Touching base with kids teachers
Oct 20, 2015 14:52:02 #
Communication between a childs parents and educators is helpful to all.
MICHELLE MALTAIS
Students arent the only ones who have homework. We parents also have an ongoing assignment: building, nurturing and maintaining a relationship with our kids teachers.
The level of success a child experiences during a school year is definitely enhanced by communication and cooperation between parents and teachers, former Los Angeles Unified School District kindergarten and middle school teacher (and mom) Wendy Kennar said.
For some of us, forging a collaborative relationship might seem daunting. You always feel like youre going to the principals office, said Gracie Lujan of La Cañada Flintridge, a mother of five.
Sure, exchanges between parent and teacher can, at times, feel territorial or even adversarial. But they shouldnt and they dont have to.
Why do I need a relationship with my childs teacher?
Teachers are the people parents entrust with the most precious people in our lives the people who inspire the strongest emotions (and fears) within us. Just on that basis alone, it makes sense to connect with them. Both teacher and parent are working toward the same end: forming and facilitating the development of the child.
As a teacher, theres only so much you can do after all, youve got 30-plus other children in the room, depending on the grade youre teaching, Kennar said. So what youre trying to do in the classroom must be supported at home.
What should I expect from this relationship?
My 4-year-old started a t***sitional kindergarten program this fall, and my husband and I have been navigating the relationship through this perspective.
When we first dropped him off at the carpool, we left a smiling, playful child who both charms and challenges us. For the next six or seven hours, we have no idea of the person the teachers encountered. We assumed it was the same child we took to preschool. Back-to-school night proved very instructive, even if a bit unsettling. I lingered a bit to ask more questions of the teacher one-on-one.
We learned that in the classroom, our son was exerting some of the same defiance that we saw at home. The most useful takeaway: The specific words and actions the classroom used to deal with this behavior. When we began to implement the same approach at home it was like a miracle. Mornings shifted from stressful screaming matches to a pleasant routine easing him into the school day.
The need for communication is particularly imperative when a child has unique challenges, said Jennifer Loza. Her son, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, gets bouts of depression and anxiety dealing with the loss of his dad, the Bermuda Dunes mom said. As long as I communicate this to his teachers, they are really good about giving some leeway and allowing him some space and even doing some extra things to keep him distracted or help boost his spirits.
What should we talk about?
Just as you know your child in a certain context, so do teachers and you two might not experience the same person. The idea is to help teachers round out their image of your child and to help them most effectively reach the student.
Tell the teacher what you know about your childs interests, sk**ls and history that will help to build a complete picture of who your child is at this moment. Share any information that can affect your child emotionally, mentally or physically.
Remember, too, communicating isnt only about telling teachers. Its also about asking and listening. Let the teacher tell you about what he or she knows of your child and how the child is in the classroom. You may get some ideas on how to encourage and extend that learning environment at home.
How do I know what to tell them?
Teachers dont know everything parents are dealing with at home other siblings, long commutes, extended family, housing issues, medical issues, etc., Kennar said.
Former preschool teacher Lacey LaCour agrees. Is there something disruptive going on at home? Did your child have a really bad night of sleep or a stressful morning? It is good for teachers to know a childs home environment, said the Torrance-based mother of two.
Its already mid-October. What if we didnt start at the beginning of the school year?
You dont need to wait until parent-teacher conferences or until theres a problem.
A parents first contact with a teacher shouldnt be for a negative reason, said Kennar, who taught at L.A. Unifieds Rosewood Avenue Elementary for 12 years. Honestly, it took me a few years to learn that my first phone call home shouldnt be because of a problem but to compliment something a child did.
When there is a problem, some teachers may prefer to encourage their students to deliver and take responsibility for the news. I send a note home, said Deidre Krieger, a fifth-grade teacher at Thomas Edison School in Anaheim. I want them to have the option to make the right choice. When I dont get it back the next day, I forward the photo of the note in an email to the parent and ask them to keep an eye out for it, with a brief explanation of what happened during the day.
How can I initiate a conversation with my childs teacher?
Dont wait to be called on by the teacher. Parents shouldnt hesitate to send a note and request an informal hows-my-childdoing discussion through email, phone or in person. Parents also shouldnt hesitate to ask for concrete suggestions on ways to help at home.
Some teachers do the initiating by distributing to parents at the beginning of the year a kind of student information sheet to fill out, including preferences for how to be contacted.
