After what feels like a long break, the children are finally heading back to their beloved schoolyard and I can hear the collective (yet joyous) sighs from parents. Back to school…finally. Or maybe your child is starting school for the first time?
Whether you’re a first-time school parent or not, school is such a time of change for families and it is important to remember how special the teacher-student relationship can be.
Educators are the adults that kids trust the most outside the family unit. Teachers are pivotal to our children’s brain development; they continue to build on the social and emotional skills we have been teaching them at home and help them develop into beautiful little beings.
While I have not been in a classroom for a few years now, I am still deeply passionate about and connected to our education system. I know that at times the lines between parent and teacher responsibility can easily blur. Often, educators will share with me that parents’ demands and unrealistic expectations on students continue to challenge their relationships with families.
With this in mind, I thought it helpful to offer some insights into how families can build strong relationships with teachers.
Even if you are a few years down the track on the journey of childhood education, it is good to be reminded of the crucial role that educators play in our family lives.
How to Create a Strong Relationship With Your Child’s Teacher
1. Ask them the best time and way to contact them
Teachers work long days, often arriving at work hours before school starts. They have multiple meetings every week and stay late after all their students have gone home too.
They spend hours on weekends creating resources and researching exciting and engaging lessons for our kids. So, please think carefully about when you choose to contact your child’s teacher.
Over the weekend, I was thinking about asking my daughter’s teacher a question about her reading. Instead of just sending a message immediately, I waited until Monday, so the teacher didn’t feel pressured to respond to me out of hours.
Most schools have a format or online software that they use for communicating with teachers. Learn it, use it, and respect it. Our educators deserve their time off too.
2. Avoid speaking negatively about the teacher
You do not have to agree with everything your child’s teacher says—but try to avoid speaking negatively about them or put them down, especially in front of your kids.
Doing this sends terrible messages to our kids about how valuable our educators are and the incredible work they do each day. Educators are the people who show up (mostly) with smiles on their faces and enjoy being around our children. Try to maintain a positive relationship at all times.
One of my favourite sayings for children is, “You can think it, but you don’t have to say it!” and it pays for adults to follow the same advice!
3. Limit screen time before school
This may run counter to some household’s routines, but I believe that you can better set your child up for success every morning by limiting screen time before school.
Your child’s brain needs to be wired for learning, not distraction. Try turning the TV off before school and encouraging your kids to do some open-ended, calming activities like building, craft, or drawing.
Also, think about your breakfast options. Busy parents often reach for cereal or toast for a quick breakfast but cooking some eggs or making a hearty porridge really does help your child’s brain to function happily for longer throughout the morning.
4. Get involved in your school community
We’re all busy people – but try to carve out some time to get involved in your school community in any way you can. Attend events, read the newsletter, and stay connected to your child’s education for as long as you can.
It means so much to our educators and even more to our children that we are involved in these communities with them.
If we learnt anything from remote learning, it is how important our schools are to our communities and our kids’ wellbeing. Their teachers and schools are such a big part of their identity and will be for many years to come.
It is vital that we choose to celebrate and support this through our everyday interactions and engagement.
5. Remember you’re on the same team
We need to continually remind ourselves that helping a child’s brain to grow is the most challenging and most important job on the planet, both parents and educators, should come together and work as a team.
Our kids totally deserve that, right?
Affectionately known as ‘The Child Charmer’, Chrissie Davies is an educator, parent and founder of Chaos to Calm Consultancy. With more than twenty years of experience, she’s achieved positive, game-changing results for countless families.
Offering a fresh approach to understanding and raising children in a modern world, Chrissie is particularly passionate about creating happier and safer home environments – so passionate, in fact, that she wrote her signature online course Calm Connected KIDS (enrolments opening soon!) and her book “Love Your Brain” as a way of supporting families and educators to understand children’s behaviours more positively.
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I hope this post has helped or inspired you! Subscribe to my weekly newsletter to find out more ways for your family to have fun together!
