Parents evening questions

[Mumonthehillx]

First time reception parent here. What questions do people usually ask the teacher on parents evening?

We have our second parents evening soon and I really don’t want to come across as a parent who doesn’t care etc.
The last time I went, I just sat there, listened to what the teacher had to say about my son and that was it. I genuinely couldn’t think of anything. Hoping to come up with something this time around.

The teacher should give you a reasonable summary regardless.
If there are particular things you want to know you should ask them. Teachers can sometimes focus more on academics and you may, for example, be interested in how he is settling in socially.

If you can't think of anything to ask a good question is always "how can I support my child at home?"

All through Primary with my 2 I always asked
Are they happy at school and interacting well with the rest of the class?
Is there anything specific we need to be doing at home to support them?
That was it basically

Is there anything they are struggling with?
Is there anything we can do to help them at home (similar to above)?
Do you have any concerns?

I tended to be led by the teacher. Mine didn’t struggle academically so I looked at the positives on that but DDs did need a bit of social advice! We did lots at home and always went to the library for example.

At times I did ask about friendships. I was also fairly keen for DD1 in particular to work with others a bit more co-operatively instead of expecting others to follow her. She is still a leader by nature at the age of 27 but has learned to listen to others. At 5 this was a difficult concept!

Generally I ask about how they are at school. Behaving well or not, listening well or not, happy, joining in, etc.
If teacher isn't saying there are any concerns, that's a good sign your dc is doing well at school.

I avoided behaviour questions as I knew mine were well behaved. Little point in asking about what I already knew. I would have been told if they were poorly behaved. However do find questions that relate to your DC. Not woolly general questions.

One of the things I've always heard is that parents' evening shouldn't hold any surprises. Anything that seriously needs Addressing should have been raised by now.

Simply by being there you're showing that you care.

I echo the question about supporting at home.

Is there anything you've noticed your child struggles with in particular? Mention that as a thing you'd like to exchange impressions of. I was always keen to check on the social aspect (not a strong point for many of the child's family).

I absolutely agree that there should be no surprises. Any poor behaviour or difficulties settling in should have been addressed by now.

Just ask what you can be doing at home to support his learning, if the teacher mentions any problem areas, ask what they would suggest to rectify so you can all be on the same page. Just relax and enjoy hearing about your little ones school journey. I had my DS (year 5) parents evening this afternoon and it’s great to get an insight into the person he is when mum isn’t around lol.

I really don’t want to come across as a parent who doesn’t care etc.

Primary school teacher here. Just by being there, you show that you care. If you don't have any questions, the teacher will just think that you're happy, you're confident that your child is happy and that you don't have any worries. They certainly won't be judging you for it.