I communicate with parents via email and phone calls. By far, my favorite, and most effective communication tool has been email. Before the pandemic, I was just starting to see the effects of emails to parents to communicate about grades and behavior. Intentionally in February, I sent out positive emails to parents about the students in my 4th period. When we were home for distance learning, the best response and participation in my lessons and calls every week was from that period. After we were home for a bit, I began sending emails to the parents with some tips for completing their science work, and parents were responding and communicating back with me, and it something I will definitely do more of next year. When I make a call or send an email, I try to put a note in Eduphoria, and if it is email communication, I save it all in an email folder, so that I can reference it later.
I love email. I think one of the struggles I had as a teacher and now as an instructional coach is getting parents to give an email address and get into a habit of checking it. In a class of 30, I'd have 5-7 parents who would email. In a bldg of 500, we have about 230 emails and immediately about 30 of those came back as undeliverable. I wonder if we'll see more parents willing to communicate through email after what we've dealt with in the last few months.
Alicia, I really like your added component of saving your communication in an orderly fashion. Not only is it obviously critical to document all of what we do, but it’s essential that we have the ability to obtain it in a reasonable time when needed. Organization is definitely key here.
Alicia, I too use email and phone calls. I taught 5th & 6th grade ELA. I found that early in the school year I was able to make contact with 65% of my parents via Class DoJo. When we shut down due to Covid-19 It was easier to contact my parents via text and phone calls.
I spent more time speaking to my students during the shut down but what I found is that students didn't always tell their parents that they had been working with me. I learned after a short while that I had to continue to call the parents and check in with them as well.
I was able to print out my communication on Class DoJo at the end of the school year but had to keep a call log for the calls and text messages.
I also enjoy a quick positive email to a parent to let them know how well their child is doing. We used ClassDojo at my previous school and it gave a daily rundown of positives. Tricia Christopher- Middlebury Academy Akron, OH
As a teacher and now as an instructional coach, I use email, text, website, and social media to communicate with parents, colleagues, admin, etc. When I was in the classroom, I would text parents daily (in my class of 30, I had 10-12 I would text daily and I'd rotate through the others; when I taught alternative ed., I texted parents every single day about positives and things we were working on with behavior) To track the communication, I just kept the texts so I could refer back to them. Same with email, I'd put them in a folder. Phone calls, I'd track in a notebook. Communicating from the very beginning is vital. And building a relationship with parents/scholars so that you're communicating more than just negatives is huge.
I have a love/hate relationship with texting parents. While it is quick, it can sometimes be distracting. Some parents like to take advantage and want to text other things throughout the day or even into the evening hours. While I like email better, it is sometimes harder to get into contact with parents. I agree though that keeping in contact with parents is so important! Chynna Triska PLA@103
My principal initiated this last year and it made a difference. I have always tried to send positive notes/texts/emails and not always negative. When parents realize that you are saying really nice things they are much more receptive if you have to address a negative behavior. Andrea Caison Kindergarten Jones-Clark
Chynna, I agree that sometimes parents text way too late at night. If it's something that needs to be addressed right away, I don't mind texting back. If it's something that can wait until the morning, I will text first thing. I think you just have to make those boundaries for yourself while also still making parents feel like what they have to say is important.
When it comes to texting parents, learn from my mistakes. PLEASE MAKE SURE you ask your parents to NOT SHARE your contact info with kids. It is not okay for your scholars to text you from their personal phones. You have to cover your bases. We cannot risk parents, kids, relatives, etc claiming that we were texting them without a context.
Chynna, I agree about texting parents. Throughout this past school year, I only gave my cell phone number out to one parent and that was because her twins were in my class and were experiencing emotional outbursts consistently due to an issue outside of school. It was so much easier to just send the mom a quick text each day in regards to their behavior instead of calling or emailing.
When the shutdown began in March, I ended up calling and texting all my parents from my cell phone. Most of them did not abuse it, but a couple of them would text me late at night. I don't do this during a typical school year and probably won't in the future, but due to the shutdown and having a difficult time reaching our families, it was convenient. Cathy Branch, Middlebury Academy
I love how you use email to communicate with your students. My son's teacher was doing that with the students this year, especially since she know what she sends home doesn't always make it home. I've got may more students, but their parents should expect communication in some form ever couple of weeks.
I agree with you on what ever communication you use it is best to keep it throughout the year whether it be positive or negative, but make sure you always have a positive even before the negative.
Last year I started doing emails that I called "Friday Shout-Outs." I would highlight students how have worked hard during the week. Usually these were academic, but I do want to start doing positive character traits this coming year. The students loved having their name in the email. If they knew they did well on something they would ask me all day if I had sent the email yet. It really made them want to try hard so they could go home and ask their parents if they saw it. I think it also made parents actually look at the email since their kids wanted them to. Then I could also sneak in some reminders ;) I have not kept track of communication so far, but think this is a great idea so you can make sure your positive emails outweigh the negative.
I love the idea of Friday Shout-Outs!! Thank you for the great idea. I'm definitely going to try this for the new school year. I also like how you mentioned it being academic and character related.
Love the idea of Friday Shout Outs! Maybe this is a way to get parents to read my weekly newsletter! I have always kept track of parent communication with a simple 3-ring binder, noting the date, form of communication, and reason for contacting. In the schools I have taught in, it was mandatory to keep these notebooks. Not sure I would have even thought to track it on my own. Cathy Branch, Middlebury Academy
Communication early and often is a perfect way to avoid potential challenges with others. I like how the chapter highlights the fact that communicating with our peers, scholars, parents, community, families etc. In a positive manner as often as possible is critical to the overall success of the school. Additionally, positive communication promotes intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for scholars and teachers. Examples of communication that I have used in the past include newsletters, flyers, agendas, email, text, as well as utilizing other virtual tools. Each method has its positives often depending on the audience. I am one to give out my cell number also, but I understand that some teachers would prefer not to do this. I have found utilizing my phone has been the best method with reaching my scholars throughout summer virtual learning school. Email is also a Communication form I use regularly.. This tool is helpful in that it documents itself unlike utilizing the phone which requires additional documentation. I find it critical practice to begin conversations with positive feedback. In addition to this, I provide exclusively “good” - positive phone calls and emails home on a regular basis. I cannot stress enough how positive communication has benefited all involved throughout my 25 years. It is actually a wonderful practice in life in general!
I am a huge people-person! I love communication! I email weekly to check in on my kids and I have been texting my parents from last year bi-weekly this summer. It has been refreshing and awesome!
I use email and text to communicate with parents about scholars positively. Some of my families last year did not have email so I would text them. I communicated with many parents daily about their child. I try to send out 3-5 daily positive notes to different parents via email or text that I would not speak daily with. A few of my scholars at the end of the day loved being able to make the call themselves and let them know they had a great day. They would look forward to that end of the day phone call to let their family know they did a great job. I also like to create a weekly recap of the week and email/text it out to all parents letting them know what we did and positives in the classroom for the week.
My method for tacking parent communication is to record it in an excel sheet for the year. I also keep texts and emails in folders to refer back to if I need them.
Dottie, Your scholars, their families, and the staff is blessed to have your positivism shine through as you travel through the halls with your class... the scholars & you are awesome role models! I always love to hear your positive comments and see how your scholars joyfully react!
Dottie, I love the idea of having the scholars call home and share their positive day with their parents. What a great way to celebrate their good news. Jenina Sorenson PLA@103
I have always used text and phone calls whether it be positive or negative, but first I would build relationships with the parents on what is the most effective way they can be reach concerning the child. Always the scholars would also be aware of the relationship the parent and I have so that their is no miss understanding.
Angela I totally agree you have to build a relationship first with the parents and then allow them to indicate whats the best method of communication for them. I always send home a parent information sheet in the beginning to know whats their preferred method.
I agree that building a relationship first with the parents works best before establishing a means of communication. This last spring when scholars were at home, I talked with parents and many did not want phone calls, instead they wanted texted information, others wanted phone calls as they did not have internet access at all. Still others like emails etc. Meeting parents on their best means of communication has become a "best practice" in getting new info to parents. Jean Faillace, Timothy L Johnson Academy, Fort Wayne, IN
Sometimes knowing of the relationship between yourself and a scholar's parent helps tremendously in the classroom! Even them knowing that Mom or Dad has given the okay to text any time something negative occurs, usually gets a lot of kids in shape. I also like to include positive feedback when I can for those parents who preemptively tell me to text often and frequently.
I send a weekly newsletter to parents via paper copy and email to inform parents about weekly information, but also exciting things that are going on in our classroom that week. I have used Class Dojo to communicate with parents daily. I share pictures of their scholars engaged in classroom activities, projects, and field trips. I also try to share a positive note to all parents or select parents throughout the day. If there are ever any concerns, they can be addressed quickly through the app via an instant message. It's a great way to document communication. Each message is saved and Parents have always greatly appreciated my positive communication. I think it's important to create a good relationship with the parents at the beginning of the year and continue to work as a team throughout the year. Scholars benefit from a positive parent/teacher relationship and that is the most important part. Heather Hill PLA @93
C.Louketis I totally agree that it is important to create a good relationship with parents at the beginning of the school year, because it sets the tone for the rest of the school year. I also send newsletters every week to keep my parents informed on what is going on in class and what their should be working on. I also use Class Dojo as my major form of communication daily. Doing Covid-19 I called all of my parents at least twice a week. During the school year I rather call and talked to my parents than to email. It's just something about hearing the tone of a person voice that makes a difference in the meaning of what you are talking about. I also like the way the book says to keep a running log of each student act of kindness. C.Louketis (A+ Arts Academy Maybury)
C. Louketis, I agree with you about phone calls. Sometimes just hearing a voice makes all the difference. You can definitely hear a smile on a parents face when you are telling the positive things their child did that day. I still remember one time a parent telling me that they had never received a phone call that was positive. That shocked me.
C. Louketis...I really like sending home newsletters so parent can read what’s going on in the classroom. I also called my parents during our stay at home time. I like seeing how they were doing and if they need help with anything. I good to just talk with the families. Minfi Spychalski-PLA@103
What types of things do you include in your newsletters? I've never sent anything home like that, but also haven't had a more 'normal' core type class for awhile. How do parents respond to them? Do students receive them as well or are they just sent to parents?
Action 1: My colleagues, parents, & administration receive "Good News" emails, notes, or phone calls. Also, I use our projector to show the whole class how scholars are earning "scholar dollars", which parents can check online to see how many scholar dollars their scholars are earning. At least once a month the scholars are given an opportunity to shop for prizes with their scholar dollars. The prizes are donations given to teacher in our community. Action 2: I keep a journal/file to record parent communication.
Janine I love how you use the projector to show the scholars process with the scholars dollars. I think this encourage the others scholars to correct their behavior so they can earn more.
Action 1: Two ways that I communicate with parents, administration, scholars, and/or colleagues is through emails, phone calls, and in person (normally more so with colleagues). In the school I was recently working in phone calls seemed to have the best method of communication for many of my parents. I was able to talk with immediately or was able to leave a message for them and many times they got back to me within the day.
Action 2: I track my parent communication with a data tracking sheet. I am able to list the students and their parents and then the form of communication I used wether its via text, phone call, email, note home, etc.
I communicate with parents, administrators, and colleagues in a variety of ways. I have used Class Dojo, e-mails, phone calls, and newsletters. I find that each year parents have their favorite way of communication and I try to meet that. I like that this hack made it simple. Two e-mails per day is very doable. (I recognize that this is not the only part of hack 8.) I remember my first year of teaching hearing the advice of '2 positive e-mails daily' will be worth it in the long run. This still holds true 20 years later.
Activity 2:
I have a parent communication binder that I use for phone calls. Each student has a page with contact numbers. I record date, time, person spoken to, and highlights of conversation. The other methods I use are easily tracked electronically.
I love the idea of two positive parent contacts a day. I think that really holds us accountable with helping build those positive relationships. I also use a communications binder with a page for each child. I find this to be most successful for me.
Action 1: I use a vary of ways to communicate with my parents, administrators and colleagues. I use e-mails, text, phone calls and newsletters. My try to make 3 positive contact calls a week, either voice, post card or text to parents.
Action 2: I have a parent communication binder that located by classroom phone that I use to record all communication. I record the date, time and contacted person. I copy all card/newsletters and place in scholars folder.
I came to Phalen in January so I didn’t have as much time to Build the relationships with families. I emailed and called parents a lot. I would usually start out with positive comments before negative. Sometimes I called for just a positive comments. We did have a weekly progress report that went home which also had comment and space for communication on the report. I would keep track of the communication in a student information binder. I was able to refer back it the information. Mindi Spychalski-PLA@103
Mindi, It is a challenge coming in mid year to help build those relationships that are built upfront in the school year. Way to go at reaching out to parents thorough a variety of ways. Jenina Sorenson PLA@103
Action 1: One way that I communicate with parents is through our school wide behavior system which is kick board. Scholars earn money for making great choices while also losing money for poor choices. Parents are able to see both and get notifications on their phones. Also a report "paycheck" is sent home weekly. I also have scholars of the day who receive a prize and a good phone call home. We don't have buses at my school so I do get to see a lot of parents daily and I can do a quick check in then. For me the biggest factor with building positive parent relationships having an open door for communication. I allow my parents to have my personal cell number to call or text if they need something. I know a lot of people are against this and I agree that everyone has their own view on this, but in my personal experience I have built better relationships this way. I also send home a weekly newsletter with upcoming events, skills that will be taught, sight words, helpful tips for parents and anything else important.
