While standing up in front of a class of children and shaping their knowledge seems to be a regular and comfortable task for teachers, standing up in front of those same children’s parents often is not. Many teachers are nervous, tense and uncomfortable speaking to parents at “Parent Teacher Night” and during parent conferences. It doesn’t help that many parents seem to be in a state of denial about their child’s behavior or abilities, sometimes even blaming the teacher for causing the misbehavior by singling out their child unfairly. Knowing what to say, and more importantly, how to say it can mean the difference between cooperation and confrontation. This class is designed for teachers in any grade level and in any discipline. In this class, we will discuss and develop the skills necessary to build effective communication with parents, tailor messages to the recipient, and interact with difficult parents under pressure. We will plan for parent/teacher open house events as well as individual parent conferences and written communication. We will investigate scenarios such as dealing with angry, confused, and apathetic parents as well as sharing unpleasant information.

Teachers enrolled in this course will...

Know

1. How to reflect on their own practices to improve interactions with parents in the future.
2. How their own personality influences how they are perceived by parents

Understand

1. That all parents are different and require different approaches from their children.
2. That most parents want a better life for their child and may not know how to get it for them

and Be Able To

1. Engage in conversations with parents to promote not only a positive meeting, but a plan for the student’s success in class.
2. Utilize various strategies for dealing with all kinds of parents and situations.
3. Provide parents with resources to help students outside of the school environment

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