When it comes to teaching children, you’re expected to work with parents as well. Oftentimes, parents may have expectations or goals for their children, whether they be disciplinary, physical, or otherwise. Therefore, it’s important to keep parents apprised of your students’ progress, letting them know how their children are doing in your martial arts classes. You can do this through report cards but a far more personal method of conveying this information is through parent-teacher meetings.
Here’s why you should be holding regular parent-teacher meetings.
In addition to wanting their children to have fun in your martial arts classes and garner all the positive effects of practicing martial arts, parents may have certain expectations about what you are or should be teaching their children. Every child has unique needs and parents expect teachers to see the same in their kids. Through meeting those needs and demonstrating to the parents that you are giving their children close attention, you can help impact their decision to keep their kids at your martial arts school.
It may also be a good initial step to lay out what parents should expect, in case they have unrealistic or misinformed assumptions about the practice of martial arts. Make them aware of the core ethos of your school and what they should know about classes, the likely impact on students, and how you might differ from what they’ve heard about martial arts training for kids.
Parents know their children best. After all, they have years of experience dealing with them, understanding their interests, and what motivates them. The parents will also have insights on any sensitivities or problems that the child may have that currently affects their practice. Getting this invaluable information from the parents and using it to modify your instructions can help your students perform much better. This, in turn, will show the parents that you have a keen interest in their children’s well-being and progress.
In the event that you have a student who needs a little bit more attention, becoming allies with their parents can help you further support your student. Together, you can provide opportunities to give that student further self-confidence and self-discipline, while at home and at your martial arts school, whether it’s through encouraging private lessons or pairing them with a partner that can help improve their shortcomings. Through having a good relationship with the parents, you can give your students positive reinforcement that will reflect on their performance.
Having a great working relationship with the parents of your students can take a while to build, but at the end of the day, they can be very beneficial for both your school and your students. Through holding parent-teacher meetings, you can tackle any challenges that your students may have alongside their parents.
You can hold meetings that are more organic in nature or create a list of points you would like to address, while you meet with the parents. It’s also important to anticipate what sort of questions your students’ parents may ask. This can help keep your meeting on track and also demonstrate that you are thoughtful about the performance of your students.