Action 2: In the beginning of the year I have parents fill out a survey on the best phone numbers, emails and best times/ways to contact them. I keep it in a binder with a contact log for each child. I document each phone call, text, face to face conversation and email.
Charlene, I just came from a school that when I first started there we would use our personal cell phones for means of communication. At first it was something to get use to. Once I did I did not mind it. We ended up with new administration who was more opposed to it, so we kind of stopped. I never had a parent that took advantage of having my cell phone number they were very respectful of my time even outside of the school hours. Jenina Sorenson PLA@103
Charlene, I love "Scholars of the Day"! Great recognition and it creates a sense of excitement to become one! I also am a fan of using my personal phone. I think it helps parents know and feel that we are "all in" with their child's success. It is also more convenient for me to call after I have time to just unwind after a drive home before making calls or dealing with difficult situations. I also use a weekly newsletter. I have been considering making this digital but I am not sure how parents will feel about that. Paper seems like an item that will be monitored more closely so how parents would like weekly communication is a survey opportunity. Michelle Lisco, Middlebury Academy
We use our personal phones since we don't have any in the classroom but most of us have a Google Voice number that we use for school related calls. Parents don't know it's not my real number and I think the ability to call or text me directly makes them feel that we have a more personal connection. I've had parents call/text really early in the morning or late at night but I usually just wait until regular hours to call them back and have never had anyone upset about the wait. They are usually respectful of my personal time.
1. I often send notes home with my scholars for their parents to read, but then I will follow up with a phone call, email, or text to make sure the parents see the notes. 2. I try not to talk about my scholars in a negative light. We all know that this can be very difficult since we all have our issues and struggles. In my first teaching job in 2013, I couldn't bring myself to eat in the teachers lounge at lunch because their was so much negativity. It was sickening to hear what some of the people were saying. I have caught myself doing the same things last year. I am DETERMINED to be a positive influence this year for my colleagues in my building. We all need to optimistic, especially now!
Action 2:
Honestly, I don't have a great one. I SAVE every single email I send and receive from parents for a paper trail. I know I need to create a call log to make sure I am not favoring one student over the other. I also just need to make sure I am documenting how often I even reach out to the more challenging kiddos in the class.
That is the great thing about technology- it has a paper trail and it is good that you document the connections you have with challenging kid's parents. Those documentations have saved me in certain situations several times.
Communicating positively with parents is huge in building a positive relationship with them and ultimately obtaining/ maintaining their support when there maybe issues within the classroom. I communicated with parents a lot of different ways when I was in the classroom. The ways that I communicated with them depended a lot on the grade level, as well as their preferences. Some different ways that I have communicated with parents are through positive notes being sent home, positive phone calls, positive text messages, and positive emails. I really like being able to relay a positive message in person to parents though in front of the students because to see their faces light up was really special. To track my parent communication I would keep a binder of Communication Logs and make notes of each time I talked with a parent and what the conversation was about. I think if I were ever back in the classroom again and wanted to track parent communication, I would come up with a digital method.
Action #1: My communication with parents is done by several different formats. Our school uses ClassDoJo and it is easy to jump on that at the end of the day and send out a positive note to a parent and yes they love to hear the good things about their scholar. I also use the “Stories” options on DoJO to post good things scholars are doing in my classroom and parents appreciate seeing their child in a photo. Our administration personnel recieve the posts, too. Another way I praise students is by sending a quick text messages and perhaps adding a pic with the message I send to parents. For parents who might not use DoJo as much as other parents, I make phone calls and send emails. I make it a good habit to connect with parents in the format they seem most comfortable using.
Action #2: I track parent communication in a spiral notebook and an excel spreadsheet. The notebook allows me to write out conversations I have and responses from parents. The spreadsheet I note dates and formats of positive communication.
Dessalee, You made such an important point: "I make it a good habit to connect with parents in the format they seem most comfortable using." Sometimes I feel overwhelmed with the many modes of communication but I am trying to accommodate the needs and desires of many parents. Just like our scholars are unique, so are their parents and their needs. I would love to figure out how to use DOJO and Kickboard concurrently without it being duplicated work. We just switched to Phalen and had tried Kickboard for about 2 weeks before quarantine. I was trying to do DOJO and Kickboard and it was just too much. Scholars had so many questions about if there were actual rewards for both systems. Did you have Kickboard too? Love the idea of sending a pict. I need to take more photos along the way... Michelle Lisco, Middlebury Academy
Action #1- I communicate with parents using Class Dojo, phone calls and text messages. Those seem to be the way that most parents prefer. I have not been at a school where emails were popular. The school does use Kickboard for behavior management and parents see what the kids have been doing every Friday. I do love the idea of emailing before school starts and and doing the activity to try and identify the student.
Action #2- At the biginning of the school year I send home a form for parents to complete with phone numbers and information on their student. This gives me insite into the student and parents. I keep a log in a notebook when I communicate with a parent. I admit I do not log in everyone that I talk to at dismissal. I then transfer the information into the school required log on the computer.
Hello Chris, I use DoJo too. My parents are very receptive to this type of communication. I send home an introductory packet, it includes a student survey. I get a lot of information from the parents about their child. I haven't used it for class discussion. I might try that this fall. It has made a big difference when I give positive commends to the parents about their child's day. DeEtta Crane Greater Heights Academy
For third grade communication, I have used emailing, texting, a Weekly Newsletter, DOJO, handwritten notes (my scholars seem MOST proud of these), and a scholar Daily Homework Log (more on this later). Survey: The first few days of school, I send home a "Get to Know the Teacher" page along with a Survey for parents about their child. Last year, I only had about 4 parents return it. I also have surveys that scholars complete about themselves to help build our relationships. I love the 5-Facts Survey and game at the start and end of school. Parent participation can be very challenging, especially if a parent has 3+ scholars and requests and demands from every teacher. Email: I hope with all of the technology that parents have had to learn during quarantine that they will be more responsive to email communication this year. I am really going to try to encourage more response via email this year. I have had very few responsive parents with email. I will be honest that I did not think to "cut-n-paste" a comment to make a Red Carpet 2-a-day positive email comment. I may need to let go of my need to be so personalized in order to just focus on relationship building. Texting and Phone Calls: The most effective communication has been texting and phone calls. I also like the trail that I have for logging communication. Texting has been the most responsive mode of communication for me. Phone calls are often a game of tag that is never ending. . . Daily Homework Log: While this is just one-way communication, the log effectively communicates to proactive parents about daily behavior. There is a column on the Daily Homework Log that has end of day behavior that many of my scholars become adamant about completing each day because their parent(s) are checking it. While it is not 2-way communication, it keeps parents in check and I encourage them to communicate with me about any concerns they have. When a student who is typically a STAR at the end of the day has a change in their behavior box, I have gotten phone calls from parents stating that there was something going on which can often “justify” the change and helps to get right back on track. DOJO: I only had about half of our class join DOJO and many parents used this to communicate. I believe we are rolling out Kickboard this year so I am not sure how this will play out. DOJO made some really great changes and additions during the last several months and I would love to use this as my main platform to communicate. It is so versatile for parents and teachers to use. Handwritten Notes: At the end of the day during dismissal, I would be waiting for announcements and this was a great time to write a quick note for scholars to take home. They LOVED this! I never knew if their folders made it home or newsletters but a small handwritten note made it through the door before the scholar!! 😉 I use a Parent Communication Log Binder. Each scholar has “Getting to Know Your Child” questionnaire, Parent Contact Information sheet, and an initial log sheet that I complete at the beginning of the year with parent/guardian names and all contact information (one-stop shopping). The log sheet: date/time of contact, how contacted (phone, email, text, face2face, other), reason for communication (academics, behavior, other), and notes. This keeps communication organized and all in one place so it is easy to take home if I need to. I will be honest that there were times that I struggled to keep up with the written log because I was emailing, texting, and using DOJO with some folks. These are all traceable communication modes so I knew my tracks were covered should I need to find information. Michelle Lisco, Middlebury Academy
Action 1: Two ways that I communicate with parents is by calling, and emailing. If a parent picks up there student, then I of course will do a face to face. In addition to this I also comment on their daily conduct sheet.
Action 2: My method of tracking parent communication is with a tracking log binder that I keep in the classroom. I also track communication with my parents on a student homework/conduct sheet. Deborah Dominick PLA@Jones-Clark Elementary Beaunmont, Texas
I don't use email much at all in a traditional school. Of course I used email all the time with my online school. But with traditional face-to-face, how do you feel email works? Do you have a lot of success with it?
Also, the homework/conduct sheet sounds nice. How do you have the students keep this? In a folder to take home every night or in a notebook. It was good when my students had planners. They really helped.
I communicate with my parents via Class Dojo and text messages most of the time.
Class Dojo is an app that helps us reinforce the positive in every day behavior. So parents not only see the points as positive, I can send a quick note too.
Text messages work best for my parents. They get to them very quickly and respond fast. The thing I try to do the most is to start with a positive note before having to say something about a bad behavior that might have happened. For example: I would say " Mary is doing so well in listening and taking notes this week. Have you noticed this too? Today she had a bad moment. She was yelling at another student. Has she mentioned having a problem with this student to you? Please let me know what you think and how we can work together to help her more."
I think always including the parent in a solution builds a strong relationship too.
I track these communications with a excel spreadsheet. I keep it as a monthly general communication. I would like to add pages for each student so I could see a list of communication for each student also.
In the past, I haven't tracked my communication with parents, but I think I am going to steal your idea of using an excel spreadsheet. It will allow me to stay organized and I will be able to see if a student hasn't gotten a positive text home in a while.
Action 1: I communicate in a few different ways with parents. One, I always send out a newsletter at the beginning of the year that has all of my information on it and I continue to send out a newsletter once a month. I think that it allows parents to get a small glimpse into the classroom and I feel like it keeps me accountable on what is coming up. At the beginning of the year, I always try to get my parents involved in class dojo. I think it is a great resource because parents are able to see their students behavior during the day, and they are able to quickly text/message me. It can be tricky to get them signed up, but the ones that I don't get connected, I try to help them at parent teacher conferences so I know that they are connected and I am able to show them how to use it. I need to get better at this and this year, I want my communication to be amazing. We don't know what this year has to hold and especially because our schools won't be allowing visitors, I want my parents to feel like they are still involved. In the past, I have also text messaged parents and I think I will do the same this year. I want to try and message parents each week an overview of the week, and then pick a student that I send a positive message to that student's parent. I have seen a difference in my students when I send positive notes home to their parents because they know that I am noticing their growth and they want to continue doing the right thing. Honestly, I have not tracked communication with parents before, but I think it is a good idea. It keeps you accountable and you have proof of when you communicated with them.
You do a great job with communicating to our parents. Your weekly news letters helped greatly in sharing and reminding our parents and scholars of our weekly happenings. You made sure to include all students no matter their language background.
Action 1: There are several ways in which I have communicated with parents about scholars’ positive actions. A few of those ways have included phone calls, emails, texting, social media, and home visits. Over the last few months, I have had to rely on social media and texting a great deal when it came to communicating with parents. For many of my parents, texting and/or contacting through social media has been the best way for sharing information about all things relating to their scholars. It has also allowed for our parent/teacher relationship to grow into friendship/family in many regards. In sharing scholars’ info with my colleagues and admin, I have also used texting, emails, and phone calls. We also have apps on our devices that allow for quick and easy communication.
Action 2: My methods for tracking parent communications includes a call log, saving all emails, letters, social media notes, and texts. I also make sure to share with one or more of my colleagues that communication took place.
Hi, LaTiesha! I LOVE your use of a call log! I think I am going to set one up as well! I use an email log, but I think it is important to phone scholar's homes as well. :)
I am probably one of the few teachers who enjoys communicating with parents. I try to reach out with positive news as often as I can. I keep a clip chart for behavior in my classroom and if a student has had several days of excellent behavior, especially if they had previously struggled, I will either email/call the parent or send home a note (I think more often than not these do not reach the parent). I also keep a log of parent communication. I think because I am a parent myself I know what it feels like to only hear from a teacher when your child does something wrong. This does not lead to good feelings or good relationships. It makes you think the teacher does not like your child. I never want my parents to feel this way. Even if I have a child who I have to consistently contact home about their negative behavior I always try to find a positive to report. For example, I had a student this year who had consistent outbursts and would have to be removed from the classroom for brief periods of time to calm down. I would always try to find the positive and report it to mom (for example, he was able to calm down and return to the classroom quickly, he was able to talk calmly about his feelings). I think because I was able to find the positive, the mom didn't feel like I had it out for her son, rather we were both working with him to find ways to help him improve his behavior.
Besides behavior, I often would call/email or send a note home if I saw a student do something kind. I could tell from the parents' tones on the phone that they greatly appreciated these calls! It makes them very proud. Cathy Branch, Middlebury Academy
Hello Mrs. Branch, Great post I really enjoyed reading it. I love that you were able to find a positive way to communicate your scholars behavior to his mom , even though I am sure it was hard.
I try to do the same thing with students who may be a bit challenging. I try to remember that there is always something good you can report, even if it’s as simple as calming down or completing an assignment. Brittany Connett PLA@93
I feel that is very important to make parent engagement a foundation for teacher and student relationship. It not only makes the scholar trust you more , but it helps to eliminate disruptions in the classroom. Since scholars is aware that you have a two way communication with parents, peers, administrators, and colleagues. One way how I communicate with them is by phone. Another way that I communicate is by emails.
