As special educators, we spend a great deal of time thinking and planning appropriate educational strategies for our students. We also work with a variety of school personnel to ensure that our students receive necessary supports.
We also must do our best to work effectively with parents. Here are some tips about working with parents that we’ve learned over the years.
1. Keep a log of all contact with parents—phone calls, e-mails, notes, quick conversations in the hallway. And keep copies of any notes or e-mails sent to parents that contain important information about students.
2. Don’t hesitate to contact parents with questions that you have about their child.
3. Encourage parents to contact you with questions or concerns.
4. If you need to visit a parent at their home, be sure to take a colleague with you.
5. If parents don’t respond to your inquiries in a timely manner, don’t make assumptions about why you haven’t heard from them.
6. Keep parents informed about what is going on in your class.
7. Let parents know when their child has done something positive, not just when there are concerns to discuss.
What have you found to be effective ways to work with parents? How do you communicate with your students’ parents? Let us know.
Joyce and Mary