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Its the first day of school, and I was reminded today of a conversation I overheard a year ago. A mom, met her child’s teacher before her child did.
“Oh! You have my son in your class this fall? Oh. We’ll talk. There’s a lot you need to know.”
Why? Why why why must parents do this? To their children and to their teachers? Do they not trust the teachers enough to bring their own experience to the classroom and to let it lead them in how they’ll approach their teaching?
Parents. Please. Let your child go to school as innocently. Your child may be totally different in school than he is at home. Or his chemistry with this year’s teacher and class will be different. Or maybe he just grew up this summer. No matter what. Whether he has the same mannerisms as you know or different ones, the teacher will let you know if there’s a concern. That’s a part of her job.
Parents, give your child a hug and let your child go today. Let him or her be himself and let the teacher and the classmates meet your child as he wants to be met. Please don’t taint your teachers with warnings and expectations.
Teachers are good people. They nurture. They know. They expect to learn about all the children in their class in the next few weeks. I promise, they’ll call or write if they have questions.
Note: this is not to say that parents of children with special needs should not address any outstanding issues with their teacher ahead of time. Its the little things like “Joey talks out of turn” or “Samantha and Riley really don’t like each other. They shouldn’t sit next to each other” that don’t need to be said to the teacher. Believe me. She knows.
© 2010, Julie Meyers Pron. All rights reserved.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
As a mom of a 3rd and 5th graders and a former teacher, I couldn’t agree more! My 5th grader has an IEP, and I just made sure that the teacher knew it existed at the Open House. There’s plenty of time for more discussion, if needed, in the weeks to come.
Twitter: justprecious
August 30, 2010 at 12:13 pm
exactly. the teacher can always ask. Parents just need to let the kids be.
I totally agree! For us, Zoe is completely different at school than at home. She is very good at school and saves the badness for us at home. I figure it could be worse! We’ve got to trust our teachers.
Twitter: justprecious
August 30, 2010 at 12:16 pm
We definitely need to trust our teachers, especially if we want a good relationship with. (which we do).
I remember a while back, telling my mom how crazy it is that the kids are so good with others. She said, “better they’re good in public and not so good in private, right” So true!
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