Building Relationships

This month's resources were an awesome reminder about interactions with students.  If it is my first interaction with students, I try to remember that school can be stressful and to begin with questions about their interests, etc.  This immediately builds trust and demonstrates that there are adults that care in the building.  When I taught, one of the most effective strategies I used to build relationships with parents (and students) was to call every parent before school started or within the first two weeks of school.  This initial conversation included basic information- who I was, what I was teaching their child, general information about tutoring and communication, and allowed for parent questions.  I found this especially impactful for the parents of students who would be in the building for the first time (6th and 9th).  In addition, it gave me a chance to know a little about the students before they started.  It took about 5 minutes per student, but was a worthwhile investment of my time.