Parent Teacher Conference
Prepare for a Successful Conference
BEFORE THE CONFERENCE
Find out your child's questions and concerns about school
Check progress reports, report cards, and work your child has brought home
Write a list of questions you want to ask the teacher.
Write down information about your child that the teacher should know, such as family death, divorce, changed finances, illness, or a new home
If you need a ride, childcare, a different time, a day for the conference, the school can help. Call the school office and ask.
If English is not your first language, have someone contact the school before the parent-teacher conference and request an interpreter to assist you during the meeting.
AT THE CONFERENCE
Let the teacher begin the meeting, but be sure to ask the questions on our list before time runs out.
Ask the teacher what your child should know and be able to do by the end of the school year. Make a plan for how you and the teacher will work with your child to reach those goals.
Find out the best way (notes, phone calls, e-mail) and the best time to communicate with the teacher throughout the school year.
AFTER THE CONFERENCE
Talk with your child about what the teacher told you, especially the positive comments. Talk about learning goals and make a plan to reach them together.
Follow up on the plan you made with your child and the teacher every few weeks.
Check your child's backpack daily for materials sent home from school. Read all of it. If English is not your first language, ask a relative or friend to read the information to you in your language
Contact the teacher whenever you have questions. If your child is not doing well, set up a regular check-in schedule with the teacher to monitor progress. If English is not your first language, get a friend to help you contact teacher or to ask the school office for an interpreter.
Send the teacher a thank-you note when something good happens in the classroom
Make sure your child knows that school is important. Talk with your child every day about school, attending school events, offering to help from home, volunteer in the classroom, join the parent organization.
