New Teacher Tips for Parent-Teacher Conferences

by Amanda Melsby – November 11, 2024

Welcome aboard, ladies and gentlemen. This is your captain speaking.

We expect most of today’s parent-teacher conferences to be a smooth and pleasant ride. But there’s always a chance that you’ll encounter moderate to severely upset parents, so we recommend you keep your seat belts fastened at all times.

With long days, a revolving door of brief but intense meetings, and the potential for difficult conversations, it’s no wonder many teachers don’t look forward to parent-teacher conferences.

For new teachers, those first parent-teacher conferences can bring tons of questions. What should I expect? How should I prepare for the meetings? What do I talk about? What don’t I talk about?

One thing you don’t want to do? Wing it.

By following a simple, structured approach, you can make your parent-teacher conferences efficient, productive, and as turbulence-free as possible.

Six Steps to a Smooth Parent-Teacher Conference

Step 1: Set the Tone

Start by introducing yourself and your course and sharing a personal detail about the student. This will help put the parent at ease and let them know you care about their child.

Estimated time: 1 minute

Step 2: Share the Evidence

This is where preparation comes in. If you plan to discuss an issue (behavior, academic, or other), be prepared with evidence.

Provide an overview of the student’s performance, covering key assignments, projects, tests, and in-class work and participation. If the student has completed a self-reflection, review that as well to give the parent a well-rounded perspective. Don’t underestimate the power of a parent seeing the student’s reflection and analysis of their performance.

Estimated time: 2-3 minutes

Helpful Resource:

Student Reflection Form For Parent Conferences

student reflection forms for conferences

Buy on TpT

Step 3: Discuss Behavior and Classroom Contribution

Shift the conversation to the student’s behavior, social skills, and overall contribution to the class culture. Identify any executive functioning skills that need improvement.

Estimated time: 1-2 minutes

Step 4: Highlight Strengths and Areas for Growth

Address the student’s academic strengths and any notable accomplishments. Then, share the areas you’ve identified for improvement.

Estimated time: 1-2 minutes

Step 5: Propose a Plan

Based on the areas for growth, offer specific suggestions and strategies the student can use to improve. This shows you’ve thoughtfully considered how to help the student succeed. This could be informal tips and strategies for stronger students, or a brief improvement plan for struggling students).

Estimated time: 3 minutes

Step 6: Wrap Up

Recap any key takeaways or action items. For conferences that are running long, suggest that the parent email you to set up additional time. The most effective ending I have used is to ask if there is anything else you should know about their child.

Estimated time: 1 minute

Final Takeaways:

Parents want to leave their meeting with you feeling two things:

That you know, like, and care about their child (Steps 1-4)
That their child can improve in your class (Steps 5 and 6)

By following this framework, you’ll be able to fulfill both of those needs, provide parents with a complete picture of their child’s performance, position yourself as the expert, and leave the conference with a clear plan for supporting the student’s growth.

Check out the parent-teacher conference scripts for high-achieving and struggling students.

Parent-teacher conference script for high-achieving students

Step 1: Set the Tone

“Good evening, I’m Ms. Garcia, Samuel’s English teacher. It’s great to meet with you today. I wanted to start by sharing that I’ve really enjoyed having Samuel in my class this semester. He adds so much to our class with his participation and his ability to work with everyone.”

(1 minute)

Step 2: Share the Evidence

“Samuel is currently earning an A in my English class. He consistently turns in high-quality work in all areas–his essays, presentations, and the midterm exam. I’m also really impressed by the thoughtful reflections he includes with each assignment – it’s clear he’s putting in the effort to deeply understand the material.

In addition to his strong academic performance, Samuel actively participates in class discussions and is always eager to share his insights with the rest of the students. If we look at his reflection, he mentions that class discussions and group work are his favorite types of assignments and what he thinks he does best on.”

(2-3 minutes)

Step 3: Discuss Behavior and Classroom Contribution

“In terms of behavior, Samuel is a leader in the class. He is always respectful toward everyone, engaged in the lessons, and contributes positively to the class dynamic. His enthusiasm and willingness to help his peers is something I truly appreciate.”

