Conference Commotion!

It is that time of year. Parent teacher conferences are taking place all over the country. While conference time should not be a time when "bombs" are dropped on parents, sometimes that can be the case. Below are tips for going into conferences prepared and what to do with the information you receive during the conferences.


#1 - BE PREPARED
Before walking into a conference, it is important that you go in with any questions you may have. Let the teacher share information with you first (they may in turn answer some of those questions) and then ask whatever questions you still have.


#2 - TAKE AN ACTIVE ROLE
During the conference, let the teacher know that you are willing to help your child at home in any way you can. If the teacher identifies your child's strengths, ask how you can challenge your child at home in those areas. (If they don't point out strengths, they should! Everyone is good at something. Make sure you ask what your child does well!)


If the teacher identifies areas of weakness, ask what they are doing in the classroom to support those weaknesses and ask what you can do at home to help. (All students can improve, so if the teacher doesn't mention anything, make sure you ask what areas can use some work!)


Make sure as you leave the conference that you let the teacher know you appreciate communication and that they should feel free to email you if there is anything that comes up that they want you to work on with your child.


#3 - THE BOMB WAS DROPPED
You have walked out of your conference and are shocked to find out that you child is now struggling in a certain area. What now? First, like I mentioned above, make sure you ask what support is being offered in the classroom and ask what you can do at home.


Once you know an area of weakness, try to find resources (computer games, games on the web, skill building workbooks) to begin strengthening the area of weakness. If you find that this is not working, your child is becoming frustrated, or they are falling further behind, it may be time to talk to the teacher about getting outside support. A teacher can help recommend a tutor or at least tell you about the type of tutor you should be looking for. If you or the teacher feel that it is a difficulty that spans many areas and not just a specific subject area, it may be time to look into educational testing that could give you more information about your child's academic profile.


How did your conferences go?  If you want to share your experience or have any questions please feel free to post a comment here or email me directly at lisathelearninglady@gmail.com.