I used to think Open House was a time for me to show parents of my students how rigorous my courses were. I had printed syllabi, perfected PowerPoints, and dense texts stacked on my desk: evidence of how their children would be challenged over the course of the semester or year. I had read Harry Wong, and I felt prepared.
Then, I attended my first Open House as a parent.
Sitting in the small desk of my kindergartner, I realized I was nervous. This teacher was spending more daylight hours with my child during the week than I was, and, while I hoped she would challenge my son, I was more concerned about her keeping his love of learning alive.
Was she kind? Did she love learning? Would she go out of her way to learn about my son, his penchant for Legos, his inability to sit for long times, his love of stories? Would she use that knowledge to craft lessons and to instill in my son a desire to attend school and continue learning? Would she treat me as a partner or a nuisance?
While these questions might seem particular to the parent of a kindergartner, I find that with each passing year and each additional child’s Open House night, I still ponder them as I sit in my children’s chairs. My theory is parents of high school seniors do, too.
As a teacher, my Open House talk changed in response to these lingering questions. I talked less and showed more. I pointed to my walls, adorned with student writing and artwork. I gave parents letters from their children, where they reflected on the highlights and struggles of their first few weeks of school. And, yes, I still spoke of rigor, but with an intentional focus on how their children were responding to the rigor and how I hoped we could work together to support them in their learning. I showed them I wanted to be their child’s champion, just as I wanted my sons’ and daughter’s teachers to be their champions as well. Rita Pierson’s Ted Talk from KHS’ Opening Day captures a similar sentiment.
After all, we are all in this together: parents, students, teachers, and the community.
Relationships. It’s not just one of the words on our district t-shirts; it’s what sets us apart from other districts. It’s why our school mantra is every student, every day. It’s why students transferring from other districts become Pioneers as soon as they set foot on campus. We’ve spent the past few weeks nurturing relationships with students, so they don’t see our school as Malcolm London describes the front lines of his.
Open House is our opportunity to foster relationships with parents.
What does Open House look like in your classroom? How has it changed over the years or how might it change this year?
Nice post Kerry…
I see open house as the opening of communication between patrents and teachers. I start by talking about that and sharing my contact info (phone, email, twitterer, website…). I also pass out slips of paper that give parents a chance to tell me about their child.
Thanks, Joe. The immediacy of that feedback from parents with your slips of paper is so vital to our learning all we can about our students. Sometimes waiting for a follow-up email from a parent can be too long to learn the essentials.
Being a first year teacher, I hope that they will see that I do truly care for their “babies” and want nothing but the best for them. Being a parent of a high school junior, I hope that they see that I can fully relate to what they are most likely feeling themselves. Now, what that looks like exactly at this point?…. I’m still working out those details!! 😉
Thanks, Jackie! Feel free to stop by my office or to ask Karen about her past OH experiences. We are happy to be your sounding board.
Although I’m usually exhausted by the end of the day, I really do look forward to open house. Like Joe, I feel it is the first step in communicating with most of the parents. Actually second step — I just called about twenty parents yesterday (Sunday) whose children had missed turning in an assignment or two! Anyway, at Open House I like to give the parents a feel for what their children experience everyday, so we talk a little, perhaps do a quick demo or two, and maybe a clicker session to get their feedback about their impressions of their children’s first impressions.
Thanks, Bob! I love the idea of parents experiencing the class. What a nice change of pace from sitting through a PowerPoint, and it goes hand in hand with your philosophy of learning through doing. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Kerry. I agree with everything said above. Something else to consider is getting early feedback from the parent. I have a half sheet form prompting them to tell me three things about their child, etc. If anyone would like a copy email me at mitch.eden@kirkwoodschools.org.
Thanks, Mitch! I would love a copy of your half sheet form to share with others. That two-way communication is so important to establish early and often.
I also agree with the above comments, however this year I am going to try and explain how I will be using Edline during the year.
Thanks, Ken! Can’t wait to hear more about your successes with Edline.
