The Beginning of the School Year is So Important!

    Welcome back to a new school year! I have always loved the beginning of school years, filled with possibility and promise. When I was a teacher, I was so excited to see who came into my classroom and to have the opportunity to start over with a new group of students. The beginning of the school year is very important because it sets the tone for the rest of the year. What can you as a parent do to support your child in having a great start to the school year?
    First of all, take time to reflect on your concerns about your child? Are your concerns and worries in the academic or social or emotional areas? If you have concerns or worries, I would encourage you to set up an appointment with your child’s teacher in the first two weeks. You can share these concerns and worries and ask for the teacher’s support in strengthening these areas. Tell your child’s teacher that you welcome the opportunity to work with her(him) and would welcome any feedback, advice, or support during the year. Let the teacher know that you will do what is necessary at home to support your child. Thank them for taking the time and for being willing to help you and your child. When parents thanked me and appreciated my extra time and effort as a teacher, I felt happy and energized to work even harder on behalf of the child. Creating a collaborative relationship with great communication will greatly support your child’s learning and growing. It can be so powerful for the academic, social, and emotional growth of your child when home and school are working together as a team.
     Before I became a social worker and therapist 15 years ago, I had been an elementary school teacher for 21 years. It was valuable for me when parents called and wanted to meet with me at the beginning of the year. They came in to share information about their child and to ask for my support with particular issues. These meetings at the beginning of the year created a relationship and connection. Yes, you can share information about your child in a letter, email, or phone call, but it is not the same quality of connection as sitting in person with your child’s teacher. Meeting in person quickly focuses and brings the teacher’s attention to certain issues. With 20 to 30 students in a class, I found it helpful when parents focused my attention and created an intention at the beginning of the year. I eventually gathered information over the next two months, but a meeting speeded up my process of learning about my students.
     The intention and tone of your conversation with the teacher is very critical. If you go into the meeting with a demanding or entitled or pressured tone to your words, the teacher might be defensive or less responsive. Like parents, teachers are under a lot of pressure and are juggling a lot of demands and needs. If your intention is that the teacher "fix" the situation or overcompensate for your concerns about your child, the teacher may be less engaged in working with you during the year. When your intention is to work collaboratively with the teacher to challenge, support, and strengthen your child and to not fix or buffer or overcompensate, I believe that a positive relationship between home and school will be created and that your child’s school year will be off to a great start. Here’s to an exciting year of learning and growing for your child and you.