My system for tracking my communication is a log , I create one fore each scholar and document, document and document. I feel that is important because it hold scholars and their parents accountable. Leshun Horne PLA@jones clark
I communicate with parents on the phone, email, notes home and face to face. I like to call all caregivers at the beginning of the year to give them my phone number and introduce myself. I also attend functions at the school where I can talk to parents. I use Class Dojo as well. I have folders for each of my students where I keep copies of notes and letters I sent home with the students. I also keep track of phone calls in their folders. I like the idea of one binder instead though. I do not have all of the folders at home. It would have been ideal to have been able to bring the information home with me when we were required to stay at home. Our school used PBIS tickets which I often handed out to students. If I saw their parent before or after school, I would tell the parent about the ticket their student earned. When we establish a positive relationship with parents, it is easier to communicate concerns later, if necessary. Stefanie Sheridan A+ Arts Fair Ave.
I like your idea of each student having a folder. But, I keep an emergency contact binder and put the emergency cards in a page protector, then I slide notes or important papers in there.
Stefanie, I learned so much from you and your willingness to call parents. At the beginning of the year it seemed overwhelming for me to call them when I had questions or needed to address issues that had occurred in the classroom, but you did not hesitate to call parents which helped encourage me to do the same.
Action 1: I use many methods of communication with my scholars parents. I send home a daily behavior/effort grade. On that paper, I have a communication section for the parent and teacher. This way we can send notes to each other daily. I also make positive parent phone calls or emails. I also write comments on weekly progress reports. Action 2: To track communitcation, I save weekly behavior sheets and progress reports. I also record on their emergency contact forms when and why I called or emailed.
In my classroom, I communicate using many different forms. I have a monthly calendar that is sent home daily that includes their behavior and effort grades. I often will write a quick positive note on this because I know the parents will see it. I also include comments on the weekly progress report. I try to balance the comments out by keeping track of I put a positive comment or an improvement comment. I love writing a quick note or sending a text with a positive comment or moment from the day. With the current pandemic, this year I am going to use more electronic communication, and I love the idea of sending an email before school starts to give some information about myself. I have a log in my planner where I track communication, and I also save our calendars and progress reports. Brittany Connett PLA@93
I love your intentionality with providing positive notes on the daily tracker or sending texts. Parents love hearing positive things about their scholars and it helps get buy-in when we need support for challenging behaviors or academic concerns.
At our school, we use ClassDojo to keep in contact with parents. It is a great way for us to share pictures of students learning, keep parents informed of what is happening in the classroom and upcoming events, let them know positives and discuss any concerns. At the beginning of the year, I made sure that I messaged or called each parent to tell them something positive about their child. I made it a habit to post on the Dojo class story regularly and to send parents positive messages. I love the idea of sending an email at the beginning of the year, but we do not know the students in our class ahead of time and many parents do not have or use email addresses. It was even difficult to get some parents to use Dojo on a regular basis. However, despite how hectic the end of the year was, it did wonders for the communication I had with parents. I was talking with parents through Dojo, texts and calls daily. Some parents (and students) did not enjoy that, but most responded SOOO positively!
As far as keeping a log, that is a perk of using Dojo. They keep a virtual log of all of the messages that are sent to parents. Also, during our time at home, we had to keep a log of our daily contact and what we were teaching/working on with students.
I almost forgot that I keep a folder for each student with a Getting to Know Your Child questionnaire, letters from home, pictures from the student and a behavior log. I think it would be great to keep a document with a running log so it is easy to track other forms aside from Dojo. I also think that this year I will take the suggestion of keeping a log of the random acts of kindness that occur in the class. Then at the end of the year, I will print them out for the individual students so they can reflect on the kindness that each of them expressed throughout the year.
I love class dojo and how easy it is to keep parents in the loop about upcoming events. I think the parents liked dojo as well because it was a way for them to see what was going on in our classroom with the photos.
I use Class DOJO at A+ Arts Academy to stay in contact with the scholars and their families. I also like to send emails, personal notes home and make phone calls to check in with the parents. I have always written an introductory letter to the families and given it to them at Open House. BUT I love the idea of an introductory email and end of year email... so I think I am going to try to do these instead. I believe if you include parents in as many things as you possibly can it will build a stronger and more positive rapport with the parents. This will give you support as well and show their child they are working with the teacher. :)
I absolutely LOVE the idea of a kindness log and hope we will be able to utilize it this year when the scholars are in the classroom with us. I am using the sloth kindness alphabet this year and think it will be an awesome idea to use as an incentive for student to earn positive recognition in our classroom.
At the beginning of the year we send home an introductory packet. In the packet we ask our parents to fill out a survey with questions about their child. I haven’t used the information with the class. I think that would be a good way for everyone to get to know each other. It is a policy that we are to contact parents with positive feedback, we can make phone calls, emails, or a note/letter. On many occasions, I used DoJo to communicate with my parents. I can quickly send a note during the day. During the shutdown I had a lot of communication with parents. It made me realize the importance of teacher/parent dialog. I will definitely continue to make positive communication with parents a priority this school year.
I also usually send out an information packet but never used it with the class. I like this idea from the text and think students would enjoy trying to figure out who's who. During the shut down we did have to maintain communication. That was the only way to make sure our students stayed on top of things.
Communicating with families is such a crucial part of my job. I reach out to parents regularly and keep communication open. By having open communication with the families, I find that my relationship is stronger and parents are more willing to work with me when something arises. One way I like to communicate is by giving 3 positive phone calls a week. This is something I typically do on Fridays at the end of the day. I select three students and then I call to chat with the parents about all the great things they did throughout the week. If I can’t get through to anyone I will leave a message. I love giving parents positive phone calls because they are so excited to hear about the good instead of the bad. My students light up when they know they are one of the ones getting the positive call this week. They can’t wait to go home and chat with their parents about what I said. This helps me to build my relationship with them as well. Another way I communicate with families is by sending out texts about upcoming events and activities. Parents respond to texts more frequently. I find that this is the most effective way to reach parents. When I send home letters not very many people respond, but with texts almost everyone does. I have been very successful with texts when it comes to getting forms back.
The most recent method I used to track parent communication was in an app called kickboard. It was aligned with our behavior system as well. Every time I contacted a parent I would log it and it would track how many times I communicated with each family. This was a new app and had a lot of flaws. I did not like this app and prefer class dojo over it. In the past, I have also used our online school grade book to log my interactions.
Action 1: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this hack!!!!!!!! I swear by positive and early communication with parents!!! As a classroom teacher I called every parent the first week of school introduced myself and shared at least one positive thing their child had done that week academically or socially. Additionally, I communicated weekly through a video blog to parents and made at least 2 positive phone calls a week throughout the year. I tracked this to ensure every scholar had a positive phone call before repeating a student.
Action 2: I had a spreadsheet for each child where I would record all communication including if an email was sent, in person contact, a phone call or a voicemail left. I also had a class list where I simply check marked when I made an intentional positive phone call home to ensure I reached all parents and students before repeating.
Sarah Rahrig GVPLA Culture and Trauma Informed Specialist
Two ways I communicate with parents is by (1.) phoning parents and (2.) a short note on the weekly Progress Report. I have found that this year when the quarentine started that a quick text or phone call was a great way to touch base. Also more parents seem to respond to emails. I love this hack and think I could do a better job of touching base with positive comments.
As far as tracking communication, I have started specific binders before with tracking communications with parents, but tend to fall behind, and eventually stop tracking those communications. I think I will try harder to make sure I am tracking these this next year. Gale Reed PLA@93
Act #1: I generally use phone calls or notes. I can see where emails would be more effective, and, in light of our current situation, will need to be more adept at using them to reach out. Act @2: I have always used a spreadsheet/Google doc to record and keep track of parent contacts, both positive and otherwise.
I use Classtag and phone calls. I absolutely love using ClassTag. This was my first year using it and it was such a great communication tool for me. I liked that I was able to make announcements and plan out parent teacher conferences on it. I also like that I was able to receive rewards for using the app. I also called parents when I needed to. It was so much easier using ClassTag to communicate with many of my parents because of their work schedules. They wouldn't be able to talk with me on the phone but if they needed to ask a question or respond to a question they were able to text me through the app. The way we track parent communication at my school is that we have a parent log we have to fill out monthly and that needs to be updated monthly. Our logs are all online in google and our administration can look at the log whenever they need to.
I have used emails, phone calls, and Seesaw to communicate with families. Seesaw allows for me to share student data, 1-on-1 communication with families, as well as whole class newsletters. What is great about using that tool is that it also include read receipts and teachers can also include student data.
I've used a spreadsheet, but I'll admit that I need to get better about it. I might create a Google form so that I don't have to fill out as much information.
I rely on phone calls and texts. I call parents get their support and keep them inform. I let them know that they can call me anytime and they do literally anytime :) Some of my families like to use WhatsApp. I use google sheets to record our communication. It is a great tool, it helps me remember important information.
I really love whataspp. I used this a lot with the students during online learning. It was a great tool to have on your phone. Google sheets is my go to also. I like that I can share it with anyone who needs to be included in the log.
Action 1: At the school where I completed my student teaching, we used class dojo. I think apps like this make it simple for teachers to send quick messages regarding a student. The perk of apps like this is that once the parent sets up their account, all text is sent in their preferred language. This allows for teachers to send messages without the need of a translator. I think that phone calls are really key as well. I enjoy creating relationships with parents and families. This allows me to connect with families and use any information required to help my scholars learn.
Action 2 For tracking phone call information, I like to use google sheets. This is a spreadsheet and it allows me to keep organized by date, time, and family. I also prefer google sheets versus excel because it is simple to share with administration if we are moved to online learning. It also allows for access to all parties responsible for contacting students during online learning and allows the log to be in one place.
Google slides is a great idea. I have seen teachers use a google sheet to collect parent data and survey how they prefer to be communicated with during open house. The great thing about this platform is that is works no matter if school is virtual or traditional.
Action 1: Over the course of my 24 years teaching I've used many communication tools. Communicating with parents has become much easier in recent years with the variety of apps and sites to use. It use to be that phone calls were your only choice and if a parent didn't answer you probably were not going to reach them. In recent years I've tried ClassDojo, Remind, and Classtag. I like Classtag the best. I love that I can post announcements, pictures, send group messages or individual messages. Remind was nice and probably the easiest to get parents to respond on but the character limit made it difficult to use when you had a longer message to send. ClassTag has other tools that allow you to schedule conferences and it's easy to use. However, it is not my only communication tool. I call and text parents regularly also. It really depends on the parent preference for contact and their work schedules. Action 2: Our admin set up Google Sheets at the beginning of the year. We log all parent contact monthly in our sheet and admin have access to it at all times in case their are questions or issues. Tammy Ahern- Thea Bowman Leadership Academy
Most parents at my school answer phone calls over email, so I generally use phone calls to parents to communicate about scholars positively. Parents love to receive these calls home. Scholars also enjoy these calls because they come back and tell me how they were rewarded. My bilingual scholars ask me to write a signed letter for their Spanish speaking parents, and I love doing this because it means that no one gets left out. When communicating with colleagues about positive student behavior, I usually tell them in-person. When tracking parent communication, I usually keep a parent contact log that I write up in a journal. Documentation is everything!
Action 1: I send home a daily chart with behavior, upcoming events and homework for the week. I include a space for communication. I also have sent emails and text messages ( alot during the close down) I really do like the open communication between parents. I plan to use more positive communication this year, it sounds live an awesome idea. Action 2: I track communication on the behavior sheet collected every Monday, communication log, and track the emails and text on a spread sheet.
I agree with you regarding more positive communication this upcoming year. :) I also added Class DOJO to my classroom and it was a quick way to immediately notify the parents.
Action 1: There are many ways that I communicate with parents. At the beginning of the year,I email each family introducing myself and welcome them to the class. I ask them to respond with information that I need to know regarding their children and then I follow up with a phone call. The second way I communicate is I ask each parent to write a letter to their child of praise that I read to them during their student of the week slot. The students love to hear these words of affirmation from their parents. Action 2: I track communication on a digital log. I note the type of communication and the date.
L. Roark I like the idea of emailing parents at the the beginning of the year such as the example in the book. I am looking forward to trying that this school year. Also the idea of asking parents for a praise letter. This is a very good idea. I hope you don't mind me stealing your idea.
Action 1: I have a daily homework folder that includes a sheet for teacher and parent communication that the parent initials/sign daily. We also have a system that our principal and her team incorporates at school that is called a "Shout-out". This is where we as staff members can give a positive praise shout out to students or staff. This is great to let students and staff know that they are doing well and encourage them to keep it up.
Action 2: We also have a parent log that is required to be filled out and submitted monthly on our campus. As a result contacting parents is a must. Whether this is a phone call, email, note home or a quick note in the car pool line. I also keep a parent contact log in a binder/folder on my desk.
I really like the idea of keeping a binder for the communication with parents, especially within a binder where a note may have been sent to a parent. Keeping copies of the physical notes that have been sent home, since many parents may not have access to email nor do well responding to emails. While we can keep logs of email sent electronically, it could be difficult to lose track of the paper trail, so I will definitely focus on the idea of keeping a binder.
I love reading the "hacks" of experienced teachers, many of these ideas will help for my first year in the library!
I love the idea of communicating the positive preformance and actions to parents, it is something that can be simple, but have an impact on relationship with the student and parents. I do not want my primary communication to parents to focus on negative issues, but to also include the many positive actions that can be experienced in the classroom. I have been thinking about this hack a great deal, especially since it is the first year that I am in a school setting.
