Tips for Positive Communication with Parents

Parents are an integral part of the special education team. They know the most about their children’s strengths, weaknesses and personal preferences. Therapists and other school staff need to include parents in all decision making for children. Here are some tips on improving your communication with parents:

1. Always start off a conversation stressing a child’s strengths. No one wants to hear only negative comments.

2. Be very specific about your concerns for their child without using any medical terminology.

3. Do not be judgemental. If the child is the firstborn in a family, parents may not always recognize delays in the child’s development.

4. Be patient. You may be the first person to tell the parents that their child may need some extra help. Give them time to digest the information and schedule a time to talk again.

5. Allow plenty of time for questions. Make sure you have the time to address any questions the parent may have. Do not run off to your next scheduled appointment with unanswered questions.

6. Listen! Make sure you listen to the parent’s comment or concerns. They usually have the best insight into their own child.

Keeping the lines of communication open with parents will help your students to achieve their goals!  School and Home Communication Forms for Therapists will save you loads of time. Therapists can review schedules, report on daily or weekly progress, track behavior, review IEP goals, track communication and more. It is suitable for all school based therapists. Parents can request therapist to complete daily or weekly updates especially beneficial for non-verbal children.  Bonus – you can EDIT the forms!

There are 21 forms including:

Therapy Schedule
Therapy Update 1
Therapy Update 2
Therapy Notes
Behavior Form
Teacher Communication Log
Parent/Guardian Communication Log
Weekly Log
Daily Log
Great News
Letter of Concern
Getting to Know You
Pre-IEP Input
Goal Review with Student
Goal Review for Teachers
Goal Review for Parent/Guardian
Therapy Lesson Plan
Communication Checklist
Therapy Survey for Kids
Therapy Satisfaction Survey for Parents/Guardians
Therapy Satisfaction Survey for Teachers

Find out more information at School and Home Communication Forms.  

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