Parent-Teacher conferences can be VERY STRESSFUL for teachers, it is hard to know what to prep for meetings with parents, how to convey student progress, and how to make a good impression that leaves parents confident that their child’s education is in good hands with you. Below are 5 ways you can make sure this year you ROCK your conferences with parents!
Also, I have included my personal Student-LED conference form FREE to support you! Okay, let’s DO THIS!
# 1 Have Student Work Displayed
A room filled with student work can be inviting and welcoming to visitors. It also shows parents that you value what your students create and that the classroom is learning focused.
To help support this make sure you display work from EVERY student and make sure the work has a learning focus. I like to display an art piece from each student that also correlates with my ELA curriculum. Two of my favorite display pieces I do with my students are a preposition pet comic strip and a collective noun pun cartoon.
# 2 Student Graded Work Folder or Portfolio
When I started using grade work folders in my classroom it changed the way I handled conferences. The concept is to have every student keep a file folder or online folder with their graded work in it. I then keep the folders in class labeled bins in the back of my room. When I have conferences with parents and/or students I can pull their graded work and reflect on success, progress, and error patterns that a collection of their assessed work will show. You can also use this concept for digital work by creating a shared group in Google Drive and have each student create a folder.
# 3 Display Student Learning Process
If possible have a recent example of a student’s work that shows their learning process. What I mean by this is a brainstorm or pre-activity, such as graphic organizers, then a class activity, then a final project, assessment, homework, or writing piece. This will help to have a view of a student’s learning processing through a lesson in your class.
As an ELA teacher, three of my favorite story units I like to use to show student learning- process throughout a story is:
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Dirk the Protector, and The Hitchhiker.
# 4 Student Reflection
Have student input or a reflection on how THEY think they are doing in class. This is a game-changer. Having students’ self-reflections of how they are doing in class can help to paint a larger picture when conferencing about their success in your class. If the student attends the conference this can also serve as an ice-breaker having students share what they wrote in their reflection. Download my personal Student-Led Conference form to help you get started. This form can also be used as a student reflection if a student is not present at the conference.
# 5 Have a Take-Away
Have a hand-out of study suggestions, online support, a class newsletter or syllabus that parents or guardians can take home with them. It can be overwhelming for parents to meet with teachers, especially if they have several meetings to attend.
Having a take-away with important class information, class support links, or enrichment information can be a VERY helpful resource for parents to reflect back on later.
Parent-Teacher Conferences can be stressful for teachers, but they do not have to be, take a deep breath YOU GOT THIS…just follow the above suggestions and you are sure to ROCK your conferences with parents!
Happy Teaching!
Sincerely,
Jenny
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