Behavior Meetings

Why should I do it:

Provides constant, updated, and relevant information for managing behaviors in school and at home

Helps provide valuable data and information on updating behavior plans, functional behavior assessments, and other behavior modifications and interventions

Keeps home and school on the same page

Prevents students from telling their parents one thing and the school another, pitting the two against one another

Forces disengaged and inactive parents into the behavior planning and intervention process and helps make parents more responsible for addressing the student’s behavior(s), including following through with consequences and rewards

When students are age appropriate and involved in meetings, they tend to take interventions more seriously, feel included, and are held directly responsible from the parties involved

When students are age appropriate and involved in meetings, they cannot spin stories, lie, or pit school and home against one another as easily

Provides immediate or real-time feedback and plan development or alteration

Everyone involved tends to feel more responsible for implementing interventions when it is discussed in person with school and home parties at the table

Avoids confusion, misunderstandings, conflicts, etc

When should I do it:

When a student is at Tier III, regular and consistent behavior meetings are absolutely essential and necessary

Behavior meetings should be considered strongly for Tier II students as well

How do I do it:

Develop a formal or informal agenda for the meeting

Politely state the expectations for conduct during the meeting, like no swearing at one another, yelling, rudeness, etc, and explain that if someone becomes too disruptive, they may step out for a moment to gather themselves, but if the issue continues, the meeting will be adjourned and rescheduled

Try to remain on topic, addressing all the major and most important points

Set time limits for the meeting, adjourning if it runs too long and setting a day and time to continue the meeting

Have tissues available, water, etc

Have all relevant parties present, like teacher, social worker, counselor, administrator, parent, guardian, etc

Keep notes of the meeting, emailing or sending them out to all participants

Have a sign in sheet to note who is in attendance

Have all relevant documents ready with a copy for each person at the meeting, like behavior plans, student contracts, functional behavior assessments, data tracking forms, etc

If someone becomes overly emotional, adjourn the meeting and set a day and time to resume

Always use a calm and neutral tone with parents to avoid instigating conflicts, reminding all school staff to do the same

Always highlight something positive about the student

Resources & Support for technique:

How to Deal with Ramblers, Bores, Show-Offs and Other People Who Sabotage Your Meetings

Are You Dealing With A Meeting Bully?

Conducting Effective Parent/Teacher Conferences

Education World: Meeting With the Parents — Making the Most of Parent-Teacher Conferences

Dealing With Angry Parents

Dealing With Difficult Parents

Delivering difficult news to parents: guidelines for school counselors

Surviving the Difficult Parent-Teacher Conference