Knowing extra support is steps away can make you feel confident enough in your own skills and abilities to finesse a difficult scenario into a positive scenario. If things get rancorous, you can step out and ask for their support. If you sense that a particular conference might become acrimonious, invite your administrator to be nearby in the hallway.

Often, administrators will be making the rounds in the building.

Administration loves you because you're being transparent and effective. Parents love to know what you're doing with their children and how you're working toward their goals. In the past, I have added this to the bullet-point document. goals in front of you noting all the efforts you've made toward providing goal achievement.

Because you're a Special Education teacher, you'll be wise to have a listing of their I.E.P.

Have small toys out for kids to play with while you're speaking with parents.

Along with it, provide a sheet of online resources and book titles which could lend support to work at home.

Have a document which lists, by bullet point, the strengths and areas for development of each student.The Family Educational Rights Privacy Act ( ) should be reviewed by all teachers to familiarize themselves with the do's and don'ts of student information disclosure. Listen to what they have to say, but remember to keep F.E.R.P.A. Sometimes parents will bring up conversations about another student's interactions with their child.When they know you're professional and attuned to their child, they will begin to see you as the ally you are. It is important they know you're committed to this block of time being dedicated to their child's progress and development. Greet your families with a handshake or other appropriate acknowledgment.In the past, I have sent home this agenda ahead of time and suggested to parents that they make notes or send in their questions/concerns ahead of time so I can integrate their questions/concerns into my side of the presentation. Give parents time to share their points as you share yours. Be clear in the expectations of your meeting-have an agenda to follow.Texting, emails, newsletters, conversation. Make the event a priority in your communications.Here are a few helpful tips to consider as you prepare for parent-teacher conferences: More often than not, you will find these sessions a great place to deepen those stakeholder relationships, build rapport with your students' families, and gain insights into your babies' learning styles. I assure you, acrimonious conferences are apart from the norm. The reason teachers share those stories is because they are so rare and so noteworthy, and they happen so infrequently, that they certainly become a part of a building's historical lore.

This is normal, I promise! If you listen to the teacher's lounge chatter, you will certainly hear the stories of conferences gone bad-those sessions where a family member is so offended, so angry, so hostile, that others had to intervene to keep the peace. Back in the stone ages when I still had my new teacher smell, my anticipation of conferences would render me with feelings which would vacillate between excitement and terror. If you're new to the teaching profession, you may feel overwhelmed at the very thought of having these child-specific meetings with each of your students' parents and family members. The expected, and desired, rate of attendance is always 100% so we can share the great things our class and individual students are doing, and also discuss the things we need to discuss…and boy, sometimes those can be challenging conversations! Our school's parent-teacher conferences were last night.

Parent teacher conference funny