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Dr. Vasthi Acosta
By Dr. V
When my mother spoke to my teacher during parent-teacher conferences, her priority was whether I had behaved, had been respectful, and had obeyed the teacher. Once the teacher assured her that I had indeed been a good girl, then my mother would settle down to hear about my grades in reading, math and science.
My mother knew that if there was no self-control, learning would be difficult. There are two key factors that affect a child’s progress in school: behavior and learning ability. November is the time when many schools schedule parent-teacher conferences. So be ready! Here are three different kinds of teacher reports that will tell you a lot about what is going on with your child in school:
If the teacher says, "Your child is on target academically but she misbehaves," ask the teacher if she finishes her work early. If she does, it is a good indicator that the material being covered in class is too easy and she needs to be challenged academically. Because she is bored, she is getting into trouble by looking for other ways to keep busy.
If the teacher says, "Your child is not behaving well nor performing on level," ask for examples of when he misbehaves. Is it during instruction? Is it during recess? If it is during recess, then the misbehavior is not affecting instruction. But if the misbehavior occurs during instruction, then it may be because your child is having trouble understanding the material. If the misbehavior happens all the time in recess and during instruction, then your child’s inability to control himself is interfering with his learning. Partner with the teacher to work out a plan to help your child gain self-control.
If the teacher says, "Your child is well behaved and doing very well academically," go home and celebrate! Kiss your child and let him know that he is doing the right thing.
Finally, don’t forget to thank the teacher before you leave the conference. Most teachers are passionate about teaching and work very hard; let them know you appreciate it.
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If you have any questions, visit my blog "Ask Dr. V" and post your question @ www.ambercharter.org/Ask. Dr. Vasthi Acosta is Amber Charter School (ACS)’s head of school. ACS serves 450 children, in the K-5 grades, from Northern Manhattan and The Bronx.
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