Building Teacher - Parent Relationships

With August approaching quicker than most teachers would like, it’s time to start thinking about that back to school to-do list.  And although your list is probably a mile long, I’m urging you to double check if you’ve added ways to build teacher-parent relationships.  Building a positive teacher-parent relationship from the get go is HUGE and IMPORTANT!  It can make a real difference not only for the student, but for the teacher too.  Here are a few things that I’ve done in the past to help build these relationships from the very start of the school year. 

Early Conferences:  Key word here is EARLY!  I know that the start of the school year can be crazy, but taking time to set up individual teacher-parent conferences can go a LONG way in building that connection fast.  It’s a great opportunity to learn about your new students, discuss expectations and WELCOME parents as partners in their child’s education.  This could even be done in the few days leading up to the start of  the school year so that the first weeks aren’t as overwhelming.

Student Inventory:  Want to learn more about your students?  Send home a student inventory asking parents to fill out information about their child.  Ask about their child’s strengths, weaknesses, likes, dislikes and have them share their goals with you about what they hope their child achieves this year. 

In this Freebie is an example of an inventory I've used to help me get to better know my students.  Grab it HERE for FREE!

Parent Meet & Greet:  Host a parent meet and greet.  Set up an evening and invite parents to come and here all about you and your class.  Take this time to introduce yourself, share your classroom expectations, answer questions and again WELCOME families.  This is also a great opportunity for parents to build relationships with other parents in the class. 

Class Information: Parents like to know what’s going on and should be informed.  Prepare a packet that LISTS ALL important information about your class and be ready to share it on the very first day of school.  Think about including your daily schedule, homework policy, behavior policy, birthday information, contact information and anything else relevant that parents should know about your class.  I always like to have parents sign and return a sheet saying that they’ve received and read the information just to be sure it was given to all. 

Have you seen this class information flip book by Chalk and Apples?  I LOVE IT!  Not only does it do the job, but it's small!  She also suggests adding a magnet to the back so parents can put it on their fridge which I think is brilliant!  Go HERE to check it out.

Be Proactive: If you start to notice student behavior or academic problems be sure to communicate these concerns with parents early.  It’s better to inform them and have them go away, then not and watch them become BIG problems later on.

Daily Interactions:  Think about how you interact with parents on a daily basis.  Are you friendly when you see them at drop off and pick up?  If they drop by your class  to chat how do you respond?  Do you smile at them?  Your daily interactions with parents make a big impact so try to remember that kindness goes a long way.

Pinterest Pin Here

Communicate Often and in Various Forms: Send notes, make phone calls, write a weekly newsletter, update your website etc.  Use these various forms to communicate student accomplishments and progress, class happenings and things you are excited about.

So what do you think?  I know there are so many ideas and tips out there for how to build teacher-parent relationships and I'd love to hear what you do!   All I know is that  just like I reflect and plan my teaching, I need to take time to reflect and plan how to build teacher-parent relationships each year.  And, I think big part of that is to remember to NOT give up! 

Happy Friday all! Now I'm off to go walking to encourage this baby to stay head down.  Ha-Ha

XOXOXO