I am really excited about my first open house as a teacher. It will be exciting to invite parents into their child’s “home” and give them a taste of what we the teacher are like.
Thanks, Justin! Can’t wait to hear how you plan to give them a taste of what you are like…
Thanks Kerry! I have been looking for ways to improve my Open House night and I got a lot from this post. Like Mitch I also like to use it to get feedback from parents. I give them the opportunity through writing to share their concerns and hopes for their student.
Thanks, Maddy! When you have parents write, do you share their writing with your students, or is it more just for you and your planning? My son’s teacher this year asked us to fill out a form of what he might need to know and then also to write a note to our child. Looking forward to learning more from you.
After having children in school my approach to open house changed as well. Now in addition to displaying or presenting the artwork students will be making in ceramics, I try to let the parents see who I am as well: “I also have children in school. I’m serious, but will make your children laugh. I care, so they can come to me. If I make a mistake, I will apologize. I will challenge then, but will also praise them.”
Thanks, Jason! I love the idea of parents being surrounded by their children’s work and thinking about both the challenges and the laughter in your classroom.
My kids are attending NKMS and this year the school is changing the format of their open house to what Mr. Cochran calls a “true open house.” Parents can wonder around and drop in and visit with teachers at their own pace. I like this idea as open house becomes a chance to talk with teachers as opposed to a quick 5 minute “sage on the stage” experience. I appreciate the comments above, especially about having parents tell me about their kids–gonna steal that Joe!
Thanks, Lisa! That idea of a “true Open House” is interesting to me. I will have to ask some friends at NKMS how they are preparing for that evening. (There are lots of ideas I steal from Joe, too:))
Obviously I agree with the above, but I also post my seating chart as parents walk in, since I’ve found many parents seem to enjoy experiencing what their child experiences in my class. Sometimes they can also shed some light on the peers I have around them 😉
What a great idea, Kathleen. I have done that in my children’s elementary school, and it does open your eyes to the people your children are surrounded with every day. (It also spurred me to suggest that perhaps my daughter should be moved from her BFF’s table to better concentrate!)
SMILE! And if you introduce yourself to them individually as they enter and you remember their student’s first name, they will surely smile back.
Great advice, Nancy! Sometimes we are so excited or nervous that we forget the essentials, like smiling and knowing student names. A great reminder of how we can set the tone and open a relationship with parents.
I try to get across how totally awesome Physics is, what it is, how I hope kids will experience the world a little differently as they learn a little bit about how it works.
Thanks, Julie! After a few moments in your classroom, parents and students couldn’t feel any differently about Physics! The idea of sharing with parents your big ideas (experiencing the world differently as a result of their knowledge of Physics) is a powerful one that can help parents make sense of why their child is completing an assignment or reading a certain text.
I figure the parents attending the open house want more details than they would normally get in syllabus, etc. I start off telling them a little about myself (education, grew up, colleges, etc, past employment in biology) so that they get a personal feel for who their student is learning from. I talk more about what the course will do for their students and why it is important in the big picture than what the course is about. This usually helps open the dialogue with parents about their hopes for their students for college and career and that is something we usually find common ground on.
I love what you have to say and now as a parent I completely understand. Therefore, I give parents an index card to write down information about their child that I wouldn’t otherwise know at first. I tell them to brag or share strategies, or what their child is like as a child compared to what they’re like as a student. I’m often surprised to find out that some of my quietest are super talkative with their family members or that some of my most ‘energetic’ are great older brothers and sisters and do a lot to help out their parents. I find out things that the student themself wouldn’t normally share, that they play the guitar, have a grandparent that’s a native Spanish speaker. It helps that student stand out when I’m trying to learn their names. I ALWAYS enjoy what the parents write down and learning some of the most interesting things about my students that I would never have known.
I think many parents want to empower their child when it comes to education but when their kids get to the specialized subjects at the high school they aren’t exactly sure how. This holds especially true if it is a subject they didn’t “get” as a kid like science – yikes! I have a powerpoint cycling of ways they can help their student be successful in biology.