Students and Parents

I spent time with my 3^rd grade host teacher last week Thursday, Feb. 24^th and Friday, Feb 25^th. My host teacher gained permission for me to observe a parent/teacher conference about one of her students.  The mother gave permission because I had her daughter, which the conference was about, when she was in 4K.  The teacher was concerned about her student because she feels she “just can’t do anything” and will cry.  My host teacher explained the strategies she has used such as working one-on-one with her to help build the child’s confidence, gave her extra time to finish her test/assignment and finally for group work she placed child in a group that was working on her favorite book for reading.  Still the child would give up and at time shed tears.

     I observed the conference from the teacher’s desk which was behind the teacher and mother who were sitting at desks next to each other.  I did not offer any suggestions nor did I take notes because I did not want the mother to feel uncomfortable.  The teacher opened the conference with a prayer and then reviewed why they were meeting.  The mother explained that her child gets this way from time to time and was happy the teacher was working with her the way she had.  Together they brainstormed ways to help the child and the final decision came from the mother to have the child tough it out and work out of the extra time and make her finish within the time given.  She feels her daughter needs the pressure to snap out of it. The host teacher agreed to what the parent wanted but had the mother agree to meet again in a week to see if there was any difference.  The mother promised she would encourage as much as she could at home and would make sure her daughter felt confident the night before.  The teacher is going to “front load” the student by giving her the reading she would need to do the night before and give her “homework” which will be review for the student. 

     So here is what I learned from this conference:  Parents always know what is best even if you disagree.  But the teacher can always give the student a “head start” to new information the night before and have the child review to build confidence. 

     I did spend time with my host teacher for the last hour and half of the day to watch her with her students last Friday.  For the class this hour is filled with anything they would like to finish up and for extra study help.  The children all need to be busy though.  I observed her help a boy with math he felt “stuck on” and give another girl flash cards for multiplication tables for a quick check on.  When the boy was done she showed the flash cards to the girl who missed a few from her 8’s table.  The teacher encouraged her to go through them one more time and come back.  She then gave another student art supplies to finish a project and listened to a boy read for a few minutes.  The girl came back with her flash cards and still missed 8x7.  The teacher encouraged her and the girl wanted to try again. 

     I observed this teacher giving her students encouragement and asking them if she could show them “tricks” for remembering and offering children a chance to unwind with art to finish or start.  The children seemed happy and will to finish work and ask questions.  I liked the relaxed feel this time seemed to have.  I stayed with her during dismissal where the teacher chatted with parents briefly giving some quick updates of the day such as something the child accomplished or said that made her day. Most every parent heard something positive about their child which made the parent quickly hug or pat them on the shoulder and smile.   This reinforced the power of sharing positive messages with parents!  Afterwards we talked for a while about her interactions with parents.  She allows the parents to text her, email her, call her and chat afterschool with her.  She said most parents take advantage of the school’s email system and the importance of quickly responding back.  I learned that the faster a teacher can respond the better the parent feels and solutions can take place.

Observing and Interacting With Program Director(s) and Other Administrative Staff in Your Setting

 This past Friday, February 8^th, I was able to spend time with the principal of my host school, Sue (not her real name).  I was able to ask her some questions and sit in on an ISP (Individual Service Plan) meeting.  The parent that granted the permission is my host teacher.  Her son is in 5K and struggling with speech.  This meeting will determine if he is eligible for services later on in the afternoon.

 

     First, I met with the principal and we were able to talk about children with special needs in reading and comprehension.   The first question I had, because this is a Lutheran school, is how easy or hard was it for her as principal to connect with the public school district.  Sue told me it was not hard at all to connect with them because the district had been trying for years to make a connection but the school did not have a principal so no relationship was made.   Her challenge is getting her students services because most times Sue hears that they do not have funding for that or the child will not qualify. Sue keeps up on the latest in services that are provided or in the process of being cut through quarterly meetings for administrators.

 

     This lead to my next question ~ How do you address the needs of a child who struggles academically especially in reading and comprehension?  Sue told me that grades 5K through 8^th grade administer the DIBELS every quarter which measures various reading skills.  If a child scores low in say comprehension, the teacher and principal meet as well as the teacher in the grade level above and below to brainstorm ways to help the child.  A meeting is then set with the parents for more brainstorming so they can be a part of the child’s interventions.  Together they draw up a plan and meet one month later to see if there is some improvement.  If no improvement is demonstrated, Sue looks into other resources through other area schools to see what works for them.  Also, Sue will look into the Marquette University for their reading enrichment program.  If those resources dead end, Sue will then call Lutheran Special School and Educational Services.  They will send out a special education teacher consultant for their recommendations for the classroom and parents.

 

     During the ISP meeting I was able to listen to the Speech Therapists findings through testing.  The child is lacking in language skills as well as comprehension skills.  This was measured through standardized testing and through observation and informal conversations during the observation.  The child struggles with story recall and recall from events.   I gained from this meeting the role of the principal through this meeting.  She had the report ahead of time and was able to formulate questions the parent would not think of in the moment, and asked them.  She also told my host teacher she would call her later on in the evening to rehash the meeting.  After the ISP meeting, Sue told me she has been working on having the child evaluated since September and finally now in February he is receiving the help he needs.  Sue told me that sometimes it can take an entire school year for a child to receive services but you have to be very patient and not show frustration.