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Administrator’s Corner by John Mahal

With it being almost February, that means that winter conferences will be coming up for our families to connect with classroom teachers to discuss their child’s progress at school so far this year.  We value these times to meet with families to communicate what we are seeing here at school academically, socially and emotionally while also at the same time partnering with that family so that everyone is on the same page with what is going on at home as well. It truly takes a committed group of individuals to help support each student so that we can provide the best opportunities for them to be successful now and in the future!

The dates of our winter conferences are Feb. 24 and 28. Families will have the option to attend the 30-minute conference either in-person or virtually — either way, our goal is to meet with 100% of our families because we know the importance of that school-to-home connection. If the day and time conflict with your schedule, please be sure to call our office and we can work with you to find a time that will accommodate you. Your child’s conference day/time will be sent home mid-February.

We hope that you have had multiple conversations with our teachers at this point, but if it has been minimal, here are a few tips that will help you feel prepared:

• Prior to the meeting, check in with your child(ren) to ask how they are doing in school with each subject. This will give you a good sense of how your child(ren) are feeling about the class or subjects in order to follow up during the meeting.

• If there are any questions or concerns that your child(ren) brings up, you will want to bring that concern to the conference so the question or concern can be addressed for clarity moving forward.

• If you have any questions going into the conference, you can write them down or put them into your phone to remember to discuss. This will help you receive further information than what the teacher will discuss with you so that you feel comfortable knowing that your child(ren) are growing as learners here at school!

• During the conference, know that your time is important but teachers also only have 30 minutes to work with each family on that day. If you need more time, the teacher is able to schedule more time on another day to follow up and/or finish the meeting.

• Finally, when you get home or the next day, talk with your child(ren) about what you discussed and share the positive feedback that was shared. This will hopefully reinforce to them that you are proud of their school efforts and that you value how the school and family are partnering together to benefit them as they grow!  

The main thing to remember is that we both have the same goal in mind and that is to help support your child(ren) to be successful in school and life in order to be engaged citizens and lifelong learners! We look forward to seeing as many of you in-person as possible later in February as I know at Hawthorne we will also have our Scholastic Book Fair happening as well for students and families to possibly purchase new books!

John Mahal is principal of Hawthorne Elementary School.