Strong, trusting relationships between teachers and families start with five little words at Belleaire Elementary:
“Tell me about your child.”
Before the first day of school, Belleaire holds “getting to know you conferences.” Parents and families, often with kids in tow, meet with teachers for 15-30 minutes to ask questions and give them more insight into their child—their favorite activities, strengths, any back-to-school jitters.
Principal Nikole Schubauer said the conferences, typically held a few days before the start of the school year, are a welcome alternative to hectic back-to-school nights.
“This is truly parent-led,” Schubauer said. “It helps to make that first contact positive, to help build that teamwork.”
Belleaire, part of Bellevue Public Schools and located just south of Omaha, is one of 10 schools that has adopted the “School as Hub” model under the Superintendents’ Early Childhood Plan.
The Superintendents’ Plan is a collaborative effort of the 11 school districts that make up the Learning Community of Douglas and Sarpy Counties in metro Omaha to develop early childhood programs, especially for children living in poverty. The Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska provides leadership and support for the plan.
The School as Hub concept envisions schools as connection points where families and children can access early childhood education from birth to Grade 3, including home visiting, quality preschool, aligned instruction in the early grades, and family and community engagement activities.
Belleaire serves about 300 kids, 68% of whom qualify for free or reduced lunch. Fifteen percent are English Learners and a number come from military families—Offutt Air Force Base is just 1 mile down the road.
The conferences started eight years ago with incoming Kindergartners.
“It was amazing,” Schubauer said. “The first year I went down on the first day of school and it was almost eerie. I didn’t have parents crying; I didn’t have kids crying.”
The idea was to slowly roll it out to other grades, but the initial response among families and teachers was so enthusiastic that Belleaire quickly implemented the conferences schoolwide. Two more Bellevue elementary schools have since adopted the initiative.
The Buffett Institute and Superintendents’ Plan promote family engagement and recognize the importance of building trust between families and school staff. Numerous studies show that parent participation at school can contribute to young children’s social and academic success. And teachers report greater job satisfaction and morale when they have positive relationships with families.
Andrea Watterson, a first-grade teacher at Belleaire, said allowing kids and families to meet their teacher and visit their classroom ahead of the first day of school makes for a calmer start to the school year.
The families of almost every one of her 19 students showed up for conferences this year. Some kids are shy, others talk her ear off. Outside the school, families snapped photos in front of a “welcome back” sign.
Watterson asks about students’ likes, dislikes, how they’re getting home at the end of the day, what goals parents have for their child. Parents may confide in her about speech issues or separation anxiety or ask questions about bathroom procedures for younger kids.
“I had one parent say, ‘Take care of her. I don’t want to leave her,’” Watterson said.
Because the school year hasn’t even started yet, it’s a great opportunity to discuss more than grades or homework, Schubauer said. Parents are asked about their hopes and dreams for their child or what they want to happen during the upcoming school year.
“A lot of times it’s ‘Well, I want them to have friends,’ ‘I want them to be kind to others,’” Schubauer said. “It's not such an academic focus.”
Interpreters are available for the school’s Spanish-speaking families, and parents can also meet with the school nurse and receive information about the PTA or local health clinics. If families have younger children, staff can connect them with the school’s family facilitator to receive early childhood services.
“A lot of them are so excited to come to school,” Watterson said of her incoming students. “I just love seeing them learn new things and light up.”
Erin Duffy is the managing editor at the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska and writes about early childhood issues that affect children, families, educators, and communities. Previously, she spent more than a decade covering education stories and more for daily newspapers.