conferences

i remember being so nervous before my mom went in for a parent conference in elementary school. i don't know why, i was the most shy person in the school. all my teachers loved me. just one of those things i suppose that you think your supposed to feel nervous about. i would hound her the minute she got home. she said the same thing everytime. "your teacher says your doing good, and enjoys having you in class." and every year i would feel sooo relieved as if i had anything to worry about in the first place.

being on the other side of the desk now, i still get so nervous before parent conferences. there are certain parents that you are always unsure of how they will react to any hint of criticism toward their child. there are also the parents who always seem to be evaluating you or like to ask exactly how you plan to challenge their little einstein. those are the meetings i dread. yesterday for example i thought i was going to lose it waiting for one certain mom to arrive. my stomach was turning as the minutes passed ever so slowly. the child we were meeting over is an angel! i love her being in my class. but the few times i've caught her mom after school she has been very short with me and non-approachable. after almost revisiting my microwaved lunch from earlier in the day, it turns out that she's just really shy and passive. the conference went really well. usually, after each conference ends, i feel that same relief i would get after hearing from my mom that i was doing good in school. i always wonder if my students hound their parents as soon as they arrive home, and what their parents tell them. so i always try to say one super nice thing about each of them as their parents leave, hoping the last thing i say will be fresh in their minds when they are faced with that question.