The goal of parent-teacher conferences in the preschool or daycare setting is to help parents, teacher and the child become more involved in the educational process. We interviewed Stacey Kannenberg, co-author of Let’s Get Ready for Kindergarten! to find out how to implement parent-teacher conferences and to explain how to bring about more effective teacher-parent communication in family daycare.
OwnADaycare: What is the purpose of parent teacher conferences for preschoolers?
Stacey Kannenberg: The purpose of parent teacher conferences for preschoolers is to engage parents in the educational progress of their children.
OwnADaycare: How often should they be held in the preschool setting and how long should they last?
Stacey Kannenberg: They should be held twice a year for 15 minutes, once in fall and once in spring.
OwnADaycare: What topics/subjects/issues should be discussed in a preschool parent-teacher conference?
Stacey Kannenberg:
- How is my child doing academically, socially and behaviorally?
- What are some areas that we need to work on at home?
- Are there any areas of concern?
- What are my child’s strengths and weaknesses?
- Are they on target for Kindergarten?
OwnADaycare: Should the preschool teacher prepare a formal report?
Stacey Kannenberg: Absolutely, the preschool teacher needs to evaluate the child with a preschool checklist or report card to help the parent gauge their child’s progress.
OwnADaycare: What are some tips for parents to help build a good parent-teacher relationship?
Stacey Kannenberg: Ask questions and get everyone involved. The goal is to help the parent, teacher and child become more involved in the educational process. Educators need to keep parents informed and involved every step of the way. Parents need to share their child’s abilities and limitation with educators as well. And most of all, children need to be involved and motivated in the process as well.
Communication is the key. There should never be any surprises in a parent teacher conference setting. If a child is having issues in school, that information should be immediately conveyed to the parents, not waiting for conferences to discuss.
Ask what you can do? Do they need help at school, volunteering? Or is there something that we should be working on at home? Ask how you can help?
Make it fun. Don’t get defensive. Try to get a positive to offset any negative information! And if there are things you need to work on at home, than work on them to help your child succeed.
OwnADaycare: What are 5 important questions parents can ask preschool teachers about their child?
Stacey Kannenberg:
- How is my child doing academically, socially and behaviorally?
- What are some areas that we need to work on at home?
- Are there any areas of concern?
- What are my child’s strengths and weaknesses?
- What do they need to know for that first day of school? (Sadly many preschool teachers are unaware on how advanced Kindergarten has become – kids are tested on the alphabet mixed up, numbers 0-10, mixed up, basic colors, shapes and coins, how far they can count to 100 by that first Kindergarten conference)
OwnADaycare: If you were to make a list of 5 tips for a successful preschool parent-teacher conference, what would they be?
Stacey Kannenberg:
- Ask what you can do?
- Find out how your child is doing academically, socially and behaviorally
- Find out if there are any areas of concern?
- What are my child’s strengths and weaknesses?
- Are they on target for Kindergarten?
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