So I didn’t think she would actually come to parent-teacher conferences.Īs I sat talking with another parent, I saw her standing outside my room. Since the beginning of the year she has demanded a meeting, but every time we scheduled a meeting she didn’t show up and made up some story about why she couldn’t come. Her son has clearly been affected by what goes on at home and struggles emotionally and academically, yet she blames the school. Blame, anger, manipulation, lying, rage, false sense of reality, victimhood, lack of responsibility, no boundaries, etc. She is an addict, and after ten years of living with an alcoholic, I am very familiar with the crazy behavior. This particular parent has stirred things up at school for the past couple of years. My second-to-last conference completely changed the positive energy and triggered me in a way that I least expected. (End of soapbox…)Īfter the twenty-second conference on the third night, I felt exhausted and unprepared for what happened next. But I understanding that it makes us uncomfortable as parents, and I think it’s our work as parents to stop bubble wrapping our children. I actually love to see how children perform when they are bored or frustrated and discover what kinds of learners they are. Frustration teaches children resilience and builds confidence that they can do hard things. Feeling bored allows children to challenge themselves and develop creativity. I don’t know where the belief comes from that allowing our children to feel bored or frustrated is bad. The hardest part is hearing so many expectations to make things ’just right’ for their children (not too easy, but not too hard). I find the saying ‘the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree’ to be so true. Like I said, I enjoy talking with parents and getting a glimpse of what home life is like for the children so I get to know the whole child. For two weeks our routine gets disrupted, and even when I’m home I am so much less connected and available to them. The crazy schedule and intense exhaustion not only affect me but my children as well. Even when I was married it was hard, but since I became a single mom it’s been particularly difficult. This is my tenth year of teaching, and every year I have struggled to find some sort of balance in the month of October. Needless to say, these are exhausting weeks, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Seven hours of teaching followed by four hours of talking to parents. But every year I have at least one family that challenges me in a new way and pushes me out of my comfort zone. I love connecting with families and getting to know more about the children, and who better to learn from than the experts. One of the most challenging, yet enlightening, aspects of teaching. This week I finished another round of parent-teacher conferences.
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