How often do we need to be in touch?
That will vary, depending on your child. My sons teachers have been sending us a weekly progress report on how effective our coordinated efforts are and what we might discuss tweaking. It was a wonderful feeling getting that note saying that theyve been seeing in their classroom more of the child we have known.
What mode of communication is best?
Ask the teacher or the school whats preferred. Swap contact information and exchange the best times to reach each other.
Although many teachers email or use wh**ever schoolwide online communication system is in place, some will prefer phone calls and handwritten notes. Others employ third-party apps such as ClassDojo, which allows them to, among other things, track students classroom behavior and send weekly reports.
And although ongoing communication over the phone or email is important, the event meetings can still be a useful opportunity as well, particularly as your students universe of teachers broadens.
Back-to-school night is even more important in high school, said mother Michelle Machado of Escondido. Since [my kids] have six to eight teachers now, you never really get to know them except from your teenagers warped version. Even just spending 20 minutes or so with them made me feel like I kind of know them and their personalities a bit better. michelle.maltais@latimes.com Twitter: @mmaltaisla
MICHELLE MALTAIS
Students arent the only ones who have homework. We parents also have an ongoing assignment: building, nurturing and maintaining a relationship with our kids teachers.
The level of success a child experiences during a school year is definitely enhanced by communication and cooperation between parents and teachers, former Los Angeles Unified School District kindergarten and middle school teacher (and mom) Wendy Kennar said.
For some of us, forging a collaborative relationship might seem daunting. You always feel like youre going to the principals office, said Gracie Lujan of La Cañada Flintridge, a mother of five.
Sure, exchanges between parent and teacher can, at times, feel territorial or even adversarial. But they shouldnt and they dont have to.
Why do I need a relationship with my childs teacher?
Teachers are the people parents entrust with the most precious people in our lives the people who inspire the strongest emotions (and fears) within us. Just on that basis alone, it makes sense to connect with them. Both teacher and parent are working toward the same end: forming and facilitating the development of the child.
As a teacher, theres only so much you can do after all, youve got 30-plus other children in the room, depending on the grade youre teaching, Kennar said. So what youre trying to do in the classroom must be supported at home.
What should I expect from this relationship?
My 4-year-old started a t***sitional kindergarten program this fall, and my husband and I have been navigating the relationship through this perspective.
When we first dropped him off at the carpool, we left a smiling, playful child who both charms and challenges us. For the next six or seven hours, we have no idea of the person the teachers encountered. We assumed it was the same child we took to preschool. Back-to-school night proved very instructive, even if a bit unsettling. I lingered a bit to ask more questions of the teacher one-on-one.
We learned that in the classroom, our son was exerting some of the same defiance that we saw at home. The most useful takeaway: The specific words and actions the classroom used to deal with this behavior. When we began to implement the same approach at home it was like a miracle. Mornings shifted from stressful screaming matches to a pleasant routine easing him into the school day.
The need for communication is particularly imperative when a child has unique challenges, said Jennifer Loza. Her son, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, gets bouts of depression and anxiety dealing with the loss of his dad, the Bermuda Dunes mom said. As long as I communicate this to his teachers, they are really good about giving some leeway and allowing him some space and even doing some extra things to keep him distracted or help boost his spirits.
What should we talk about?
Just as you know your child in a certain context, so do teachers and you two might not experience the same person. The idea is to help teachers round out their image of your child and to help them most effectively reach the student.
Tell the teacher what you know about your childs interests, sk**ls and history that will help to build a complete picture of who your child is at this moment. Share any information that can affect your child emotionally, mentally or physically.
Remember, too, communicating isnt only about telling teachers. Its also about asking and listening. Let the teacher tell you about what he or she knows of your child and how the child is in the classroom. You may get some ideas on how to encourage and extend that learning environment at home.
How do I know what to tell them?
Teachers dont know everything parents are dealing with at home other siblings, long commutes, extended family, housing issues, medical issues, etc., Kennar said.
Former preschool teacher Lacey LaCour agrees. Is there something disruptive going on at home? Did your child have a really bad night of sleep or a stressful morning? It is good for teachers to know a childs home environment, said the Torrance-based mother of two.
Its already mid-October. What if we didnt start at the beginning of the school year?
You dont need to wait until parent-teacher conferences or until theres a problem.