After reading the hack and seeing what more experienced teachers have done, I will certainly be sending out an email introducing myself. I will follow the hack and ask parents to share some of the student's interests, which may include a question centering on the student's reading interests. I have included a short form in library lessons to develop a reader profile for each student too, so this would be based on the input from the student and parent, which I plan to share with the class (like the hack recommended) and this would include book recommendations. Each grade level will be a bit different, but this will expose each scholar to some new book ideas that fit their interests. It will be interesting in seeing how this can play out in a virtual or in-person environment, but the goal is to getting the scholar's strengths and interests into their profile and to get them reading leisurely and for academic purposes. Finally, I look forward to sharing positive experiences with parents, probably sending a few emails for each grade per day. With being in the library environment, this approach will be different from a traditional classroom, but the hack can be utilized and molded to the library setting as well. Positive feedback and affirmation are just as important as addressing difficult topics like discipline, but the positive can go even further in some cases, a hack that I hope to keep utilizing throughout the year.
I usually email parents. I have emailed just to tell the parents good news about their child. I feel more comfortable now that I have a google number so that will be the other way I communicate. When we started calling families in March, I received several call backs because the family had my contact number to get their questions answered. I keep all emails with parent contacts. I have a phone folder now as well.
I have felt very uncomfortable giving my personal phone number out to parents as a communication tool; however, reluctantly I am becoming more comfortable. Your comment about have a GOOGLE-NUMBER is of interest to me. How do you go about getting this tool; or am I overthinking??? LOL ---
Action#1: My communication platform is primarily through email and phone calls. Emails are the most effective ways to communicate within the organization for teachers, coaches, and administrators. I have committed to sending clear, concise and interactive emails (e.g. smores, graphics, etc.), which limits the need to send several messages throughout the week. I also utilize social media to highlight or spotlight scholars, teachers and classrooms in action and their weekly success. These acknowledgements are developed by scholars at the start of the school year. I also encourage coaches and building leaders to highlight teachers who are growing their practice and getting closer to accomplishing their growth goals.
Action#2: I track parent communication bi-weekly. In the past I have sent (smores) newsletters in order to share what and how scholars will be learning. This would help me if the parents get excited and ask the students at home about their learning experiences. It also builds up buy-in when I invite parents to volunteer when we have a “taste lab” (i.e. a culture exploration day aligned to the topics we study) per month.
Angela Posey PLA @ 103 One way I've communicated with parents is I use positive phone calls to parents. This is so powerful. It is so important to call parents to let them know when their child is performing well academically and behaviorally in the classroom. I've always tried to call at least five to seven parents weekly. I have always used newsletters as a motivator. One part of my newsletter that went over well with my parents was, " Top Three Things To Do With Your Child This Week". The parents loved it!! They became a part of the instruction. I have sent home positive notes. The children love it! Action 2- I keep a phone log of the positive calls. I also keep a record of the positive notes.
Thank you so very much for sharing! I indeed like your communication newsletter; and I have embedded positive calls and text messages as ways to communicate with parents. For the upcoming school year, I would like to add your "Top Three Things To Do With Your Child This Week." Again, thank you for sharing.
Action I - Two ways I share positive communication with parents include texts & phone calls. I won't text a parent until I've spoken to them first either in person or on the phone and they say that is an acceptable way to communicate. Most prefer texting over calling since life can get so busy. I also like texting better in some instances since it is always time stamped & easy to save. I usually don't email parents but with everything going on, that might be a better option for this school year.
Action II - I really don't have a method for tracking parent communication. I've never really thought about using an Excel sheet or something of the sort. We had to have a call log during COVID e-learning at the end of last year, but that was hyperfocused on my group of students. I used to screenshot text conversations/phone calls afterwards, but that is probably an easier and space-saving idea.
Action #1: As it relates to communicating with parents, I use the "By Any Means Necessary," approach. My two main ways of communcating daily with my parents includes: phone calls and using the REMIND application. I absolutely love using REMIND --- because it documents all communcation. At the end of the year, the "app" let me know exactly how many contacts I have made with parents.
Action 2: As stated above, the REMIND application documents all communication and lets me include artifacts... such as photos, samples of student work, etc.
Action #1 (2 ways of communication with parents) Newsletters, phone calls, texting, and e-mails are forms that I have used to communicate with parents. Due to our scholar population, many with English Language Limitations and parents who may or may not understand English, it is important to establish a relationship with the parent/parents in the best form that is most receptive to them. Often the administrative newsletters are sent in their native language. Another communication obstacle can be the fact that many parents work 3 jobs and cannot use their phone on the job. They often want texts so that they can read it on their breaks and call me or text later. Many parents had to be called after 7 pm this past spring. Good relationships were formed and I believe this will pay off in this upcoming year. Parents truly appreciated the many different means I used to establish a means of communication that would work for them. Action 2: (Method of Tracking Parents Communications) I used a chart on word to track information. Communications were dated both outgoing and incoming. I worked under the special education teacher during the pandemic, therefore my reports to her were detailed on the chart and sent to her and the administration regularly, as well as the Phalen contact for Special Ed. via email. Jean Faillace, TLJ Academy, Ft. Wayne, IN
I like the idea you tracked your communication. I will have to look at word and see if I can use a chart to keep up with communication. I especially like that you dated incoming and outgoing communication. Sohn'a Duff PLA@103
I communicate with my parents via email, phone calls and I also send snail mail. I like to send the mail out because some students have never received a letter or note in the mail. They are usually excited that I sent them something. I don't have a great tracking system. I try to make notes on my attendance sheets whenever I make a phone call to a parent. I keep copy of emails and also copies of snail mail. I would like to use remind or something like that as well but I have not set it up yet. Sohn'a Duff PLA@103
I sent snail mail for the first time this past academic year. I did so because due to COVID we didn't get to actually see our scholars, and I wanted them to know I was thinking of them and missed seeing them. After seeing how excited my scholars were at receiving mail it is something I'd do like to continue in the future!
Two ways that I communicate with parents is through email and phone calls. I always try to update or communicate positive things their child has done. No parent wants to have the phone call with their child's teacher about the bad things their child has done. I always always always try to keep it positive.
One way I keep track of parent communication is by not deleting phone or email history and to write it all down in a notebook. I write down the date and time of the communication and summarize what was said. By summarizing what was said, it helps me remember later on for future reference.
Action 1. I contact parents via email and/or phone calls. They are always excited to get a positive call when I tell them something that their child did extra well at or something they should be proud of them for. I have on occasion invited my principal to come to my room or have brought students to her office to show something they have done that they are proud of.
Action 2 I keep a log in my computer in the students IEP file where I keep all communications with parents.
Action One: A few ways that I communicate with parents, administrators, and colleagues positively about my scholars are through my classroom website, emails, a print and nonprint newsletter, and through written notes! I love sharing how awesome my students are with their families and with other school faculty. We should always be finding ways to celebrate our students--not only for their work but for who they are as individuals.
Action Two: A method I use for tracking parent communication is Google Forms. I love having parents fill out a Google Form to me at the beginning of the year with things they think I should know about their child/etc. I also keep a print and digital log of parent communication - that way, I can always be updated on what is happening at home/scheduled conferences/etc.
Action 1: I keep an open line of communication with my parents, because of my ability to speak their native language. We use texts, phone, and a lot of times Whatsapp. Once students were at home we did a lot of video calls. I try to at least once a week give positive feedback, that way when I have a problem the parent is normally open to a conversation. At our school we send Weekly Progress Reports and several times, I would have 100% back. Also, all the messages are sent in Spanish for my Spanish speaking parents.
Action 2: I don't have a formal way of tracking the conversations, although I do keep the signed Progress Reports in the students file, and I keep the text, and Whatsapp messages on my phone. I don't delete, so I can have a history if needed. When I talk on the phone of something I want documented I will text a summary of our call to the parent. I will review and see if I can find a better form of tracking the communication.
In my many years of teaching I have found that the sooner you send a positive message to a parent the sooner they work with you. After all, we all love to hear great things about our children. I always choose at least 2 children to send a positive text, email or phone call about after school each day. For tracking my conversations, it is a simply note in their folder either of our text, note about our conversation, or a copy of an email. Jenelle Miller PLA103
I could not agree more about the keeping things positive route! It is always so nice to share that with parents and letting them know that even though their child may not be excelling in this or that, that as their teacher, we still see them in a positive light! Thank you for sharing!
I have to improve on talking to my administration about scholars in a positive manner. When I'm talking to my administration about them it's usually because I'm trying to get advice and insight on how to handle situations with certain scholars. While I know I sometimes include positive attributes of that scholar; I'm also aware that this is not always the case, and sometimes the negative will out weigh the positive. When discussing scholars with colleagues it's usually after school chats in which I speak on the good, bad, and everything in between. Whenever my scholars do something kind or is just having an awesome day, especially if it is a scholar who tends to struggle, I get excited to share it with their parents and my grade level team. I try to do my best to text or call parents at the end of the school day to let them know the positive action their scholar demonstrated and how proud of them I am. I get a notebook every year to track my phone calls and texts to parents. I only included a description of what was discussed if it was a phone call or in person meeting since there's no other physical evidence of that conversation. This past academic year my school had weekly behavior logs where we had a section for teacher and parent comments. While the logs felt a bit tedious at times it was helpful to show another record of communication was occurring.
I used to do "Positives Shout-Outs" calls to parents during silent reading time so students could hear me call their moms or grandmas. This was great! Students loved hearing because they never knew who I was calling. I also liked using ClassDojo to give parents a daily rundown of their child's day. Tricia Christopher Middlebury Academy Akron, Oh
Since this is my first year teaching, during my student teaching, my mentor teacher and I used an app called Bloomz. It allowed us to share information with our parents as a group or individually, whether that was a picture of an activity or a reminder for a meeting. I loved using it and we had very few issues with parents using it as well. At my previous job, I used email mostly to communicate with any parents, but since I was an assistant, I didn't really communicate with parents as much as I would have wanted to.
In order to track communication, I had a folder in my email for each scholar that I was responsible for and I would keep track of parents emails and communications there so I always knew where they were in case I needed to reference something.
I really like the idea of putting the emails into a separate folder to keep track of them. I spend a lot of time looking for things in my email when I need them. I don't do a lot of emailing with parents, but I could start making folders for screenshots of messages and things I send and receive from parents. Thank you for the idea!
There are many ways that I communicate positively. I use Class Dojo or Remind to send a quick message to parents to let them know what their child is doing. I also make phone calls when I am able to. Parents always respond so positively when they get a message about their child doing something good.
I usually talk to my coworkers through email or in person about positive things that my students do in the classroom. We also text back and forth when things happen. At our staff meetings, my principal always starts the meetings out asking for good things that have happened throughout the week. It helps to get the meeting off to a positive start.
To track parent communication, I keep the messages saved in the app or on my phone or computer. If I make a phone call, I usually write it down on my own log to make sure I track communications.
I communicate with parents via email and phone calls. By far, my favorite, and most effective communication tool has been email. Before the pandemic, I was just starting to see the effects of emails to parents to communicate about grades and behavior. Intentionally in February, I sent out positive emails to parents about the students in my 4th period. When we were home for distance learning, the best response and participation in my lessons and calls every week was from that period. After we were home for a bit, I began sending emails to the parents with some tips for completing their science work, and parents were responding and communicating back with me, and it something I will definitely do more of next year.
ReplyDeleteWhen I make a call or send an email, I try to put a note in Eduphoria, and if it is email communication, I save it all in an email folder, so that I can reference it later.
Alicia Turner-PLA SMITH
I love email. I think one of the struggles I had as a teacher and now as an instructional coach is getting parents to give an email address and get into a habit of checking it. In a class of 30, I'd have 5-7 parents who would email. In a bldg of 500, we have about 230 emails and immediately about 30 of those came back as undeliverable.
DeleteI wonder if we'll see more parents willing to communicate through email after what we've dealt with in the last few months.
Alicia, I really like your added component of saving your communication in an orderly fashion. Not only is it obviously critical to document all of what we do, but it’s essential that we have the ability to obtain it in a reasonable time when needed. Organization is definitely key here.
DeleteAlicia, I too use email and phone calls. I taught 5th & 6th grade ELA. I found that early in the school year I was able to make contact with 65% of my parents via Class DoJo. When we shut down due to Covid-19 It was easier to contact my parents via text and phone calls.
DeleteI spent more time speaking to my students during the shut down but what I found is that students didn't always tell their parents that they had been working with me. I learned after a short while that I had to continue to call the parents and check in with them as well.
I was able to print out my communication on Class DoJo at the end of the school year but had to keep a call log for the calls and text messages.
Michelle Fendrick A+ Arts Academy Fair Ave
I also enjoy a quick positive email to a parent to let them know how well their child is doing.
DeleteWe used ClassDojo at my previous school and it gave a daily rundown of positives.
Tricia Christopher- Middlebury Academy Akron, OH
As a teacher and now as an instructional coach, I use email, text, website, and social media to communicate with parents, colleagues, admin, etc.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in the classroom, I would text parents daily (in my class of 30, I had 10-12 I would text daily and I'd rotate through the others; when I taught alternative ed., I texted parents every single day about positives and things we were working on with behavior)
To track the communication, I just kept the texts so I could refer back to them. Same with email, I'd put them in a folder. Phone calls, I'd track in a notebook.
Communicating from the very beginning is vital. And building a relationship with parents/scholars so that you're communicating more than just negatives is huge.
