I'm Katie, and my husband and I raise turkey that ends up on your Subway sandwiches. (Seriously!) We are also raising two little boys, and I am a part time teacher. I blog about our life On the Banks of Squaw Creek.
With the help of some of my teacher-friends, I put together a little Teacher's Wish List for this fall. These are all things that you, as a parent, can do to make a teacher's job a little easier:
1. Read to your children. Every day.
Seriously, how many times have you heard that? But we keep saying it, because it makes such a HUGE difference.
2. Be interested.
- Read the newsletter! It takes a lot of time for teachers to put this together and contains important information.
- Ask your child about their day. But don't stop at, "What did you learn today?" Be specific. You will get more information from your children that way. Here are some ideas...
- What did you do in math/science/reading today?
- What was your favorite/least favorite part of the day?
- What was hardest for you today? Easiest?
- Who did you play with at recess?
- Who did you help today? Who helped you?
3. Seek and accept help. For two years, I taught students who struggled in math and reading. Some of the worst situations I dealt with involved parents who refused to believe that their child needed help. On the flip side, parents who recognized that there was a problem and sought out help for their children were really an asset to their education, and those students flourished.
4. This one is a big one for me, and might be something you haven't thought about. If there is a problem, DO NOT blame the teacher or school in front of the student. Do not put the teacher down in front of the student, either. Doing so teaches the child to place blame on others, instead of taking ownership and doing their best to solve problems on their own. It also breaks down the student/teacher relationship and the student no longer respects the teacher. When this happens, it is virtually impossible to motivate a student and the child may cause classroom discipline problems. Instead, model how to disagree with someone and confront them about a problem respectfully. Work cooperatively with the teacher to solve problems, and you will be teaching your child a valuable social skill.
Come visit me for more parenting ideas (like teaching empathy), to learn more about our farm, see our house remodeling projects, or take a look at my cute boys. There's something for everyone On the Banks of Squaw Creek!
Thanks, Katie! What a great wish list! Now, Housewives, it's up to each of us to make those teachers' wishes come true!
And don't forget to stop over by Katie's place -- be sure to check out her genius pull-out pantry and children's book storage.
Thanks for reading and MacGyvering along!
1 comment:
I love this... especially numbers 2 and 4 (I used to teach, too). It's amazing the number of parents who don't take the time to ask their kids what they did at school on a given day.
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