Month: February 2022

Tomorrow is the first day of 2nd semester conferences. Conferences are Wednesday, February 23rd, and Monday, February 28th. If you are not sure when your student’s parent teacher conference is, feel free to call the school and they can share that information with you.

If you are wondering how to best be prepared for conferences, I found these helpful tips:

Before the conference

• Ask your child how she feels about school.
• Ask your child if there is anything that he wants you to talk about with his teacher.
• Tell your child that you and the teacher are meeting to help her.
• Make a list of topics that you want to talk about with the teacher.
• Prepare a list of questions such as:
• 1. What are my child’s strongest and weakest subjects?
  2. Does my child hand homework in on time?
  3. Does my child participate in class?
  4. Does my child seem happy at school?
  5. What can I do at home to help?

During the conference

• Be on time (or early) for the meeting.
• End the meeting on time. Other parents will probably have a conference after yours.
• Relax and be yourself.
• Stay calm during the conference.
• Ask the most important questions first.
• If your child receives special services such as English classes, ask about your child’s progress in those classes.
• Ask for explanations of anything you don’t understand
• Ask your child’s teacher for ways that you can help your child at home.
• Thank the teacher.

After the conference

• Talk about the conference with your child.
• Talk about the positive points, and be direct about problems.
• Tell your child about any plans you and the teacher created.
• Keep in touch with the teacher during the school year.

While I always hesitate to use the word “normal”, there are things that are more common in life and things that may seem outside of these common norms. This is true when it comes to kids’ mental health too.

While many children are facing stressors related to friends, school, family, and of course COVID, some children may need more support than others to deal with our world’s new “normal.” If you are wondering if additional support is needed, here is a good article to read that also includes a link to “Possible Red Flags.”

If you are wanting some additional mental health support for your child, feel free to reach out to the school and we can provide a list of providers who can work with you.

 

I Am Worried About My Child’s Mental Health