We had the first of our annual parent teacher conferences last night. The first of what I like to call our ''parenting reviews." For the last several years parent teach conferences have usually followed this pattern: "Your child is doing really well academically, but they are struggling with this behavior or social issue. Have you taught them how to cope with or correct this? Have you tried this technique or opportunity? Have you taught them why the behavior needs to change?" The answer is almost always, "Yes" which makes the situation more frustrating because we are trying the teach the correct things and provide opportunities for growth and learning without seeing evidence of the growth and learning happening. The teachers are usually very polite about it, but as a parent it is tough to hear someone else say what you already know to be true.
Last night, there was none of that. Both teachers told us how our children were using and developing coping strategies in their classrooms. Bekah, who loves to talk, asked her teacher if she could be moved away from her peers so she could focus better and be less inclined to talk. Benjamin's teacher told us that he was taking breaks away from others when he was starting to feel emotional or upset about something, and that he was communicating those feelings to her in an acceptable manner. School continues to be challenging, at least socially, for our children but they are doing well overall. And, I finally felt like I passed parent teach conferences as well.
