Making the Most of Parents’ Evening

Parents’ evening is a great opportunity to hear feedback directly from your child’s teachers. However, with so much information shared in a short space of time, it can feel overwhelming and many parents aren’t sure what to ask.

Do not be afraid to ask if you can take notes, whether on your phone or with pen and paper. This helps you capture key points to refer back to later, and makes it easier to share details with your child or other parents/guardians.

Each teacher will have a slightly different format. Some may begin by asking if you have any questions, while others might leave time at the end. A lot of parents say to me, I don’t know what to ask.

These are my 2 key questions that I think can apply to all parents at all ages.

1. What is the one area my child should focus on to make the biggest difference in their performance?

2. What strategies or resources do you recommend to help my child at home?

Extra for SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities): If your child has SEND, or you feel they may have one, parents’ evening is a good time to speak with teachers about reasonable adjustments that could help your child thrive.

Mainstream schools may not be able to offer every form of support, and deploying a dedicated Teaching Assistant is unlikely unless your child has an EHCP (Education, Health and Care Plans). However, there are many simple, cost-free adjustments that can make a big difference to your child’s experience.

Ask the school for their provision map (or equivalent), and explore what’s available that could be easily implemented. It might be something as straightforward as seating your child near the front if they struggle with hearing, or offering a reading or numeracy intervention programme if your child isn’t at their expected level.

Ask for a follow up meeting:

If you feel that there are bigger issues that need to be addressed, you can always ask for a follow up meeting or a check-in at a later date. The teachers are very busy but their priority is helping each child succeed and they can do that better with the support from parents’.

If there is anything you think I have missed out, leave it in the comment below. If you have any questions, feel free to get in contact and I would be happy to answer them.