Open House should be an opportunity for parents to see what it's like to work inside your classroom; it should not be about how your classroom is decorated. Yes, kids' work on the walls will give parents an opportunity to see their children's work (which they should be showing their parents at home regularly, but of course, never do), but it doesn't really give them an opportunity to see what goes on. And I think they should see what goes on.
A former colleague of mine used Open House to have parents come in and create with their kids (yes, this is still high school). One year, she had them all making ceramic symbols for whatever unit they were working on; another year, she had the students come in and show their parents how to make the poetry books that they were making in class. While raucous and messy, this really gave parents a sense of what her class was truly like, and it occupied time so that everyone felt either attended to or neglected equally.
Next year I want to do something different. I'll either hold a writing workshop, dividing my time between my seniors and freshmen, or I'll come up with a project at which all can work towards finishing in the time alloted.
To answer your question: because it has become an untenable situation for me. No matter how many encounters I have that are satisfactory, Open House shouldn't be a time that I station myself in my room and wait for parents to come compliment me. Nor should it be a time for individual pep talks to parents and students, even if they are supportive and complimentary. Because something like this should not be popping up in my email:
...we stood in line for 15 minutes to speak with you. Darling Dear was hearing all the wonderful comments you were making about everyone in front of us. Some of her friends and parents were in line behind us. When it was Darling Dear's turn, I think she expected your comments to be similar in nature. Instead, all of her friends behind her heard about Darling Dear getting better at asking for help. I think she was quite embrassed[sic]/humiliated when we left.Fortunately, the email ends on a better note. Darling Dear's parent concedes that Open House is not a place for her to conference with her child's teachers. I think I will be able to respond to this email positively, now that I've reread it, and assure Mrs. Dear that I've learned my lesson, too. I can't and I won't change my comments; they were true, honest, and put in a positive way that was meant to be encouraging. But that was not the time nor place, and I can see that now.
Ah, the squirmy twinges of personal growth. How I feel thee! Dratted discomfort!
How does your school (or your child's) run Open House? Any recommendations for a high school classroom?
6 comments:
And THIS is why I don't like Open House at the high school level--it turns into parent conferencing on the fly. (Some schools actually turn it into a night for that purpose, others have eliminated the event altogether.) I like the idea of having interactive opportunities--one of your math teachers does that, too--but everything else about "Open House" is either elementary-school-like, or is a recruiting tool (which your school doesn't need).
Your fiancee doesn't like it? He must be an administrator . . .
I teach 3rd grade so I can't be much help there. I didn't even know they still did such things at the high school level. We don't have open houses at my school, at least not the way I think you do. We did have take your parent to school day though. Rarely do a lot of parents come though, but it's to be expected considering where I work. In fact, that reminds me. I wonder if that's happening this year...
Here is how open house is supposed to run at my school:
-Parents are supposed to arrive on time and follow their child's schedule.
-When parent's come in we are supposed to introduce ourselves and give them an introduction to course and expectations and answer any questions. approx 10 minutes
-when the bell rings the parent is supposed to go to the student's next class.
Here is what really happens:
-parents often arrive late
-parents don't know their child's schedule or the child hasn't written it down for them
-parent is late to first class
-parents expect to make up the ground that they covered b/c they were late, therefore "class time" is often mixed.
-parents expect a mini "conference" and don't want to hear from the teacher that the present environment is not a place to discuss their child.
So my experience is a lot like yours.
Miss A, we have that at the beginning of the year as our back to school. And, yes, it's a lot like that!
Miss A--I have been there, as a parent. You arrive at the Open House (which usually denotes a drop-in sort of event) and realize that the event has a schedule that no one told you about (they just thought everyone knew). Then you realize that you are supposed to know your kid's schedule and where the classes are. Some schools foresee this and actually have someone at a table with schedules. Others either think everyone already knows, or that no one is going to come anyway so why bother. And the one person who is in the office (once you find out that is where you have to go) is overwhelmed by parents trying to do what they are supposed to do. By the time the bell has rung three times (does in only ring when you are suppose to change, or when you are suppose to start the next period), everyone is hopelessly out of synch and lost. Since the teachers usually have no idea why they have asked parents to come in (did they think it would be helpful for us to wander lost around the building?), except that it's in the contract, it seems like a good time to ask a question about how things are going--even though it isn't suppose to be for that.
I really liked OKP's suggestions, because it showed someone really thinking about how this time together could be productive. I keep showing up, year after year (don't want to be accused of being a bad parent), but I sure would love it if one year I had one like he described.
We had a potluck for Open House. We sent out fliers, locked our classroom doors, and met everyone in the cafeteria. It was great! We also had our honor roll recognition. I think it was good to see the students embarrassed and yet pleased by being recognized not only in front of their families and teachers, but also the rest of our community.
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