PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES

Hey I-Team. I hope you're doing well during this beautiful month of October (okay, so I'm a little biased since this is my birthday month!) But you have to admit, October is a beautiful month. I mean,  there's beauty in the changing colors of leaves, then there's the crisp autumn evenings, and of course the gorgeous sunsets at around 5:00pm daily (now that part I could do without...but I digress). So as one season comes to an end, you literally get to see another one begin. With that in mind, I'm thinking about how the  first quarter of the school year has come and gone. By now I'm sure many school districts have already had conferences. And I'm sure they were held either in person or virtually. But whatever the setting, Parent-Teacher Conferences definitely play a key role when it comes to the home-school connection.  Now while it's important for parents to get a clear  understanding of their child's growth and development in school, it's equally important for teachers to learn more about the student through the eyes of the parent/guardian. I think it goes without saying, but we know there can be challenges when trying to schedule a parent-teacher conference. One of those challenges of course is when parents/guardians work during the time of the conferences and simply cannot make it to pick up their child's report card. This is why flexibility is key for schools. Being understanding of a family's situation beyond the parameters of the school setting can  have a major impact on the type of support  schools get from those parents/guardians moving forward. However, successful Parent-Teacher Conferences whether over the phone, in person, or virtually can establish a great working relationship with families and have a lasting impact on the student. As a matter of fact, if you want to hear more about this topic, head on over to the Intentional Instruction podcast. In this episode I share 3 tips/strategies for making your Parent-Teacher conferences a huge success. Click here to listen. Still in need of a resource so parents can sign up for conferences? No worries, click on this link and check out a form I used in my classroom.
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​ The Intentional Toolkit
Inside the Intentional Toolkit, I included a few articles that are timely and are connected to the blog and podcast discussion. To access them just click on the toolkit at the bottom of this page. From there you'll be able to open the PDF. As always, I hope you find the articles useful.

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Well that's all for now.  But teachers as you're preparing for those loooooooong evenings during Parent-Teacher Conferences, remember to smile, even if it isn't visible from behind your facemask. Your positive energy will resonate with parents who-more than likely- are just as nervous during conference time as you are. And when conferences are over, take a deep breath as you celebrate the opportunity of being able to build relationships with the families of your students! Until next time...go out there and be GREAT!

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