Communication with parents. The part of teaching most teachers dislike. But with these communication strategies for teachers it can be positive and effortless. Every year, on back-to-school night, I would have an apple on each student’s desk. On the apple would be a note that would talk about how excited I was to partner with the families in their child’s success. I explained to the parents that I gave them an apple as a gift because we often associate apples with teachers, and parents are teachers, too! The partnership between teachers and families is so important for the success of our students.
As teachers, we have the honor of being entrusted with somebody’s child for 180 days a year. This means we need to build trust with the students and parents. Teachers use many ways to earn parent’s trust, and using communication is one of them. However, there are so many communication strategies for teachers. It’s important to find the right one for you.
Communication Strategies For Teachers
There are many ways we can build positive relationships with our students’ families, but here are four ways that you can build positive relationships and communication with parents from the first day:
The first call is always positive
Within the first week or two of school, try to make a positive phone call to each of your student’s parents or guardians. Share something great that the student did that day or how much you enjoy having their child in class. So often, we save phone calls for concerns or inappropriate behaviors, but making positive contact at the beginning of the year will let your student and his family know that you’re here for them!
Also, if you’re reading this after the first weeks of school have passed, know it’s not too late! You can implement this later in the year, which will still greatly impact the relationship with families! Sending home positive notes throughout the year is also a great way to keep the lines of parent communication open.
Be a cheerleader
While that first positive contact is important at the beginning of the year, it is also important to maintain positive communication throughout the year. Be your students’ biggest cheerleader and aim for positive contact with each family at least once a month. You can email families pictures of their child’s learning, a quick positive note, or make a phone call. Often, the small things we do can feel big to others.
Keep parents informed
When it comes to communication strategies for teachers, this is one of the most important. A huge part of partnering with parents is making ongoing communication a priority. Plus, apps like Remind make it easy to keep in touch with families about happenings in the classroom and specific things going on with their child. I do, however, encourage having “office hours.” When technology is always in our pocket or hand, it can become easy to be too accessible. It’s okay to put boundaries on when you respond to messages.
I also found that having easy-to-use templates for newsletters and notes at home saved me so much time to keep families up to date on our classroom happenings!
Keep a log
As a teacher, we have so many responsibilities that we are juggling. Keeping a communication log can help you stay organized. A log helps you know how consistent you’ve been in communication and the types of communication you have made (remember to strive for positive contact, too!), and also gives you great data for meetings or if a parent ever questions something.
Communication Strategies For Teachers: Positive Parent Communication
The partnership between teachers and families is so important for the success of our students. We can build positive relationships with our students’ families in many ways! How do you like to build positive relationships with parents? Let me know! I’d love to hear!
Save Time With These Easy To Use Parent Communication Resources!
If you need some ready-to-go, easy-to-use resources to positively communicate with parents, then you’re going to love the resources below that I mentioned in this post!
- Click HERE for Positive Notes For The Year
- Click HERE for Editable Parent Notes
- Click HERE for an Editable Parent Communication Log
- Click HERE to SAVE BIG and grab the Parent Communication Bundle
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