A parents first contact with a teacher shouldnt be for a negative reason, said Kennar, who taught at L.A. Unifieds Rosewood Avenue Elementary for 12 years. Honestly, it took me a few years to learn that my first phone call home shouldnt be because of a problem but to compliment something a child did.
When there is a problem, some teachers may prefer to encourage their students to deliver and take responsibility for the news. I send a note home, said Deidre Krieger, a fifth-grade teacher at Thomas Edison School in Anaheim. I want them to have the option to make the right choice. When I dont get it back the next day, I forward the photo of the note in an email to the parent and ask them to keep an eye out for it, with a brief explanation of what happened during the day.
How can I initiate a conversation with my childs teacher?
Dont wait to be called on by the teacher. Parents shouldnt hesitate to send a note and request an informal hows-my-childdoing discussion through email, phone or in person. Parents also shouldnt hesitate to ask for concrete suggestions on ways to help at home.
Some teachers do the initiating by distributing to parents at the beginning of the year a kind of student information sheet to fill out, including preferences for how to be contacted.
How often do we need to be in touch?
That will vary, depending on your child. My sons teachers have been sending us a weekly progress report on how effective our coordinated efforts are and what we might discuss tweaking. It was a wonderful feeling getting that note saying that theyve been seeing in their classroom more of the child we have known.
What mode of communication is best?
Ask the teacher or the school whats preferred. Swap contact information and exchange the best times to reach each other.
Although many teachers email or use wh**ever schoolwide online communication system is in place, some will prefer phone calls and handwritten notes. Others employ third-party apps such as ClassDojo, which allows them to, among other things, track students classroom behavior and send weekly reports.
And although ongoing communication over the phone or email is important, the event meetings can still be a useful opportunity as well, particularly as your students universe of teachers broadens.
Back-to-school night is even more important in high school, said mother Michelle Machado of Escondido. Since [my kids] have six to eight teachers now, you never really get to know them except from your teenagers warped version. Even just spending 20 minutes or so with them made me feel like I kind of know them and their personalities a bit better. michelle.maltais@latimes.com Twitter: @mmaltaisla
Oct 20, 2015 15:39:39 #
Hey Fatty,,,,More like you "touching children" with your pre-occupation with weird sexual crap.... Can anyone imagine what it must be to have to "touch anything" involving you,,,since you claim to be an educator!!??!!
God,,,,,, I would want a tetanus booster,,, just from being in the air you have polluted....
I mean really,,,, who wants to read what interested YOU, a demonstrably perverted and hallucinatory dickwad????
When you wildebeast are grazing,,,,,do you think r****t crap about the real bulls,,,,,, or just suffice yourself with eating crap????
Here is some r****m you left for us on other posts,,,,
God,,,,,, I would want a tetanus booster,,, just from being in the air you have polluted....
I mean really,,,, who wants to read what interested YOU, a demonstrably perverted and hallucinatory dickwad????
When you wildebeast are grazing,,,,,do you think r****t crap about the real bulls,,,,,, or just suffice yourself with eating crap????
Here is some r****m you left for us on other posts,,,,
KHH1 wrote:
1. Part I did not teach you confederates anything.... (show quote)
Oct 20, 2015 15:52:23 #
Oct 20, 2015 15:53:56 #
Not as long as your r****t crap stinks up our air,,,,,
KHH1 wrote:
1. Part I did not teach you confederates anything.... (show quote)
Oct 20, 2015 15:58:42 #
This is what kkkzero "REALLY" wrote,,,,,using his own words,,,, these other posts are from actual people with brains,,, but when left to his own wits,,,,, and (chuckle chuckle) education,,,, this is all he is capable of producing...
See why he is called "Filthy Animal??"
See why he is called "Filthy Animal??"
KHH1 wrote:
1. Part I did not teach you confederates anything.... (show quote)
Oct 20, 2015 15:59:48 #
Huh,,,,, you dont seem to like it when your r****m follows you,,, and you have to take responsibility for it??????
Go figure,,
Thats why I like to force feed it to you,,,, fatty
Go figure,,
Thats why I like to force feed it to you,,,, fatty
Oct 20, 2015 16:01:26 #
This is what kkkzero "REALLY" wrote,,,,,using his own words,,,, these other posts are from actual people with brains,,, but when left to his own wits,,,,, and (chuckle chuckle) education,,,, this is all he is capable of producing...
See why he is called "Filthy Animal??"
See why he is called "Filthy Animal??"
KHH1 wrote:
1. Part I did not teach you confederates anything.... (show quote)
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