CHEERS AND GOALS
Oh, no! It’s that time of year when you have
your first parent conference. Here
are a few tips that might help you.
Cheers and
Goals
Give children a
piece of paper. Have them fold it
in half and write “Cheers” on one side and “Goals” on the other side. On the “Cheers” side encourage them to
draw pictures of three things they have learned that make them feel proud. (Older students could label these and
younger students could dictate descriptions.) On the “Goals” side children draw pictures of three things
they are working on. Again, they
can write sentences or dictate goals to the teacher. Having this and other samples of children’s work is a great
way to start a conference.
Another strategy
that I used as a teacher was the “Parent Conference Questionnaire.” Ask parents to fill out a form similar
to the one shown and bring it to the conference. If they show up empty handed, simply smile and give them
another one to fill out before you get started. This will guide the conference starting with the positives
and working through areas the child needs to work on.
*You can download
a copy of the Parent Conference Questionnaire on my July, 2011, Parent Power
Pak.
