class, I'm not going to single them out, I'm not going to draw attention to it.  If I need to talk about the work with the child, I do so in private.  When it's time to turn in the signed work, they simply find a time at some point in the day to slip their paper in the basket.  I tend to get 90% of papers back in a day with no problems.  For those that don't get the work in the basket, well, we have a little private conversation about that!  Overall, this works for us!

Coming soon!  I am planning a week of posts called "Binder Love!"  I am hooked on binders and use them for several different purposes in my class.  I plan to share 5 different ways I use binders in my room to assist with organization, student work, teaching, etc.  I use binders for a ton of things, so it's possible you may see me revisit this topic again later.