October is Back to School Night

Every school year begins with a wide range of expectations from you, the students and their parents. You expect the students to come to school prepared with their learning tools, you want them ready and willing to learn, you expect them to be good citizens and respectful of you and their classmates, you also expect them to meet the standards for the grade level.
I am sure you had discussions on this subject from the very first day of school. You explained what they were going to learn and why it is important. The first days of school are crucial in order to set the tone for a successful school year. By now your students have a pretty good understanding that you have a clear and precise plan for them to be successful. You shared with them your commitment to their education, they must know that you will be ready each and every day with clear planned instructional program and guide them towards meeting the standards of the grade level or class. If you had these early discussions with them, they know that you will be firm, fair, impartial, caring and successful. Because when they succeed, you succeed.
As you prepare for Back to School Night, the parents will be eager to meet you because they already know something about you... from their children. This will be their opportunity to "size you up". This is also your opportunity to demonstrate your communications skills, your warmth and scholarly IQ. Why? because you have under your control, for the better part of each and every day, their most prized possessions-their children.

Getting the classroom ready for back to school night is no different than getting your home ready for guests. By know you should know the name of the custodian assigned to clean you classroom if not find out. Who is he/she? what are his hobbies, does she have children etc., you'll be surprised what human contact like this can do for both of you. You might even have this person speak to your class and include him/her on special activities. Your classroom will be a especial place for this person, instead of four wall to sweep and take out trash, it will be a place of friendship, a place that deserves special attention.

Have your students help you prepare the classroom for their parents and have them compile a folder of their work. As you prepare keep in mind the following:
1. Have student work displayed for each and everyone of your students, this work should be an example of their best work.
2. Have parents sit in their children assigned seats, so they can freely to look in their desks for the books being used in the classroom.
3. Review your long and short range instructional goals for their children.
4. Explain your grading system.
5. Discuss students behavior; expectations, rewards and consequences.
6. Inform parents what they can expect from you and what you expect of them.
7. Give them a copy of you schedule and when you are available to them.
8. Most of all insure that parents understand that your top priority is the success of their children.
9. Let them know that you are the best teacher in this school for their kids!

Successful teachers know that talking to parents isn't enough. That is why taking steps to have a successful Back to School activity will yield a positive relationship with the parents. This is crucial for helping students, specially when we need their support throughout the school year.

Remember that your responsibility to work with parents is constant, in truth, there will be some difficult parents but we can-not neglect our students for this reason, on the contrary this is the time that we re-double our efforts for the benefit of the student, our code of ethics demands nothing less. As you prepare, let me share the following definitions of education which I have come across in my years in the profession:
1. Education is a debt from the present to future generations.
2. A teacher never knows where his/her influence ends.
3. To render harmless after cultivation.

Have a successful Back to School night.