Effective Parent Conferences

The Little Things You Can Do for Them Today That Can Lead Them to Big Things Tomorrow: Effective Parent Conferences

Always Attend Their Parent Conferences

The 2018/2019 school year is just about over now.  How well did your child do in school?  What were their greatest achievements? What did they struggle with?  Were you aware of these struggles?  How did you and the teacher team up to help your child succeed?  If you didn’t, let’s explore how it can get better next year.

Parent teacher conferences are an important meeting for your child’s overall academic success.  Do not miss any.  It is a time when the  teacher, parents, and student discuss what has been working well, things to improve in, and goals to achieve the best grades.  How many of you do that?  Let me guess, is it the teacher starting with some general positive comments about your child but then bombarding you with all the negative things that you must address to get them to behave better? 

Empathize With the Teacher

First let’s take a look at what a teacher might be going through: teaching 20+ students, all being at different academic levels, paperwork for each and everyone one, managing behavior and meeting expectations, and not to mention staff meetings.  There is a lot that teachers do.  We sometimes forget that they too need support.  I encourage you to look at your schedule and find at least one day in the month that might be used to go help out your child’s teacher.

When teachers feel supported, they are better able to support their students (your child!).  Support from parents might look like this: ensuring students are completing their homework assignments, communicating challenges at home that might affect child in the classroom, and volunteering to help in the classroom even if it’s only once a month.  Involved parents are demonstrating to their child that support is available to everyone.  Next time you see your child’s teacher, ask them, do you need help with something?  How can I help make things a little easier in your classroom?  Trust me, they will be shocked; but most importantly, something magical will happen.  They will begin to focus more on the children and provide more support. 

Prepare With Your Child

We often forget the most important person in a parent-teacher conference - the child.  Encouraging your child to be a part of the conference means hearing them out.  You as a parent are their advocate.  Who else will stand up for your child if it’s not you?  They need to know that this conference is not about the complaints of the teacher that will result in punishment from you, but more so about where he or she struggles.   This is a good opportunity to show them that both you and the teacher will work together to encourage and support them in their development and growth. 

How do you get them to participate?  Ask your child what their thoughts on their teacher are.  Did the teacher help when they asked for it? If so, how did they help?  What is one thing they love about this teacher?  What is one thing they wish they could change about them?  And more importantly, are there any concerns with other students that should be talked about?  When children feel heard they begin to open up.  By you asking them these questions you are letting them know that school can be tough and challenging sometimes, but you are there to help them through it.  Did you forget how it was for you?  Talking to your children with empathy opens the lines of trust and communication in your relationship.

How to Make the Best Out of Parent Conferences

Now that you have prepared your child for the conference, let’s prepare you.  Practice having an open mind about what the teacher might be going through on a daily basis.  Keep in mind that they might need your support.  Have an idea as to what day you may offer your time.  Also, practice talking to your child about their own concerns in regards to their teacher, what they really enjoy about them, and what might be something they need your help with.  During the conference, it would be a good idea to create goals and a time frame of when you're child should be meeting standards.  If they have not, discuss how to handle them.

Do you as the parent have any concerns in mind?  We often have so many good questions and valid concerns we wish to address, but the problem is when we are finally sitting in the actual parent conference, all of our questions and concerns go out the window.  Think about when you go to a doctor visit.  By the time it’s over you realize you forgot to ask them the million questions you had prior to your appointment.  The best thing to do prior to a parent conference is to write down any questions or concerns you may have so that you can address each one that’s on your list.  This will help to have a fulfilled conference focusing directly on your child’s needs.

What if you don’t know what to ask or let alone, how to ask it?  Below I have provided a list of good questions to ask your child’s teacher during the conference.  In addition, I have added some links that provide good questions to keep in mind.  Copy them into the notes you are taking and add your own twist to them if needed.  Remember you are your child’s number one advocate and role model, show them you support them.

What’s the best way to communicate with you? 

Who does my child work well with? 

Do you have any concerns about my child? 

How can I help at home to support what you’re doing in the classroom?

Is there a time of the day that you notice my child being more or less engaged? 