I have a love/hate relationship with texting parents. While it is quick, it can sometimes be distracting. Some parents like to take advantage and want to text other things throughout the day or even into the evening hours. While I like email better, it is sometimes harder to get into contact with parents.
DeleteI agree though that keeping in contact with parents is so important!
Chynna Triska PLA@103
My principal initiated this last year and it made a difference. I have always tried to send positive notes/texts/emails and not always negative. When parents realize that you are saying really nice things they are much more receptive if you have to address a negative behavior.
DeleteAndrea Caison
Kindergarten
Jones-Clark
Chynna, I agree that sometimes parents text way too late at night. If it's something that needs to be addressed right away, I don't mind texting back. If it's something that can wait until the morning, I will text first thing. I think you just have to make those boundaries for yourself while also still making parents feel like what they have to say is important.
DeleteI agree that parents do sometimes take advantage and text later than they should, but that is where boundaries must be set and kept consistent.
DeleteCharlene Long-Trix
When it comes to texting parents, learn from my mistakes. PLEASE MAKE SURE you ask your parents to NOT SHARE your contact info with kids. It is not okay for your scholars to text you from their personal phones. You have to cover your bases. We cannot risk parents, kids, relatives, etc claiming that we were texting them without a context.
DeleteBrubaker - GVLPA
Chynna, I agree about texting parents. Throughout this past school year, I only gave my cell phone number out to one parent and that was because her twins were in my class and were experiencing emotional outbursts consistently due to an issue outside of school. It was so much easier to just send the mom a quick text each day in regards to their behavior instead of calling or emailing.
DeleteWhen the shutdown began in March, I ended up calling and texting all my parents from my cell phone. Most of them did not abuse it, but a couple of them would text me late at night. I don't do this during a typical school year and probably won't in the future, but due to the shutdown and having a difficult time reaching our families, it was convenient.
Cathy Branch, Middlebury Academy
I love how you use email to communicate with your students. My son's teacher was doing that with the students this year, especially since she know what she sends home doesn't always make it home. I've got may more students, but their parents should expect communication in some form ever couple of weeks.
DeleteAlicia Turner-PLA Smith
Angela Hill (pla 103)
DeleteHello Cathy,
I agree with you on what ever communication you use it is best to keep it throughout the year whether it be positive or negative, but make sure you always have a positive even before the negative.
Great post!
I love to send positive texts to parents. The response is amazing!
DeleteJenelle Miller
PLA103
Last year I started doing emails that I called "Friday Shout-Outs." I would highlight students how have worked hard during the week. Usually these were academic, but I do want to start doing positive character traits this coming year. The students loved having their name in the email. If they knew they did well on something they would ask me all day if I had sent the email yet. It really made them want to try hard so they could go home and ask their parents if they saw it. I think it also made parents actually look at the email since their kids wanted them to. Then I could also sneak in some reminders ;)
ReplyDeleteI have not kept track of communication so far, but think this is a great idea so you can make sure your positive emails outweigh the negative.
Chynna Triska PLA@103
I love the idea of Friday Shout-Outs!! Thank you for the great idea. I'm definitely going to try this for the new school year. I also like how you mentioned it being academic and character related.
DeleteCharlene- Trix Academy
I also like the idea of Friday shout outs. I will being using that during the coming year.
DeleteChris Truesdell - Trix
Love the idea of Friday Shout Outs! Maybe this is a way to get parents to read my weekly newsletter! I have always kept track of parent communication with a simple 3-ring binder, noting the date, form of communication, and reason for contacting. In the schools I have taught in, it was mandatory to keep these notebooks. Not sure I would have even thought to track it on my own.
DeleteCathy Branch, Middlebury Academy
I love this idea! A great way to end the week! Sometimes I find it hard to come up with positives for some kids. Others, it's really easy.
DeleteGale Reed PLA@93
Communication early and often is a perfect way to avoid potential challenges with others. I like how the chapter highlights the fact that communicating with our peers, scholars, parents, community, families etc. In a positive manner as often as possible is critical to the overall success of the school. Additionally, positive communication promotes intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for scholars and teachers.
ReplyDeleteExamples of communication that I have used in the past include newsletters, flyers, agendas, email, text, as well as utilizing other virtual tools. Each method has its positives often depending on the audience. I am one to give out my cell number also, but I understand that some teachers would prefer not to do this. I have found utilizing my phone has been the best method with reaching my scholars throughout summer virtual learning school. Email is also a Communication form I use regularly.. This tool is helpful in that it documents itself unlike utilizing the phone which requires additional documentation.
I find it critical practice to begin conversations with positive feedback. In addition to this, I provide exclusively “good” - positive phone calls and emails home on a regular basis. I cannot stress enough how positive communication has benefited all involved throughout my 25 years. It is actually a wonderful practice in life in general!
I am a huge people-person! I love communication! I email weekly to check in on my kids and I have been texting my parents from last year bi-weekly this summer. It has been refreshing and awesome!
DeleteBrubaker - GVPLA
I use email and text to communicate with parents about scholars positively. Some of my families last year did not have email so I would text them. I communicated with many parents daily about their child. I try to send out 3-5 daily positive notes to different parents via email or text that I would not speak daily with. A few of my scholars at the end of the day loved being able to make the call themselves and let them know they had a great day. They would look forward to that end of the day phone call to let their family know they did a great job. I also like to create a weekly recap of the week and email/text it out to all parents letting them know what we did and positives in the classroom for the week.
ReplyDeleteMy method for tacking parent communication is to record it in an excel sheet for the year. I also keep texts and emails in folders to refer back to if I need them.
Dottie Lerche PLA@103
Dottie,
DeleteYour scholars, their families, and the staff is blessed to have your positivism shine through as you travel through the halls with your class... the scholars & you are awesome role models! I always love to hear your positive comments and see how your scholars joyfully react!
Dottie,
DeleteI love the idea of having the scholars call home and share their positive day with their parents. What a great way to celebrate their good news.
Jenina Sorenson PLA@103
I love that you use an excel sheet to keep record. I feel that this would be great for me but honestly I can't figure out how to use excel properly.
DeleteCharlene- Trix
Angela Hill @ 103
ReplyDeleteI have always used text and phone calls whether it be positive or negative, but first I would build relationships with the parents on what is the most effective way they can be reach concerning the child. Always the scholars would also be aware of the relationship the parent and I have so that their is no miss understanding.
Angela I totally agree you have to build a relationship first with the parents and then allow them to indicate whats the best method of communication for them. I always send home a parent information sheet in the beginning to know whats their preferred method.
DeleteI agree that building a relationship first with the parents works best before establishing a means of communication. This last spring when scholars were at home, I talked with parents and many did not want phone calls, instead they wanted texted information, others wanted phone calls as they did not have internet access at all. Still others like emails etc. Meeting parents on their best means of communication has become a "best practice" in getting new info to parents. Jean Faillace, Timothy L Johnson Academy, Fort Wayne, IN
DeleteSometimes knowing of the relationship between yourself and a scholar's parent helps tremendously in the classroom! Even them knowing that Mom or Dad has given the okay to text any time something negative occurs, usually gets a lot of kids in shape. I also like to include positive feedback when I can for those parents who preemptively tell me to text often and frequently.
DeleteAshley Pierce - JRPLA
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI send a weekly newsletter to parents via paper copy and email to inform parents about weekly information, but also exciting things that are going on in our classroom that week. I have used Class Dojo to communicate with parents daily. I share pictures of their scholars engaged in classroom activities, projects, and field trips. I also try to share a positive note to all parents or select parents throughout the day. If there are ever any concerns, they can be addressed quickly through the app via an instant message. It's a great way to document communication. Each message is saved and Parents have always greatly appreciated my positive communication. I think it's important to create a good relationship with the parents at the beginning of the year and continue to work as a team throughout the year. Scholars benefit from a positive parent/teacher relationship and that is the most important part.
ReplyDeleteHeather Hill
PLA @93
C.Louketis
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that it is important to create a good relationship with parents at the beginning of the school year, because it sets the tone for the rest of the school year. I also send newsletters every week to keep my parents informed on what is going on in class and what their should be working on. I also use Class Dojo as my major form of communication daily. Doing Covid-19 I called all of my parents at least twice a week. During the school year I rather call and talked to my parents than to email. It's just something about hearing
the tone of a person voice that makes a difference in the meaning of what you are talking about. I also like the way the book says to keep a running log of each student act of kindness.
C.Louketis (A+ Arts Academy Maybury)
C. Louketis,
DeleteI agree with you about phone calls. Sometimes just hearing a voice makes all the difference. You can definitely hear a smile on a parents face when you are telling the positive things their child did that day. I still remember one time a parent telling me that they had never received a phone call that was positive. That shocked me.
C. Louketis...I really like sending home newsletters so parent can read what’s going on in the classroom. I also called my parents during our stay at home time. I like seeing how they were doing and if they need help with anything. I good to just talk with the families.
DeleteMinfi Spychalski-PLA@103
What types of things do you include in your newsletters? I've never sent anything home like that, but also haven't had a more 'normal' core type class for awhile. How do parents respond to them? Do students receive them as well or are they just sent to parents?
DeleteAshley Pierce - JRPLA
Action 1: My colleagues, parents, & administration receive "Good News" emails, notes, or phone calls. Also, I use our projector to show the whole class how scholars are earning "scholar dollars", which parents can check online to see how many scholar dollars their scholars are earning. At least once a month the scholars are given an opportunity to shop for prizes with their scholar dollars. The prizes are donations given to teacher in our community.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: I keep a journal/file to record parent communication.
Janine I love how you use the projector to show the scholars process with the scholars dollars. I think this encourage the others scholars to correct their behavior so they can earn more.
DeleteAction 1: Two ways that I communicate with parents, administration, scholars, and/or colleagues is through emails, phone calls, and in person (normally more so with colleagues). In the school I was recently working in phone calls seemed to have the best method of communication for many of my parents. I was able to talk with immediately or was able to leave a message for them and many times they got back to me within the day.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: I track my parent communication with a data tracking sheet. I am able to list the students and their parents and then the form of communication I used wether its via text, phone call, email, note home, etc.
Jenina Sorenson (PLA@103)
Action 1:
ReplyDeleteI communicate with parents, administrators, and colleagues in a variety of ways. I have used Class Dojo, e-mails, phone calls, and newsletters. I find that each year parents have their favorite way of communication and I try to meet that. I like that this hack made it simple. Two e-mails per day is very doable. (I recognize that this is not the only part of hack 8.) I remember my first year of teaching hearing the advice of '2 positive e-mails daily' will be worth it in the long run. This still holds true 20 years later.
Activity 2:
I have a parent communication binder that I use for phone calls. Each student has a page with contact numbers. I record date, time, person spoken to, and highlights of conversation. The other methods I use are easily tracked electronically.
Mary Ann Staten
PLA @ 93
I love the idea of two positive parent contacts a day. I think that really holds us accountable with helping build those positive relationships.
DeleteI also use a communications binder with a page for each child. I find this to be most successful for me.
Charlene Long- Trix Academy
Action 1: I use a vary of ways to communicate with my parents, administrators and colleagues. I use e-mails, text, phone calls and newsletters. My try to make 3 positive contact calls a week, either voice, post card or text to parents.
ReplyDeleteAction 2:
I have a parent communication binder that located by classroom phone that I use to record all communication. I record the date, time and contacted person. I copy all card/newsletters and place in scholars folder.
I came to Phalen in January so I didn’t have as much time to Build the relationships with families. I emailed and called parents a lot. I would usually start out with positive comments before negative. Sometimes I called for just a positive comments. We did have a weekly progress report that went home which also had comment and space for communication on the report.
ReplyDeleteI would keep track of the communication in a student information binder. I was able to refer back it the information.
Mindi Spychalski-PLA@103
Mindi,
DeleteIt is a challenge coming in mid year to help build those relationships that are built upfront in the school year. Way to go at reaching out to parents thorough a variety of ways.
Jenina Sorenson PLA@103
Action 1:
ReplyDeleteOne way that I communicate with parents is through our school wide behavior system which is kick board. Scholars earn money for making great choices while also losing money for poor choices. Parents are able to see both and get notifications on their phones. Also a report "paycheck" is sent home weekly. I also have scholars of the day who receive a prize and a good phone call home. We don't have buses at my school so I do get to see a lot of parents daily and I can do a quick check in then. For me the biggest factor with building positive parent relationships having an open door for communication. I allow my parents to have my personal cell number to call or text if they need something. I know a lot of people are against this and I agree that everyone has their own view on this, but in my personal experience I have built better relationships this way. I also send home a weekly newsletter with upcoming events, skills that will be taught, sight words, helpful tips for parents and anything else important.
Action 2: In the beginning of the year I have parents fill out a survey on the best phone numbers, emails and best times/ways to contact them. I keep it in a binder with a contact log for each child. I document each phone call, text, face to face conversation and email.
Charlene,
DeleteI just came from a school that when I first started there we would use our personal cell phones for means of communication. At first it was something to get use to. Once I did I did not mind it. We ended up with new administration who was more opposed to it, so we kind of stopped. I never had a parent that took advantage of having my cell phone number they were very respectful of my time even outside of the school hours.
Jenina Sorenson PLA@103
Charlene,
DeleteI love "Scholars of the Day"! Great recognition and it creates a sense of excitement to become one!
