Parent/Kid Conferences

Rick and I held our "conferences" with the kids last night. We called them into our rooms one at a time to make it official. We spoke with each of them about their favorite and least favorite things about school. That allowed us a glimpse into their days and their hearts. We told them what their teachers said. If we had paperwork or testing scores, we went over those and gave our comments. We expressed to them how proud we are of their character and how that is way more important to us than any grade they could make. Each teacher had given us examples of situations our kids have been in and how they responded. We shared those with the kids and shared with them our joy in how they are living out the mission of our family to love and care for others. We took any areas of concern and shared those with the kids. We brainstormed with them on how to improve in those areas and assured them that we are committed to making them successful. We asked each of them the question, "Is there anything about school that we don't know that you want us to know?" That was enlightening at times. It gave them the open door to share something they might be hesitant to share otherwise. We ended the time by Rick and I praying over each child.

We had a chance to focus on each child individually. This is something that is difficult in a family with 6 children. I think the kids were encouraged. I hope that our words of encouragement stick with them and empower them when they are struggling. As I tucked him into bed, Sam said, "Mom, can we do that every night?"