5 Ways to Connect With Teachers This School Year

I am in denial. School starts for most of my children in a week and I haven’t even walked down the school supply aisle at Walmart! I enter through the opposite door so that I can’t see it out of my peripheral! I love the slower pace of the summer- late nights, movies, and quiet mornings. As much as I want to pretend like it is the far distance, I know it is here and we had better buckle up and hang on tight for another year. Once it gets started, it is like a freight train running away with me hanging on to the railing of the caboose- flailing in the wind! It gets a little crazy!

Our children are in every kind of school right now- elementary, middle, high school, and even dual enrolled in college. This year alone, we are looking at somewhere around 26 teachers between them all. These teachers will be spending the majority of the day with our kids- teaching, investing, and hopefully inspiring them to grow and mature in many ways.

I have a heart for teachers and have sought to serve them in different capacities over the years- room mom, copy mom, Friday folder mom, PTO president, teacher appreciation, etc. I want to be their ally in the classroom, a person they can depend on for help when they need it. Teachers invest much time and even personal money in their students and I want to be a support to them the best I can. I have also been a teacher and been the recipient of parents who supported my classroom. Partnering with parents for their student’s sake was powerful and we saw great results because we worked together.

If you have children in school of any age, there are some simple things you can do to connect with your teachers. I want to give you a few ideas.

5 Ways to Connect With Teachers

1. Pray for them. Make it a habit to pray for teachers, administrators, and those who have contact with your children. 1 Timothy 2:2 instructs us to pray for those in authority. This would include these men and women in authority over our children. Pray that if they are believers, God will use them to invest in your children. Pray that if they are not believers, you will be the family to introduce them to Jesus. Pray that God would give them wisdom in the classroom to teach and encourage students. Pray for your teachers by name and make this a part of your prayer time each day. Then, let them know often you are praying for them. Knowing you have someone that thinks enough of you to mention you to the Father is a huge encouragement!
2. Trust them. Start your relationship with your teachers with trust, thinking the best of them. We live in a super negative society- a place where it seems like you get more attention for talking about and focusing on the negative. Don’t let this thought pattern seep into your relationships with teachers. Use Philippians 4 as your guide: think about what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. And apply those filters to your thought and words about teachers. The majority of teachers want the very best for their students. They work hard against opposition of parents and policy to provide meaningful learning for their students. Be their advocate and cheerleader and trust them to do their job. When issues do arise, trust their judgement and hear them out before you go on the mama bear attack! It’s hard I know! And when your student has a complaint or accuses the teacher, trust the teacher first. I love my children and I trust them, but I always give the teacher the benefit of the doubt first. They are the authority and I need to respect that. Trust your teachers to do what they do!
3. Talk to them. This follows the last point about having issues in the classroom. They will come. There will be questions over grades, behavior, curriculum, schedules, and so much more. We have had all of those through the years. Always communicate with your teachers. Don’t assume they have it out against your child or have ill-intent toward your family. Assume the best and don’t speculate until you have had a conversation. Don’t circumvent the teacher and go straight to the administrators on classroom issues. Make an appointment, send an email, and use good communication skills with your teachers. What I have learned about being a teacher- it is CRAZY HARD!! You are trying to teach, but have a million other things you are required to do at the same time. Know that teachers will also make mistakes- we all do! Not every judgement call will be perfect and some decisions will be subjective, but start with communication first. Talk to them, not about them.
4. Participate with them. Be an active part of your child’s education. Don’t be an armchair quarterback- sitting there complaining about all of the plays when you are not in the game. Find a way to be involved. Most teachers will NOT turn down help! They will likely not want you up there in their classroom every day or even every week, but let them know you are available and willing. If you work during school hours, do what you can. Help during the extra activities, cut out laminating at home, trim box tops, or send it extra glue sticks when they are running low….and they will! It broke my heart to hear a person in front of me complain about how they send ALL of these school supplies at the beginning of the year and then the teachers ask for more later in the year. One thing is for sure….the teachers aren’t using the glue sticks for scrapbooking at home! If crayons and glue sticks run out, it is because your child is having a great, hands-on experience at school! Be thankful. And just know….there are NEVER enough sanitizing wipes!! 🙂
5. Appreciate them. Teaching can be a lonely and underappreciated occupation. It’s not like kids think to tell the teacher, “thank you for teaching me that lesson on parts of a cell!” That’s where they need you. Appreciation takes many forms and doesn’t require a lot. Appreciate them with your words, send an email, write a quick note, send a small gift. We think of appreciation as a week set aside to shower them with monogrammed gifts. As sweet as that is, appreciation can happen all year long. Heartfelt thanks will go a long way. And for those that don’t have children in school, find a teacher to support and encourage as well.

I hope you have a great school year! Pinterest has great ideas for supporting teachers, but I’m sure you do as well! What have you done to support and encourage teachers? What are some ideas? We would all love to hear from you!

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