I also am a fan of using my personal phone. I think it helps parents know and feel that we are "all in" with their child's success. It is also more convenient for me to call after I have time to just unwind after a drive home before making calls or dealing with difficult situations. I also use a weekly newsletter. I have been considering making this digital but I am not sure how parents will feel about that. Paper seems like an item that will be monitored more closely so how parents would like weekly communication is a survey opportunity.
Michelle Lisco, Middlebury Academy
I like the idea of a virtual newsletter....I may try that this year
DeleteWe use our personal phones since we don't have any in the classroom but most of us have a Google Voice number that we use for school related calls. Parents don't know it's not my real number and I think the ability to call or text me directly makes them feel that we have a more personal connection. I've had parents call/text really early in the morning or late at night but I usually just wait until regular hours to call them back and have never had anyone upset about the wait. They are usually respectful of my personal time.
DeleteAction 1:
ReplyDelete1. I often send notes home with my scholars for their parents to read, but then I will follow up with a phone call, email, or text to make sure the parents see the notes.
2. I try not to talk about my scholars in a negative light. We all know that this can be very difficult since we all have our issues and struggles. In my first teaching job in 2013, I couldn't bring myself to eat in the teachers lounge at lunch because their was so much negativity. It was sickening to hear what some of the people were saying. I have caught myself doing the same things last year. I am DETERMINED to be a positive influence this year for my colleagues in my building. We all need to optimistic, especially now!
Action 2:
Honestly, I don't have a great one. I SAVE every single email I send and receive from parents for a paper trail. I know I need to create a call log to make sure I am not favoring one student over the other. I also just need to make sure I am documenting how often I even reach out to the more challenging kiddos in the class.
Brubaker - GVLPA
That is the great thing about technology- it has a paper trail and it is good that you document the connections you have with challenging kid's parents. Those documentations have saved me in certain situations several times.
DeleteDessalee Cook/Greater Heights Academy
I am with you on the teachers lounge. I do not eat in the lounge. I hate where the conversations go and I just want quiet time to myself also.
DeleteChris Truesdell - Trix
Communicating positively with parents is huge in building a positive relationship with them and ultimately obtaining/ maintaining their support when there maybe issues within the classroom. I communicated with parents a lot of different ways when I was in the classroom. The ways that I communicated with them depended a lot on the grade level, as well as their preferences. Some different ways that I have communicated with parents are through positive notes being sent home, positive phone calls, positive text messages, and positive emails. I really like being able to relay a positive message in person to parents though in front of the students because to see their faces light up was really special. To track my parent communication I would keep a binder of Communication Logs and make notes of each time I talked with a parent and what the conversation was about. I think if I were ever back in the classroom again and wanted to track parent communication, I would come up with a digital method.
ReplyDeleteAbby Gaddis- IS
Action #1: My communication with parents is done by several different formats. Our school uses ClassDoJo and it is easy to jump on that at the end of the day and send out a positive note to a parent and yes they love to hear the good things about their scholar. I also use the “Stories” options on DoJO to post good things scholars are doing in my classroom and parents appreciate seeing their child in a photo. Our administration personnel recieve the posts, too. Another way I praise students is by sending a quick text messages and perhaps adding a pic with the message I send to parents. For parents who might not use DoJo as much as other parents, I make phone calls and send emails. I make it a good habit to connect with parents in the format they seem most comfortable using.
ReplyDeleteAction #2: I track parent communication in a spiral notebook and an excel spreadsheet. The notebook allows me to write out conversations I have and responses from parents. The spreadsheet I note dates and formats of positive communication.
Dessalee Cook/Greater Heights Academy
Dessalee,
DeleteYou made such an important point: "I make it a good habit to connect with parents in the format they seem most comfortable using." Sometimes I feel overwhelmed with the many modes of communication but I am trying to accommodate the needs and desires of many parents. Just like our scholars are unique, so are their parents and their needs. I would love to figure out how to use DOJO and Kickboard concurrently without it being duplicated work. We just switched to Phalen and had tried Kickboard for about 2 weeks before quarantine. I was trying to do DOJO and Kickboard and it was just too much. Scholars had so many questions about if there were actual rewards for both systems. Did you have Kickboard too?
Love the idea of sending a pict. I need to take more photos along the way...
Michelle Lisco, Middlebury Academy
Action #1- I communicate with parents using Class Dojo, phone calls and text messages. Those seem to be the way that most parents prefer. I have not been at a school where emails were popular. The school does use Kickboard for behavior management and parents see what the kids have been doing every Friday. I do love the idea of emailing before school starts and and doing the activity to try and identify the student.
ReplyDeleteAction #2- At the biginning of the school year I send home a form for parents to complete with phone numbers and information on their student. This gives me insite into the student and parents. I keep a log in a notebook when I communicate with a parent. I admit I do not log in everyone that I talk to at dismissal. I then transfer the information into the school required log on the computer.
Chris Truesdell - Trix Academy
Hello Chris,
DeleteI use DoJo too. My parents are very receptive to this type of communication. I send home an introductory packet, it includes a student survey. I get a lot of information from the parents about their child. I haven't used it for class discussion. I might try that this fall.
It has made a big difference when I give positive commends to the parents about their child's day.
DeEtta Crane
Greater Heights Academy
For third grade communication, I have used emailing, texting, a Weekly Newsletter, DOJO, handwritten notes (my scholars seem MOST proud of these), and a scholar Daily Homework Log (more on this later).
ReplyDeleteSurvey: The first few days of school, I send home a "Get to Know the Teacher" page along with a Survey for parents about their child. Last year, I only had about 4 parents return it. I also have surveys that scholars complete about themselves to help build our relationships. I love the 5-Facts Survey and game at the start and end of school. Parent participation can be very challenging, especially if a parent has 3+ scholars and requests and demands from every teacher.
Email: I hope with all of the technology that parents have had to learn during quarantine that they will be more responsive to email communication this year. I am really going to try to encourage more response via email this year. I have had very few responsive parents with email. I will be honest that I did not think to "cut-n-paste" a comment to make a Red Carpet 2-a-day positive email comment. I may need to let go of my need to be so personalized in order to just focus on relationship building.
Texting and Phone Calls: The most effective communication has been texting and phone calls. I also like the trail that I have for logging communication. Texting has been the most responsive mode of communication for me. Phone calls are often a game of tag that is never ending. . .
Daily Homework Log: While this is just one-way communication, the log effectively communicates to proactive parents about daily behavior. There is a column on the Daily Homework Log that has end of day behavior that many of my scholars become adamant about completing each day because their parent(s) are checking it. While it is not 2-way communication, it keeps parents in check and I encourage them to communicate with me about any concerns they have. When a student who is typically a STAR at the end of the day has a change in their behavior box, I have gotten phone calls from parents stating that there was something going on which can often “justify” the change and helps to get right back on track.
DOJO: I only had about half of our class join DOJO and many parents used this to communicate. I believe we are rolling out Kickboard this year so I am not sure how this will play out. DOJO made some really great changes and additions during the last several months and I would love to use this as my main platform to communicate. It is so versatile for parents and teachers to use.
Handwritten Notes: At the end of the day during dismissal, I would be waiting for announcements and this was a great time to write a quick note for scholars to take home. They LOVED this! I never knew if their folders made it home or newsletters but a small handwritten note made it through the door before the scholar!! 😉
I use a Parent Communication Log Binder. Each scholar has “Getting to Know Your Child” questionnaire, Parent Contact Information sheet, and an initial log sheet that I complete at the beginning of the year with parent/guardian names and all contact information (one-stop shopping). The log sheet: date/time of contact, how contacted (phone, email, text, face2face, other), reason for communication (academics, behavior, other), and notes. This keeps communication organized and all in one place so it is easy to take home if I need to. I will be honest that there were times that I struggled to keep up with the written log because I was emailing, texting, and using DOJO with some folks. These are all traceable communication modes so I knew my tracks were covered should I need to find information.
Michelle Lisco, Middlebury Academy
Action 1: Two ways that I communicate with parents is by calling, and emailing. If a parent picks up there student, then I of course will do a face to face. In addition to this I also comment on their daily conduct sheet.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: My method of tracking parent communication is with a
tracking log binder that I keep in the classroom. I also track communication with my parents on a student homework/conduct sheet.
Deborah Dominick
PLA@Jones-Clark Elementary
Beaunmont, Texas
I don't use email much at all in a traditional school. Of course I used email all the time with my online school.
DeleteBut with traditional face-to-face, how do you feel email works? Do you have a lot of success with it?
Also, the homework/conduct sheet sounds nice. How do you have the students keep this? In a folder to take home every night or in a notebook. It was good when my students had planners. They really helped.
Sarah Castle - A+ Arts Academy - Fair Ave.
ReplyDeleteI communicate with my parents via Class Dojo and text messages most of the time.
Class Dojo is an app that helps us reinforce the positive in every day behavior. So parents not only see the points as positive, I can send a quick note too.
Text messages work best for my parents. They get to them very quickly and respond fast. The thing I try to do the most is to start with a positive note before having to say something about a bad behavior that might have happened. For example: I would say " Mary is doing so well in listening and taking notes this week. Have you noticed this too? Today she had a bad moment. She was yelling at another student. Has she mentioned having a problem with this student to you? Please let me know what you think and how we can work together to help her more."
I think always including the parent in a solution builds a strong relationship too.
I track these communications with a excel spreadsheet. I keep it as a monthly general communication. I would like to add pages for each student so I could see a list of communication for each student also.
Hello Sarah!
DeleteIn the past, I haven't tracked my communication with parents, but I think I am going to steal your idea of using an excel spreadsheet. It will allow me to stay organized and I will be able to see if a student hasn't gotten a positive text home in a while.
Thank you for the idea!
Action 1: I communicate in a few different ways with parents. One, I always send out a newsletter at the beginning of the year that has all of my information on it and I continue to send out a newsletter once a month. I think that it allows parents to get a small glimpse into the classroom and I feel like it keeps me accountable on what is coming up.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of the year, I always try to get my parents involved in class dojo. I think it is a great resource because parents are able to see their students behavior during the day, and they are able to quickly text/message me. It can be tricky to get them signed up, but the ones that I don't get connected, I try to help them at parent teacher conferences so I know that they are connected and I am able to show them how to use it.
I need to get better at this and this year, I want my communication to be amazing. We don't know what this year has to hold and especially because our schools won't be allowing visitors, I want my parents to feel like they are still involved. In the past, I have also text messaged parents and I think I will do the same this year. I want to try and message parents each week an overview of the week, and then pick a student that I send a positive message to that student's parent. I have seen a difference in my students when I send positive notes home to their parents because they know that I am noticing their growth and they want to continue doing the right thing.
Honestly, I have not tracked communication with parents before, but I think it is a good idea. It keeps you accountable and you have proof of when you communicated with them.
Hello Mrs. Palmer,
DeleteYou do a great job with communicating to our parents. Your weekly news letters helped greatly in sharing and reminding our parents and scholars of our weekly happenings. You made sure to include all students no matter their language background.
Action 1:
ReplyDeleteThere are several ways in which I have communicated with parents about scholars’ positive actions. A few of those ways have included phone calls, emails, texting, social media, and home visits. Over the last few months, I have had to rely on social media and texting a great deal when it came to communicating with parents. For many of my parents, texting and/or contacting through social media has been the best way for sharing information about all things relating to their scholars. It has also allowed for our parent/teacher relationship to grow into friendship/family in many regards. In sharing scholars’ info with my colleagues and admin, I have also used texting, emails, and phone calls. We also have apps on our devices that allow for quick and easy communication.
Action 2:
My methods for tracking parent communications includes a call log, saving all emails, letters, social media notes, and texts. I also make sure to share with one or more of my colleagues that communication took place.
LaTiesha Hollowell
PLA@103
Hi, LaTiesha! I LOVE your use of a call log! I think I am going to set one up as well! I use an email log, but I think it is important to phone scholar's homes as well. :)
DeleteMarcella Largent, Middlebury Academy
I am probably one of the few teachers who enjoys communicating with parents. I try to reach out with positive news as often as I can. I keep a clip chart for behavior in my classroom and if a student has had several days of excellent behavior, especially if they had previously struggled, I will either email/call the parent or send home a note (I think more often than not these do not reach the parent). I also keep a log of parent communication. I think because I am a parent myself I know what it feels like to only hear from a teacher when your child does something wrong. This does not lead to good feelings or good relationships. It makes you think the teacher does not like your child. I never want my parents to feel this way. Even if I have a child who I have to consistently contact home about their negative behavior I always try to find a positive to report. For example, I had a student this year who had consistent outbursts and would have to be removed from the classroom for brief periods of time to calm down. I would always try to find the positive and report it to mom (for example, he was able to calm down and return to the classroom quickly, he was able to talk calmly about his feelings). I think because I was able to find the positive, the mom didn't feel like I had it out for her son, rather we were both working with him to find ways to help him improve his behavior.
ReplyDeleteBesides behavior, I often would call/email or send a note home if I saw a student do something kind. I could tell from the parents' tones on the phone that they greatly appreciated these calls! It makes them very proud.
Cathy Branch, Middlebury Academy
Hello Mrs. Branch,
DeleteGreat post I really enjoyed reading it. I love that you were able to find a positive way to communicate your scholars behavior to his mom , even though I am sure it was hard.
Leshun Horne PLA@Jones Clark
I try to do the same thing with students who may be a bit challenging. I try to remember that there is always something good you can report, even if it’s as simple as calming down or completing an assignment.