How can we work together to help my child?

https://www.mother.ly/child/5-productive-questions-ask-teachers-conferences

https://www.verywellfamily.com/questions-to-ask-at-a-parentteacher-conference-620921

Once you know a little more about your child’s strengths and challenges, getting extra help outside of school is a good idea.  Consider contacting us at Wiz Kid Tutor where a specialized tutor can help make those challenges into mastering milestones.  www.wizkidtutor.com

Provide Structure

1.     Provide Structure

How often do you lose your keys, or that one important paper you knew you would need and now you can’t find it?  What about the pen you were just using?  Getting organized can help eliminate many life’s little stressors.  Do you ever notice the stress you feel when something does not go as planned?  Now imagine how chaotic that might be for your child.  Children work best when they know what’s coming.  What about when you just do not know how to do something, how frustrating is that?  Take for example, your child’s homework.  It’s been a long time since you probably have been in school, or the way they are teaching now is totally different than when you were young.  When all else fails ask for help.  Wiz Kid Tutor is always here to help.  A lot of tantrums can be avoided if children know where things belong, know beforehand what’s coming next, and get the help they need when things get challenging.  Providing structure for children does not have to be stressful.  Here are a couple tips to keep in mind:

A.     Have structure in their environment: Kids have a lot of toys, let’s be real. While it’s great to have a variety of choices, have it structured. This means allowing them to pick an activity and put things away before they go to the next.  How many times do you pick up their toys? Stop doing that, instead, do it together through a song or going half and half. Sing, “Clean-up, clean-up, everybody everywhere. Clean-up, clean-up, everybody do your share” together as you clean.  Ask them to pick “which ones do you want to put away, these or those”, they do the one they say and you let them know you will do the others.  If they say they are “tired”, acknowledge their feeling and say something like, “the faster we finish the faster we can go snuggle and rest”.  They will try everything to get away from cleaning but don’t give in, make sure they “do their share”. 

B.      Establish daily routines: Having daily routines helps to provide structure and makes good habits become second nature.  Take for example brushing teeth.  Do you brush your teeth after every meal? (I know I don’t) Well, how can we expect children to do as the dentist says if we don’t do it ourselves.  According to the National institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, 42% of children 2 to 11 have had dental caries in their primary teeth.  Black and Hispanic children and those living in families with lower incomes have more decay.  This is just one type of routine.  Establishing daily routines can help children know what is next.  These are good habits that can follow them throughout their life.  This also helps with avoiding tantrums.  When something new is coming, help them understand what will happen.  You’d be surprised at how well children respond when they know what is coming next. 

C.     Offer or find help: Do you remember when you were in school?  Did things come easy or did you struggle?  How did your parents give you help?  Things have not really changed much with students in school these days.  Students continue to struggle for a variety of reasons.  There are those who understand a particular subject well while struggle with another.  How do you help them?  Knowing how to do something is different than teaching it.  Leave that to Wiz Kid Tutor.  Do you often fight with your child to do their homework?  We tend to confuse laziness with not understanding how to do something.  Children demonstrate their frustration in different forms.  Helping them can be as easy as finding the right tutor for them.  Is your child an A student but at times gets challenged?  We have tutors to keep them on top of their game as well.  Call to get an assessment and see where they stand in their academics.  Help will always be provided at Wiz Kid Tutor.

How do you provide structure?

www.wizkidtutor.com

National institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research

https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/research/data-statistics/dental-caries/children

Homework Trouble

www.wizkidtutor.com

Does your child complain when they have to read?  Do they put excuses so they don’t read?  Do you spend hours trying to get them to sit down and just read?  Doesn't it concern you as to why? 

Children often times do not know how to express their troubles.  They might not know how to explain themselves or how to explain it to you as a parent that there is a problem.  The explanations come in their actions.  The tantrums to do homework, the excuses they put such as they are hungry or want to take a shower or need something else before they can start their reading homework or any other homework for that matter.

There could be several factors as to why children do not like to read.  A reason could be that when they read they do not understand what they are reading.   Another reason could be they cannot pronounce or decode words correctly hence interfering with their reading comprehension.  Another reason could be their vocabulary might not be as extensive as it should be to understand definitions of words. There might be even more reason as to why children do not like to read.  These reasons can be anchored to meet children's needs.

