I am a teacher. I believe my primarily goal is to teach the students the content they need in order to be successful and well prepared for the next school year. In that process, effective parent and student communication is critical to attaining that goal. The focus of this plan is on fostering those relationships (Meltzo, 2001).
In this particular time, we are working with a different kind of parent. Parents are busy and, at times, overwhelmed. Schools inundate parents with weekly paperwork sent home from the PTO, the office, and various other sources. I have observed in the past 4-5 years, that much of the paperwork either never gets taken out of the backpack or gets thrown away and not read. The goal of this plan is to effectively build relationships through communication utilizing current technology and human interactions. This is simply how parents prefer to communicate. Simplicity and workability is the key.
Teacher –Parent Communication School Designated Open House
- Create a friendly classroom environment in which the parents feel comfortable. This is the first step in creating open lines of communication. Parents should feel a sense of comfort upon first meeting the teacher. They should feel that they can contact the teacher at any time for any concern.
- Provide a questionnaire for parents asking them what form of communication is the most convenient and workable for them – phone calls, emails, or notes.
- Discuss the curriculum map for the year, resources for parents, homework guidelines, and questions/concerns. This will be scheduled for the 2nd week in August. It will give parents an opportunity to have experienced the beginnings of routines, and have a foundation on which to base the meeting on.
