As usual, summer has been way too short. School is starting back up, which means open house or back-to-school night is coming soon.
Both the middle and high schools where I’ve taught had a similar format: Parents follow their child’s schedule and go to each class for about 10 minutes to hear from each teacher. I don’t mind this format, but I don’t get much of a chance to have a conversation or even figure out who each parent is.
A few years ago, another teacher in my building attended a conference and came back with an awesome idea: bell work for parents.
A few reasons why I love this parent activity
- It gives me a record of who was in attendance without everyone lining up at their 5th sign-in sheet of the night.
- It eliminates the awkward silence that often occurs as the parents file in and sit, usually staring at me while waiting for me to begin. Everyone stays busy.
- It gives a unique insight into your students from a parent’s perspective.
I’ve tweaked the questions over the years, and I’ve found that these two questions are short, simple, but give a lot of information. Parents seem appreciative to be asked these questions, too.
Tell me one thing that makes you proud of your child. Tell me one thing I need to know that will help me teach them this year.
I’ve gotten so much invaluable information from these two questions. They not only help me learn some interesting things about my students, but also how to structure my class.
I’ve learned who needs to sit at the front. Who won’t ask questions even though they don’t understand. Who is a junior rodeo champion (I taught in Arizona).
If you’ve never tried anything like this before, I challenge you to give it a try this year and see what you learn. You can download a copy of this for free on TPT here.