(1-2 minutes)

Step 4: Highlight Strengths and Areas for Growth

“One particular strength is Samuel’s writing skills – he has a natural talent for crafting compelling arguments and expressing his ideas thoughtfully. One area I’ve noticed he could continue to develop is his time management, as he occasionally needs an extension or has trouble finding his assignment.”

(1-2 minutes)

Step 5: Propose a Plan

“To help Samuel further develop his time management skills, I’d recommend that he try setting earlier personal deadlines for assignments, even if they’re just a day or two before the actual due date. This will give him a buffer in case any unexpected challenges come up. I’m happy to work with him one-on-one if he needs any support in this area.

Additionally, I encourage Samuel to continue seeking out opportunities to share his ideas and insights in class. His contributions are always thoughtful and push the rest of the students to think more deeply about the material.”

(3 minutes)

Step 6: Wrap Up

“Is there anything you would like to share with me about him that would further help me support him or any questions you have? I’m happy to address anything else before we wrap up. Overall, I’m extremely impressed with Samuel’s performance, and I look forward to seeing his continued growth and success this year.”

(1 minute)

Parent-teacher conference script for struggling students

Step 1: Set the Tone

“Good evening, I’m Ms. Garcia, Samuel’s Physics teacher. Thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. I wanted to start by sharing that I’ve really enjoyed having Samuel in my class and I am here to support him so that he is successful in his coursework.” (1 minute)

Step 2: Share the Evidence

“Samuel is currently earning a C- in Physics class. While he has demonstrated some understanding of the course material, particularly during in-class discussions, his performance on assessments and lab work has been inconsistent.

For example, Samuel received a C on his first unit test, but then struggled on the recent midterm exam, earning a D. I’m also concerned that he has not taken advantage of the test correction opportunities I offer, which could have helped boost his grades.

Additionally, he has not been completing the required lab revisions, which are an important part of demonstrating mastery of the practical applications of the concepts we’re covering. This has impacted his overall lab grade.

As he mentions in his reflection, he could improve his grade by taking advantage of test corrections and revisions. He also mentions that he needs to improve his communication with me, asking for help when he needs it and letting me know when he is struggling with deadlines. I completely agree with everything he says here”

Step 3: Discuss Behavior and Classroom Contribution

“In terms of his behavior and contribution to the class, Samuel actively participates in discussions and lab activities. However, I have noticed that he sometimes struggles to maintain his focus during independent work time, which may be contributing to his difficulty completing assignments and revisions.” (1-2 minutes)

Step 4: Highlight Strengths and Areas for Growth

“One of Samuel’s strengths is his engagement during class discussions. He often has insightful questions and contributions that demonstrate his interest in the subject matter. However, I’ve noticed that he seems to be disengaging from written assignments, which is affecting both his written work grade and his test grade.

The number one way to improve his grade and understanding of the material is to complete test corrections and lab revisions. Let me share some strategies to do this.”

(1-2 minutes)

Step 5: Propose a Plan

“First, I think it would be beneficial for Samuel to work on developing stronger time management and organizational skills. This could include creating a weekly study schedule, using a planner to keep track of due dates, and setting reminders for himself.

I’d also strongly encourage him to take advantage of the test correction opportunities I offer. I understand that sometimes students struggle with test anxiety so they have the opportunity to meet with me to review the material and then complete test corrections on every test. This allows them to earn points back on their tests.

Similarly, they turn in a rough draft of their lab reports that I provide feedback on. Samuel should build in extra time to revise his lab reports based on the feedback I give him, which will improve his overall grade.

Finally, I’m happy to work with Samuel one-on-one, either during my office hours or by scheduling additional meet-ups, to provide him with any extra support he needs.” (3 minutes)

Step 6: Wrap Up

“Is there anything you would like me to know about Samuel that may help how we plan to support him? I’m here to support and work with Samuel so that he can succeed in this class. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you notice any other areas where he could use extra help. I think we can turn things around and finish strong if he follows this plan.” (1 minute)