DeleteBrittany Connett PLA@93
I feel that is very important to make parent engagement a foundation for teacher and student relationship. It not only makes the scholar trust you more , but it helps to eliminate disruptions in the classroom. Since scholars is aware that you have a two way communication with parents, peers, administrators, and colleagues. One way how I communicate with them is by phone. Another way that I communicate is by emails.
ReplyDeleteMy system for tracking my communication is a log , I create one fore each scholar and document, document and document. I feel that is important because it hold scholars and their parents accountable.
Leshun Horne PLA@jones clark
I communicate with parents on the phone, email, notes home and face to face. I like to call all caregivers at the beginning of the year to give them my phone number and introduce myself. I also attend functions at the school where I can talk to parents. I use Class Dojo as well.
ReplyDeleteI have folders for each of my students where I keep copies of notes and letters I sent home with the students. I also keep track of phone calls in their folders. I like the idea of one binder instead though. I do not have all of the folders at home. It would have been ideal to have been able to bring the information home with me when we were required to stay at home. Our school used PBIS tickets which I often handed out to students. If I saw their parent before or after school, I would tell the parent about the ticket their student earned. When we establish a positive relationship with parents, it is easier to communicate concerns later, if necessary.
Stefanie Sheridan A+ Arts Fair Ave.
I like your idea of each student having a folder. But, I keep an emergency contact binder and put the emergency cards in a page protector, then I slide notes or important papers in there.
DeleteStefanie, I learned so much from you and your willingness to call parents. At the beginning of the year it seemed overwhelming for me to call them when I had questions or needed to address issues that had occurred in the classroom, but you did not hesitate to call parents which helped encourage me to do the same.
DeleteColleen Hanrahan, A+ Arts Academy
Action 1: I use many methods of communication with my scholars parents. I send home a daily behavior/effort grade. On that paper, I have a communication section for the parent and teacher. This way we can send notes to each other daily. I also make positive parent phone calls or emails. I also write comments on weekly progress reports.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: To track communitcation, I save weekly behavior sheets and progress reports. I also record on their emergency contact forms when and why I called or emailed.
Karen Prince PLA #93
In my classroom, I communicate using many different forms. I have a monthly calendar that is sent home daily that includes their behavior and effort grades. I often will write a quick positive note on this because I know the parents will see it. I also include comments on the weekly progress report. I try to balance the comments out by keeping track of I put a positive comment or an improvement comment. I love writing a quick note or sending a text with a positive comment or moment from the day. With the current pandemic, this year I am going to use more electronic communication, and I love the idea of sending an email before school starts to give some information about myself. I have a log in my planner where I track communication, and I also save our calendars and progress reports.
ReplyDeleteBrittany Connett PLA@93
I love your intentionality with providing positive notes on the daily tracker or sending texts. Parents love hearing positive things about their scholars and it helps get buy-in when we need support for challenging behaviors or academic concerns.
DeleteSarah Rahrig
GVPLA
At our school, we use ClassDojo to keep in contact with parents. It is a great way for us to share pictures of students learning, keep parents informed of what is happening in the classroom and upcoming events, let them know positives and discuss any concerns. At the beginning of the year, I made sure that I messaged or called each parent to tell them something positive about their child. I made it a habit to post on the Dojo class story regularly and to send parents positive messages. I love the idea of sending an email at the beginning of the year, but we do not know the students in our class ahead of time and many parents do not have or use email addresses. It was even difficult to get some parents to use Dojo on a regular basis. However, despite how hectic the end of the year was, it did wonders for the communication I had with parents. I was talking with parents through Dojo, texts and calls daily. Some parents (and students) did not enjoy that, but most responded SOOO positively!
ReplyDeleteAs far as keeping a log, that is a perk of using Dojo. They keep a virtual log of all of the messages that are sent to parents. Also, during our time at home, we had to keep a log of our daily contact and what we were teaching/working on with students.
Colleen Hanrahan, A+ Arts Academy
I almost forgot that I keep a folder for each student with a Getting to Know Your Child questionnaire, letters from home, pictures from the student and a behavior log. I think it would be great to keep a document with a running log so it is easy to track other forms aside from Dojo. I also think that this year I will take the suggestion of keeping a log of the random acts of kindness that occur in the class. Then at the end of the year, I will print them out for the individual students so they can reflect on the kindness that each of them expressed throughout the year.
DeleteColleen Hanrahan, A+ Arts Academy
I love class dojo and how easy it is to keep parents in the loop about upcoming events. I think the parents liked dojo as well because it was a way for them to see what was going on in our classroom with the photos.
Delete-Courtney Sandmann (Main Prep)
I use Class DOJO at A+ Arts Academy to stay in contact with the scholars and their families. I also like to send emails, personal notes home and make phone calls to check in with the parents. I have always written an introductory letter to the families and given it to them at Open House. BUT I love the idea of an introductory email and end of year email... so I think I am going to try to do these instead.
DeleteI believe if you include parents in as many things as you possibly can it will build a stronger and more positive rapport with the parents. This will give you support as well and show their child they are working with the teacher. :)
I absolutely LOVE the idea of a kindness log and hope we will be able to utilize it this year when the scholars are in the classroom with us. I am using the sloth kindness alphabet this year and think it will be an awesome idea to use as an incentive for student to earn positive recognition in our classroom.
Heidi Hilt A+ Arts Academy Fair Avenue
Hack 8 The Value of Positive Communication
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of the year we send home an introductory packet. In the packet we ask our parents to fill out a survey with questions about their child. I haven’t used the information with the class. I think that would be a good way for everyone to get to know each other. It is a policy that we are to contact parents with positive feedback, we can make phone calls, emails, or a note/letter. On many occasions, I used DoJo to communicate with my parents. I can quickly send a note during the day.
During the shutdown I had a lot of communication with parents. It made me realize the importance of teacher/parent dialog. I will definitely continue to make positive communication with parents a priority this school year.
DeEtta Crane
Greater Heights Academy
I also usually send out an information packet but never used it with the class. I like this idea from the text and think students would enjoy trying to figure out who's who. During the shut down we did have to maintain communication. That was the only way to make sure our students stayed on top of things.
Delete-Courtney Sandmann (Main Prep)
ReplyDeleteCommunicating with families is such a crucial part of my job. I reach out to parents regularly and keep communication open. By having open communication with the families, I find that my relationship is stronger and parents are more willing to work with me when something arises. One way I like to communicate is by giving 3 positive phone calls a week. This is something I typically do on Fridays at the end of the day. I select three students and then I call to chat with the parents about all the great things they did throughout the week. If I can’t get through to anyone I will leave a message. I love giving parents positive phone calls because they are so excited to hear about the good instead of the bad. My students light up when they know they are one of the ones getting the positive call this week. They can’t wait to go home and chat with their parents about what I said. This helps me to build my relationship with them as well. Another way I communicate with families is by sending out texts about upcoming events and activities. Parents respond to texts more frequently. I find that this is the most effective way to reach parents. When I send home letters not very many people respond, but with texts almost everyone does. I have been very successful with texts when it comes to getting forms back.
The most recent method I used to track parent communication was in an app called kickboard. It was aligned with our behavior system as well. Every time I contacted a parent I would log it and it would track how many times I communicated with each family. This was a new app and had a lot of flaws. I did not like this app and prefer class dojo over it. In the past, I have also used our online school grade book to log my interactions.
-Courtney Sandmann (Main Prep)
Action 1: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this hack!!!!!!!! I swear by positive and early communication with parents!!! As a classroom teacher I called every parent the first week of school introduced myself and shared at least one positive thing their child had done that week academically or socially. Additionally, I communicated weekly through a video blog to parents and made at least 2 positive phone calls a week throughout the year. I tracked this to ensure every scholar had a positive phone call before repeating a student.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: I had a spreadsheet for each child where I would record all communication including if an email was sent, in person contact, a phone call or a voicemail left. I also had a class list where I simply check marked when I made an intentional positive phone call home to ensure I reached all parents and students before repeating.
Sarah Rahrig
GVPLA Culture and Trauma Informed Specialist
Love the idea of a class list with a checkmark to make sure that a positive call was made.
DeleteMitch Mosbey
Two ways I communicate with parents is by (1.) phoning parents and (2.) a short note on the weekly Progress Report. I have found that this year when the quarentine started that a quick text or phone call was a great way to touch base. Also more parents seem to respond to emails. I love this hack and think I could do a better job of touching base with positive comments.
ReplyDeleteAs far as tracking communication, I have started specific binders before with tracking communications with parents, but tend to fall behind, and eventually stop tracking those communications. I think I will try harder to make sure I am tracking these this next year. Gale Reed PLA@93
I agree it is sometimes hard to stay up to date with the calls and emails. I need to do a better job. Hopefully a spreadsheet will help this year.
DeleteAct #1: I generally use phone calls or notes. I can see where emails would be more effective, and, in light of our current situation, will need to be more adept at using them to reach out.
ReplyDeleteAct @2: I have always used a spreadsheet/Google doc to record and keep track of parent contacts, both positive and otherwise.
I use Classtag and phone calls. I absolutely love using ClassTag. This was my first year using it and it was such a great communication tool for me. I liked that I was able to make announcements and plan out parent teacher conferences on it. I also like that I was able to receive rewards for using the app. I also called parents when I needed to. It was so much easier using ClassTag to communicate with many of my parents because of their work schedules. They wouldn't be able to talk with me on the phone but if they needed to ask a question or respond to a question they were able to text me through the app.
ReplyDeleteThe way we track parent communication at my school is that we have a parent log we have to fill out monthly and that needs to be updated monthly. Our logs are all online in google and our administration can look at the log whenever they need to.
I have used emails, phone calls, and Seesaw to communicate with families. Seesaw allows for me to share student data, 1-on-1 communication with families, as well as whole class newsletters. What is great about using that tool is that it also include read receipts and teachers can also include student data.
ReplyDeleteI've used a spreadsheet, but I'll admit that I need to get better about it. I might create a Google form so that I don't have to fill out as much information.
Mitch Mosbey GVP
I rely on phone calls and texts. I call parents get their support and keep them inform. I let them know that they can call me anytime and they do literally anytime :) Some of my families like to use WhatsApp.
ReplyDeleteI use google sheets to record our communication. It is a great tool, it helps me remember important information.
I really love whataspp. I used this a lot with the students during online learning. It was a great tool to have on your phone. Google sheets is my go to also. I like that I can share it with anyone who needs to be included in the log.
DeleteAction 1: At the school where I completed my student teaching, we used class dojo. I think apps like this make it simple for teachers to send quick messages regarding a student. The perk of apps like this is that once the parent sets up their account, all text is sent in their preferred language. This allows for teachers to send messages without the need of a translator. I think that phone calls are really key as well. I enjoy creating relationships with parents and families. This allows me to connect with families and use any information required to help my scholars learn.
ReplyDeleteAction 2 For tracking phone call information, I like to use google sheets. This is a spreadsheet and it allows me to keep organized by date, time, and family. I also prefer google sheets versus excel because it is simple to share with administration if we are moved to online learning. It also allows for access to all parties responsible for contacting students during online learning and allows the log to be in one place.
Melissa,
DeleteGoogle slides is a great idea. I have seen teachers use a google sheet to collect parent data and survey how they prefer to be communicated with during open house. The great thing about this platform is that is works no matter if school is virtual or traditional.
~Charmaine Jennings, PLA Training Specialist
Action 1: Over the course of my 24 years teaching I've used many communication tools. Communicating with parents has become much easier in recent years with the variety of apps and sites to use. It use to be that phone calls were your only choice and if a parent didn't answer you probably were not going to reach them. In recent years I've tried ClassDojo, Remind, and Classtag. I like Classtag the best. I love that I can post announcements, pictures, send group messages or individual messages. Remind was nice and probably the easiest to get parents to respond on but the character limit made it difficult to use when you had a longer message to send. ClassTag has other tools that allow you to schedule conferences and it's easy to use. However, it is not my only communication tool. I call and text parents regularly also. It really depends on the parent preference for contact and their work schedules.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: Our admin set up Google Sheets at the beginning of the year. We log all parent contact monthly in our sheet and admin have access to it at all times in case their are questions or issues.
Tammy Ahern- Thea Bowman Leadership Academy
I like the google sheets. We did that during close down, it was really helpful to log it all in one place.
DeleteMost parents at my school answer phone calls over email, so I generally use phone calls to parents to communicate about scholars positively. Parents love to receive these calls home. Scholars also enjoy these calls because they come back and tell me how they were rewarded. My bilingual scholars ask me to write a signed letter for their Spanish speaking parents, and I love doing this because it means that no one gets left out. When communicating with colleagues about positive student behavior, I usually tell them in-person. When tracking parent communication, I usually keep a parent contact log that I write up in a journal. Documentation is everything!
ReplyDeleteAction 1: I send home a daily chart with behavior, upcoming events and homework for the week. I include a space for communication. I also have sent emails and text messages ( alot during the close down) I really do like the open communication between parents. I plan to use more positive communication this year, it sounds live an awesome idea.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: I track communication on the behavior sheet collected every Monday, communication log, and track the emails and text on a spread sheet.
I agree with you regarding more positive communication this upcoming year. :) I also added Class DOJO to my classroom and it was a quick way to immediately notify the parents.
DeleteL.Roark
GHA
Action 1: There are many ways that I communicate with parents. At the beginning of the year,I email each family introducing myself and welcome them to the class. I ask them to respond with information that I need to know regarding their children and then I follow up with a phone call. The second way I communicate is I ask each parent to write a letter to their child of praise that I read to them during their student of the week slot. The students love to hear these words of affirmation from their parents.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: I track communication on a digital log. I note the type of communication and the date.
