How To Win With Parents

Communicating with parents (even the tricky ones) is part of every teacher’s daily life. I’ve been teaching a long time and I’ve always tried my best to get along with the parents of my students (and not just during Parent Teacher Interviews, but all the time). Now as a parent myself, I’ve realized even more the importance of communicating effectively with the parents of the students I teach. Here’s 3 ways you can learn to Win With Parents.

1. Don’t miss out on opportunities to connect with parents.

Good teachers notice what is going on around them. Do you have the opportunity to see your students’ parents in the carpark or in the playground? Do you notice them in the school? Perhaps you pass them as they are dropping off their child or maybe in the school office? Has a parent emailed you or written you a note or left you a phone message? Every one of these situations represent an opportunity for you to connect with parents. Don’t let these pass you by. A simple ‘hello’ can make a connection straight away. Respond to parents’ notes and emails. Utilise every opportunity to connect.

2. Be friendly

You might think this goes without saying but I can assure you, teachers don’t always come across as friendly people. In fact, sometimes we can be a bit task focused and a bit insecure and fail to connect with parents in a friendly and happy way. Make it easy for parents to talk to you. Start with a smile. And follow that up with ‘hello’ and welcoming body language. Be that teacher who is approachable and enthusiastic. It will make communicating with parents a whole lot easier if you do the hard work up front to be friendly.

3. Show respect

Being respectful is one of the quickest ways you can have a positive impact on people. Respecting parents is all about giving particular attention and regard to them and treating them with a sense of honor. A person knows when you are genuinely interested in them and winning with parents requires you to be authentic and respectful at all times. I’ve experienced a lack of respect and quite frankly it was just awful. Don’t be one of those teachers. Be a teacher who shows respect to every parent.

This week’s assignment:

This week, you CAN WIN with parents by doing these three things:

1) Connect
2) Be friendly
3) Show respect

Click here to check it out and to order:

Enjoy the journey,

And more importantly,

Enjoy the moments.

🙂

Megan