Conference Calendar Overview

Hopes & Dreams

Conferences: September

Regularly scheduled midyear conference:

December

Student-led conferences:
March

The hopes and dreams

conference will be a 20minute conference
scheduled within the first
three weeks of school. My
goal for this conference is
to learn what parents hope
for their child to accomplish
this year and to begin to
discuss the steps we will
take to accomplish these
goals as a team.

The regularly scheduled

mid-year conference will be
held at school to discuss
how students are
approaching their goals. I
will share work that
indicates progress towards
goals, and work with
families to set new goals to
further the progress of their
student.

Student-led conferences will

be an opportunity for the
student to show off their
growth from this year and
give the students
responsibility. I will sit back
and let students be the
primary speaker during this
conference while they
showcase the work they are
proud of and discuss their
goals for the end of the
year.

Hopes & Dreams Rationale

In my ideal teaching year, as outlined in my calendar overview, I will have completed
home visits before my hopes and dreams conferences. This will give parents and I a chance to
build rapport before we begin more formal discussions about their childs academic year. I hope
that during home visits I will connect with those families that may feel uncomfortable or
unwelcome in school and make them feel at ease with me as their childs classroom teacher
(Sieff, 2011). During the home visits, I will inform parents for the first time of the hopes and
dreams conferences, and I will have the pre-conference form (see Appendix) printed to leave
with them.
I will send out an email to all parents with a link to a Google document in which they can
sign up for the preferred time and location of their conference. For those families that did not
invite me into their homes or do not have Internet access, I will reach out via phone to inform
them of the conference and schedule it with them, and will then send the pre-conference form
home in their students folder. I will make sure to consider families that may not be English
proficient in this contact by enlisting help at school to arrange for interpreted pre-conference
forms and a translator (Robertson, n.d.).
The hopes and dreams conference will be held during the first three weeks of school.
Choosing to hold these parent lead conferences so early in the year will show my classroom
families that I care about them and their students and will in turn give me insight into the lives of
my students outside of school (Davis & Yang, 2005). I will do my best to provide a flexible
conferencing schedule for all parents (Seplocha, 2004). I will do so by making myself available
to meet before school, after school, and I will also reserve some weekend availability to meet in
a neutral community spot such as the library or a coffee shop. I will reserve twenty to twenty five

minutes for each conference, with a ten-minute cushion between any back-to-back conferences
to allow extra time for someone who may be late.
When I meet with each family, I will be sure to greet them while standing up with a warm
smile and a handshake. I realize that the family may feel nervous to meet me, and I will try to
set them at ease by telling them a little bit about myself as an educator to begin. I will ask what
they would like to be called to make sure I am not assuming that the parent has the same last
name as their child and to set a tone of respect. I will be sure to communicate my enthusiasm
for having their student in my classroom and ensure them that I already care about their student
and their family. When we sit down, I will face the family with open body language, keeping a
smile on my face and listening intently, nodding and keeping positive facial expressions
(Seplocha, 2004). I will use the word we instead of I to communicate that I want to work
together with the family to do what is best for their student. I will ensure that there are no
physical barriers between us, such as a desk, so that the conversation will feel natural and fluid.
I will make sure not to use educational jargon that families may not understand.
In this particular conference, I will ask parents to share their concerns about their
students. My purpose is to listen to their concerns and what they want for their students this
year so that we can work together to accomplish what they want for their student. I know that
most parents send their child to school wanting them to have a positive experience with a
teacher that cares about them and wants them to succeed. I will inquire about problems
students may have had in previous years of school and how they made progress with these
issues. I will carefully listen to these concerns and how they have felt about previous teachers
and their methods to try and pick up any clues that may help me to better communicate with the
family and cater to their needs. I will let parents know that my teaching philosophy when it
comes to each student does not revolve around grades or test scores, but rather ensuring that
each student enjoys coming to school and puts forth their best effort while making significant
progress in my classroom. It will be beneficial to be able to communicate my passion for my
students and their emotions because I know that my students families probably share that
passion. Since it is so early in the year, during this conference I will most likely not voice any
concerns about students unless a serious issue has already surfaced with the student. I may
say that I noticed a student could use more practice in one certain area, and let the parent know
that I am interested in working together to strengthen this area and coming up with a plan
together to work towards mastery. For example, if a student is struggling in reading, I may ask
the parent how we can collaborate at home and at school to make sure that child is just reading
for an hour a day.
I will make myself aware of the fact that all families come from different backgrounds. I
will gather information on my families in any way that I can before meeting with them. The home
visits should have been a great indicator to me of the culture of my students. If I have learned
from the home visit, from other staff, or from a student information card that my family is not
from the area where I teach, I will make sure to do some research on the culture of the area that
they are from (Davis & Yang, 2009). I will also be sure to do research about how schools may
be different where my child is from. Although I believe that previous teachers of the child can be
a good resource on how to work with this child, I will be careful with their opinions and will not
pass judgment on any child or their family based on other staff members opinions (Allen, 2007).
I will also consider that some families may be impoverished. I will use my school allotted funds