L.Roark
GHA
L. Roark I like the idea of emailing parents at the the beginning of the year such as the example in the book. I am looking forward to trying that this school year. Also the idea of asking parents for a praise letter. This is a very good idea. I hope you don't mind me stealing your idea.
DeleteClarissa Price
PLA @ Jones Clark Elementary
Action 1: I have a daily homework folder that includes a sheet for teacher and parent communication that the parent initials/sign daily. We also have a system that our principal and her team incorporates at school that is called a "Shout-out". This is where we as staff members can give a positive praise shout out to students or staff. This is great to let students and staff know that they are doing well and encourage them to keep it up.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: We also have a parent log that is required to be filled out and submitted monthly on our campus. As a result contacting parents is a must. Whether this is a phone call, email, note home or a quick note in the car pool line.
I also keep a parent contact log in a binder/folder on my desk.
Clarissa Price
PLA@Jones Clark Elementary
I really like the idea of keeping a binder for the communication with parents, especially within a binder where a note may have been sent to a parent. Keeping copies of the physical notes that have been sent home, since many parents may not have access to email nor do well responding to emails. While we can keep logs of email sent electronically, it could be difficult to lose track of the paper trail, so I will definitely focus on the idea of keeping a binder.
DeleteI love reading the "hacks" of experienced teachers, many of these ideas will help for my first year in the library!
I love the idea of communicating the positive preformance and actions to parents, it is something that can be simple, but have an impact on relationship with the student and parents. I do not want my primary communication to parents to focus on negative issues, but to also include the many positive actions that can be experienced in the classroom. I have been thinking about this hack a great deal, especially since it is the first year that I am in a school setting.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the hack and seeing what more experienced teachers have done, I will certainly be sending out an email introducing myself. I will follow the hack and ask parents to share some of the student's interests, which may include a question centering on the student's reading interests. I have included a short form in library lessons to develop a reader profile for each student too, so this would be based on the input from the student and parent, which I plan to share with the class (like the hack recommended) and this would include book recommendations. Each grade level will be a bit different, but this will expose each scholar to some new book ideas that fit their interests. It will be interesting in seeing how this can play out in a virtual or in-person environment, but the goal is to getting the scholar's strengths and interests into their profile and to get them reading leisurely and for academic purposes. Finally, I look forward to sharing positive experiences with parents, probably sending a few emails for each grade per day. With being in the library environment, this approach will be different from a traditional classroom, but the hack can be utilized and molded to the library setting as well. Positive feedback and affirmation are just as important as addressing difficult topics like discipline, but the positive can go even further in some cases, a hack that I hope to keep utilizing throughout the year.
I usually email parents. I have emailed just to tell the parents good news about their child. I feel more comfortable now that I have a google number so that will be the other way I communicate. When we started calling families in March, I received several call backs because the family had my contact number to get their questions answered.
ReplyDeleteI keep all emails with parent contacts. I have a phone folder now as well.
lmo jrpla
Hello Imo,
DeleteI have felt very uncomfortable giving my personal phone number out to parents as a communication tool; however, reluctantly I am becoming more comfortable. Your comment about have a GOOGLE-NUMBER is of interest to me. How do you go about getting this tool; or am I overthinking??? LOL ---
Mackcine Jordan, PLA@103
Action#1: My communication platform is primarily through email and phone calls. Emails are the most effective ways to communicate within the organization for teachers, coaches, and administrators. I have committed to sending clear, concise and interactive emails (e.g. smores, graphics, etc.), which limits the need to send several messages throughout the week. I also utilize social media to highlight or spotlight scholars, teachers and classrooms in action and their weekly success. These acknowledgements are developed by scholars at the start of the school year. I also encourage coaches and building leaders to highlight teachers who are growing their practice and getting closer to accomplishing their growth goals.
ReplyDeleteAction#2: I track parent communication bi-weekly. In the past I have sent (smores) newsletters in order to share what and how scholars will be learning. This would help me if the parents get excited and ask the students at home about their learning experiences. It also builds up buy-in when I invite parents to volunteer when we have a “taste lab” (i.e. a culture exploration day aligned to the topics we study) per month.
~Charmaine Jennings, PLA Training Specialist
Angela Posey PLA @ 103
ReplyDeleteOne way I've communicated with parents is I use positive phone calls to parents. This is so powerful. It is so important to call parents to let them know when their child is performing well academically and behaviorally in the classroom. I've always tried to call at least five to seven parents weekly.
I have always used newsletters as a motivator. One part of my newsletter that went over well with my parents was, " Top Three Things To Do With Your Child This Week". The parents loved it!!
They became a part of the instruction.
I have sent home positive notes. The children love it!
Action 2- I keep a phone log of the positive calls. I also keep a record of the positive notes.
Hi Mrs. Posey,
DeleteThank you so very much for sharing! I indeed like your communication newsletter; and I have embedded positive calls and text messages as ways to communicate with parents. For the upcoming school year, I would like to add your "Top Three Things To Do With Your Child This Week." Again, thank you for sharing.
Mackcine Jordan, PLA@103
Action I - Two ways I share positive communication with parents include texts & phone calls. I won't text a parent until I've spoken to them first either in person or on the phone and they say that is an acceptable way to communicate. Most prefer texting over calling since life can get so busy. I also like texting better in some instances since it is always time stamped & easy to save. I usually don't email parents but with everything going on, that might be a better option for this school year.
ReplyDeleteAction II - I really don't have a method for tracking parent communication. I've never really thought about using an Excel sheet or something of the sort. We had to have a call log during COVID e-learning at the end of last year, but that was hyperfocused on my group of students. I used to screenshot text conversations/phone calls afterwards, but that is probably an easier and space-saving idea.
Ashley Pierce - JRPLA
Action #1: As it relates to communicating with parents, I use the "By Any Means Necessary," approach. My two main ways of communcating daily with my parents includes: phone calls and using the REMIND application. I absolutely love using REMIND --- because it documents all communcation. At the end of the year, the "app" let me know exactly how many contacts I have made with parents.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: As stated above, the REMIND application documents all communication and lets me include artifacts... such as photos, samples of student work, etc.
Action #1 (2 ways of communication with parents) Newsletters, phone calls, texting, and e-mails are forms that I have used to communicate with parents. Due to our scholar population, many with English Language Limitations and parents who may or may not understand English, it is important to establish a relationship with the parent/parents in the best form that is most receptive to them. Often the administrative newsletters are sent in their native language. Another communication obstacle can be the fact that many parents work 3 jobs and cannot use their phone on the job. They often want texts so that they can read it on their breaks and call me or text later. Many parents had to be called after 7 pm this past spring. Good relationships were formed and I believe this will pay off in this upcoming year. Parents truly appreciated the many different means I used to establish a means of communication that would work for them.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: (Method of Tracking Parents Communications) I used a chart on word to track information. Communications were dated both outgoing and incoming. I worked under the special education teacher during the pandemic, therefore my reports to her were detailed on the chart and sent to her and the administration regularly, as well as the Phalen contact for Special Ed. via email. Jean Faillace, TLJ Academy, Ft. Wayne, IN
I like the idea you tracked your communication. I will have to look at word and see if I can use a chart to keep up with communication. I especially like that you dated incoming and outgoing communication. Sohn'a Duff PLA@103
DeleteI communicate with my parents via email, phone calls and I also send snail mail. I like to send the mail out because some students have never received a letter or note in the mail. They are usually excited that I sent them something.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a great tracking system. I try to make notes on my attendance sheets whenever I make a phone call to a parent. I keep copy of emails and also copies of snail mail.
I would like to use remind or something like that as well but I have not set it up yet. Sohn'a Duff PLA@103
I sent snail mail for the first time this past academic year. I did so because due to COVID we didn't get to actually see our scholars, and I wanted them to know I was thinking of them and missed seeing them. After seeing how excited my scholars were at receiving mail it is something I'd do like to continue in the future!
DeleteKayla Walker PLA@103
Two ways that I communicate with parents is through email and phone calls. I always try to update or communicate positive things their child has done. No parent wants to have the phone call with their child's teacher about the bad things their child has done. I always always always try to keep it positive.
ReplyDeleteOne way I keep track of parent communication is by not deleting phone or email history and to write it all down in a notebook. I write down the date and time of the communication and summarize what was said. By summarizing what was said, it helps me remember later on for future reference.
Kelsey Barrix
PLA 103
Action 1.
ReplyDeleteI contact parents via email and/or phone calls. They are always excited to get a positive call when I tell them something that their child did extra well at or something they should be proud of them for. I have on occasion invited my principal to come to my room or have brought students to her office to show something they have done that they are proud of.
Action 2
I keep a log in my computer in the students IEP file where I keep all communications with parents.
Kay Clabaugh TLJA
ReplyDeleteAction One:
A few ways that I communicate with parents, administrators, and colleagues positively about my scholars are through my classroom website, emails, a print and nonprint newsletter, and through written notes! I love sharing how awesome my students are with their families and with other school faculty. We should always be finding ways to celebrate our students--not only for their work but for who they are as individuals.
Action Two:
A method I use for tracking parent communication is Google Forms. I love having parents fill out a Google Form to me at the beginning of the year with things they think I should know about their child/etc. I also keep a print and digital log of parent communication - that way, I can always be updated on what is happening at home/scheduled conferences/etc.
Marcella Largent, Middlebury Academy
I like the idea of using google forms to communicate with parents. Also, the digital form is a great tool. Thank you for sharing.
DeleteAction 1: I keep an open line of communication with my parents, because of my ability to speak their native language. We use texts, phone, and a lot of times Whatsapp. Once students were at home we did a lot of video calls. I try to at least once a week give positive feedback, that way when I have a problem the parent is normally open to a conversation. At our school we send Weekly Progress Reports and several times, I would have 100% back. Also, all the messages are sent in Spanish for my Spanish speaking parents.
ReplyDeleteAction 2: I don't have a formal way of tracking the conversations, although I do keep the signed Progress Reports in the students file, and I keep the text, and Whatsapp messages on my phone. I don't delete, so I can have a history if needed. When I talk on the phone of something I want documented I will text a summary of our call to the parent. I will review and see if I can find a better form of tracking the communication.
PLA@103
In my many years of teaching I have found that the sooner you send a positive message to a parent the sooner they work with you. After all, we all love to hear great things about our children. I always choose at least 2 children to send a positive text, email or phone call about after school each day.
ReplyDeleteFor tracking my conversations, it is a simply note in their folder either of our text, note about our conversation, or a copy of an email.
Jenelle Miller
PLA103
I could not agree more about the keeping things positive route! It is always so nice to share that with parents and letting them know that even though their child may not be excelling in this or that, that as their teacher, we still see them in a positive light! Thank you for sharing!
DeleteAudree Zabel GVPLA
I have to improve on talking to my administration about scholars in a positive manner. When I'm talking to my administration about them it's usually because I'm trying to get advice and insight on how to handle situations with certain scholars. While I know I sometimes include positive attributes of that scholar; I'm also aware that this is not always the case, and sometimes the negative will out weigh the positive. When discussing scholars with colleagues it's usually after school chats in which I speak on the good, bad, and everything in between. Whenever my scholars do something kind or is just having an awesome day, especially if it is a scholar who tends to struggle, I get excited to share it with their parents and my grade level team. I try to do my best to text or call parents at the end of the school day to let them know the positive action their scholar demonstrated and how proud of them I am.
ReplyDeleteI get a notebook every year to track my phone calls and texts to parents. I only included a description of what was discussed if it was a phone call or in person meeting since there's no other physical evidence of that conversation. This past academic year my school had weekly behavior logs where we had a section for teacher and parent comments. While the logs felt a bit tedious at times it was helpful to show another record of communication was occurring.
Kayla Walker PLA@103
I used to do "Positives Shout-Outs" calls to parents during silent reading time so students could hear me call their moms or grandmas. This was great! Students loved hearing because they never knew who I was calling.
ReplyDeleteI also liked using ClassDojo to give parents a daily rundown of their child's day.
Tricia Christopher Middlebury Academy Akron, Oh
Since this is my first year teaching, during my student teaching, my mentor teacher and I used an app called Bloomz. It allowed us to share information with our parents as a group or individually, whether that was a picture of an activity or a reminder for a meeting. I loved using it and we had very few issues with parents using it as well. At my previous job, I used email mostly to communicate with any parents, but since I was an assistant, I didn't really communicate with parents as much as I would have wanted to.
ReplyDeleteIn order to track communication, I had a folder in my email for each scholar that I was responsible for and I would keep track of parents emails and communications there so I always knew where they were in case I needed to reference something.
Audree Zabel GVPLA
I really like the idea of putting the emails into a separate folder to keep track of them. I spend a lot of time looking for things in my email when I need them. I don't do a lot of emailing with parents, but I could start making folders for screenshots of messages and things I send and receive from parents. Thank you for the idea!
DeleteThere are many ways that I communicate positively. I use Class Dojo or Remind to send a quick message to parents to let them know what their child is doing. I also make phone calls when I am able to. Parents always respond so positively when they get a message about their child doing something good.
ReplyDeleteI usually talk to my coworkers through email or in person about positive things that my students do in the classroom. We also text back and forth when things happen. At our staff meetings, my principal always starts the meetings out asking for good things that have happened throughout the week. It helps to get the meeting off to a positive start.
To track parent communication, I keep the messages saved in the app or on my phone or computer. If I make a phone call, I usually write it down on my own log to make sure I track communications.