Providing children with tools and the specialized attention they require can help them with reading comprehension, correct pronunciation, and extending their vocabulary.  Taking action as soon as problems arise can ease the stress to both child and parent.  Children who have difficulty with reading should get the help they need soon before they go further up in grades.  Parents can help them at home by reading something the child is interested in.  Listen to their reading and highlight any words they cannot pronounce or define.  This is a good start to helping them react to reading in a more positive fun manner.  All else can be left to Wiz Kid Tutor, we are here to help you and your child have a wonderful educational experience.  We make your job easier.

www.wizkidtutor.com

Wiz Kid Tutor

www.wizkidtutor.com

Hi!  My name is Maria.  I am the owner of Wiz Kid Tutor.  I have an extraordinary almost 14 year old daughter.  We pretty much grew up together as I had her when I was a teen.  People say they should follow in their parent's footsteps.  Well if that's the case I made new footsteps for her to follow.  Education became my new path.  I am always challenging myself to explore new horizons as well as putting her in different challenges.  I always seem to have something to say and as my best friend I tell her (almost) everything.  It was suggested that I start blogging, so let me start by introducing how Wiz Kid Tutor was born.

I was in a very different career field a few years ago.  The market was going down and business was beginning to slow down while the pressure was quickly rising.  I needed a change but with having only sales experience I was limited on my picks of careers.  A special friend at the time encouraged me to continue my education.  I was only a high school graduate at the time with a lot of experience in sales making good money, did I really need an education?  I decided to look into my education.  When I went to enroll in college, I needed to take an assessment test to place me in the correct math and English levels.  I was a bit arrogant and figured it was a piece of cake; I would score high and be finished in no time.

I answered those questions with ease.  I felt confident.  When I received my test scores, I was shocked!  "How could this be?  There had to be something wrong with their grading system.  I could not have possibly scored in the lowest level?”  I went straight to the testing center and asked to see my test.  There was no doubt; I did score at the lowest level.  I had two choices, either enroll in the classes I was assessed into or just not go, what did they know about what level I should be in anyway?

The first day of class was a slap in the face.  All I thought I knew had been forgotten.  In math, my rules and formulas were all mixed up.  I had forgotten the basic mathematical fundamentals that were taught in elementary school.  All of a sudden, everything started clicking together.  Whole numbers, multiplying decimals, adding and subtracting fractions, multiplication tables, dividing with decimals, converting decimals into fractions, dividing fractions, adding and subtracting integers, and so much more was taught in that first month of class.  I was doing the same math my 4th grade daughter was doing.  In English, I had forgotten the writing process, proper grammar, parts of speech, connecting my ideas with my thesis, transition from one idea to the next, principles of composition, and so much more that I had to re-learn.

This experience really humbled me.  I realized the reason why so many people struggle in their education.  Some how some way along their educational path some parts are forgotten or not fully understood.  Once I understood it all of a sudden, everything made complete sense.  Unfortunately, for some of my classmates it was still difficult.  We started study groups and I was able to explain to them in more simple ways than the professor was.  It started to become easy for me to teach others.  By practicing and then teaching it to others it was becoming easier and easier for me.

I soon began working for a tutoring company servicing children in K-12.  My turn around was at least two grade levels higher.  I was able to help several children comprehend what was currently being taught to them simply by providing that individualized attention and simpler teaching methods.  I had also challenged myself by teaching children with disabilities.  I thought it might have been difficult but they were my best students.  I tutored for this company for a while until one family implanted the idea to become my own business.  Thus, Wiz Kid Tutor was born within a few weeks after.

I strongly believe in education and felt the need to help others that had difficulty understanding certain subjects.  My theory is that as children continue to be bumped to the next grade level, regardless of their understanding and grades, they begin to get behind.  It is not noticeable until they are failing all their classes.  Through my experience, I realized it was due to not fully understanding the current lesson.  The teachers have to move on regardless.  I am so grateful that I scored in a low level for English and Math.  It helped refresh my memory of the basic fundamentals I had forgotten or never understood.  I probably would not have understood the rest of my classes.  I graduated with honors from East Los Angeles College in 2009 with my first Associates Degree.  In 2011, I graduated with honors again when I obtained my second Associates Degree in Child Development.  I will be pursuing my Bachelor’s Degree soon as possible as it is a bit pricey. 

Maria Serpas