An Essential Guide to Parents Evening – 10 Top Tips for Making the Most of It.

Going to your child’s parents evening can be a daunting experience for some parents – it could be the first time you have been in a primary school since you left school yourself!

Most schools have two parents evenings a year, some have three. You will be given a 5 or 10 minute time slot, this is usually enough time. However, if you have more to ask your child’s teacher, don’t be scared to ask if you can meet again to discuss specific issues.

During the meeting, your child’s teacher will give you an overview of what your child is like at school. If the parents meeting is at the beginning of the academic year, the teacher won’t have had time to get your child and will only be able to tell you about what he/she has seen so far. Towards the end of the academic year, the teacher should know your child a lot better and be able to answer more specific questions and give you a good idea on your child’s progress throughout the year.

The teacher should be able to tell you about all aspects of your child’s development. Social, emotional academic and physical development can be discussed.

What Information Will You Be Given at a Parents Meeting?

Here are some of the things your child’s teacher might talk to you about:

• How your child has settled in class.
  
• What subjects/topics will be covered throughout the term/year.
  
• Friendship groups and/or issues that may have come up.
  
• Homework – if it is being completed and handed in.
  
• Reading- how to improve on it, or if your child is reading/being read to regularly.
  
• Spellings – test results.
  
• Strengths and/or weaknesses in a particular area of the curriculum.
  
• An overview of progress in Maths and English.
  
• If your child answers/asks questions during whole class sessions.
  
• How confident your child is.
  
• PE – if kit is brought to school regularly.
  

10 Top Tips for Making the Most of Parents Evenings

Here are some tips on making the most of a meeting with your child’s teacher:

• Don’t be scared to ask questions.
  
• If you don’t know what a word, phrase or acronym means – ask. Teachers use these everyday and can forget a parent may not have heard of it before, or may not know what it means.
  
• It’s not all about academic achievement, ask how your child interacts with other children and who their friends are.
  
• Ask how often children are listened to read at school.
  
• Find out what your child’s targets are in reading, writing and maths. Make sure your child also knows what they are.
  
• Find out what level your child is working at in Maths and English. How much progress does the teacher expect your child to make by the end of the year?
  
• Ask for suggestions on how you can help your child with their targets at home.
  
• Ask what kind of questions you can ask your child at home to help them with their understanding in a topic or subject.
  
• Find out if your child has the confidence to ask for help when they don’t understand something?
  
• Ask if you can have a quick look at child’s Maths or English book.