to purchase extra materials that students may not be able to bring to school. By doing this
before school begins, I will be able to quickly provide what a student may not have when they
come to school. I will also prepare book bags for those families that may not have books for
their child to read at home.
By meeting face to face with each of my students families twice in the first month of
school, it is my hope that we will create a level of respect and that they will begin to trust me
with their child. I do not believe this is possible through only letters or email, but is more likely to
happen more quickly through positive personal interactions and partnership (Lindle, 1989). My
goal for these conferences is to create a positive relationship with families that communicates
that I want to work together to do what is best for each families student. I hope to build that
relationship during this conference by showing parents that I care about what they want for their
child and will incorporate this into my learning plan. In this particular conference, my greatest
goal is to let the parent be the primary conversation leader. The driving purpose of the
conference will be for me to listen and gain understanding as to what the parent hopes for their
child to achieve during their year in my classroom. By asking parents what they want for their
children, I hope to begin a partnership and a collaborative relationship rather than a relationship
in which the parent does not feel comfortable communicating with me about their child (Davis &
Yang, 2005). At the end of our conference, I will share some upcoming dates and activities on
our calendar that parents could be involved in to promote partnership (Lindle, 1989).
After our conference, I will call, email or write a note to each family thanking them for
meeting with me and encouraging them to stay in touch with me throughout the year
(Robertson, n.d.). In this email, I will also remind them of the dates I shared with them at our
conference. I will keep each parent hopes and dreams form in a student specific file and add
examples of work that exemplifies progress toward the goals listed throughout the year (Davis &
Yang, 2005). Our next formal conference meeting will be a standard conference held at school
where we discuss the progress towards the goals we set for the student at the beginning of the
year. During this meeting, I will share proof from the aforementioned file that the student is
approaching the goal and we can all set new goals together. This concrete evidence will drive
conversation during the next conference (Allen, 2007). The examples of work will be different
types including projects, writing, math, and maybe even art. By the final conference, I want the
student to be able to show off work and progress in a conference that they lead.
References
Allen, J. (2007). Inviting dialogue at the conference table In Creating welcoming schools: A
practical guide to home-school partnerships with diverse families (pp. 82-92).
International Reading Association.
Davis, C., & Yang, A. (2005). Parents & teachers working together. Turners Falls, MA:
Northeast Foundation for Children.
Lindle, J. C. (1989). What do parents want from principals and teachers. Educational
Leadership, 47(2), 12-14.

Robertson, K. (n.d.). Tips for successful parent-teacher conferences with bilingual families.
Retrieved from http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/tips-successful-parentteacherconferences-bilingual-familIes.

Seplocha, H. (2004). Partnerships for learning: Conferencing with families. YC Young Children,
59(5), 12-15.
Sieff, K. (2011, October 9). Teachers increasingly use home visits to connect with students'
families. Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/local
/education/teachers-increasingly-use-home-visits-to-connect-with-students-families/2011
/10/03/gIQAzwVKYL_story.html

Appendix: Pre-Conference form

Dear Parents:
Our first conference of the year is coming up! I have asked that each of you schedule a time
with me during the first three weeks of school in which we can meet to discuss your hopes
and dreams for your child this school year. I have emailed a link to you with a signup sheet. If
email is not the best way for me to reach you, please contact me on my school phone at (555)
555-555. You may choose to meet with me before or after school during the week, or over the
weekend at the library or coffee shop.
My goal for this conference is to hear what you would like your child to achieve this year. I
would like for you to please focus on one academic goal and one social goal for your child. I
will monitor these goals closely and share information with you throughout the year regarding
your childs progress. At our next meeting, we can discuss how your child is doing in regards
to their goals and can decide to set new goals or work further on the original goals.
I look forward to seeing you and forming a partnership that promotes your childs success in
school!
Sincerely,
Laura Hernandez
What are your hopes and dreams in regard to what your child will learn this year?
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What are your hopes in dreams in regard to your childs social skills this year?
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