The Balancing Act
- Samantha Whitelaw
- Mar 15
- 3 min read
Hey you! I'm SO freaking excited to be back on this blog with you. I did take a big ol' break from all things online business because life was...well...lifeing. It was sorta my equivalent of taking a mental health day at school. I just needed a whole mental health year (heh).
buuuuuuut, I realized that I really missed writing this blog, reaching educators and moms all over, and helping teachers communicate more confidently. So, I'm BACK and so ready to jump all in with you.
The title says "Balancing Act" and well...that is LITERALLY the life of a teacher mom. One of those expectations connects to something you hear me talk about A LOT: Parent Communication.
So, for today, I want you to keep in mind that all the communication tips, advice, and all of the things that I talk about or that I offer to help with is going to be great for the majority of your stakeholders. However, there’s a caveat to that as there are going to be pockets of people that you will not be able to communicate with the way that you want to; and that is a hard pill to swallow. It's hard for me to even type it but dang it’s true. It is so true.
Now this is not based on any research of any kind or statistical values, (just my 15+ years of experience) but there’s probably going to be one to two unreachable parents a year in your classroom. The parents that will make you want to pull your hair out or cry...or both. You are going to have one every year and I can almost guarantee it. (I know...ahhhhhh!)
You need to remember this: you can’t make everybody happy and that’s a fact. Let me repeat: you can not make everybody happy. As with anything in life, no matter what you do, you can not make everybody happy. You can do all the things that I tell you to do, you can create the best experiences and you’re still going to have that one negative parent that’s like "my child would never and I don’t see these behaviors at my house, you suck as a teacher". (you get it.) You probably have one right now that you're thinking of and it's making your eyes twitch. Trust me, I get it.
These are the 1% of parents that are looking for a fight or they’re looking for somebody to blame. In the end it's not really about you and it never was about you.
These are probably going to be those times when you want an admin or another teacher with you because you’re gonna need back up and support. Never feel bad about asking for support by the way.
My advice Is pretty darn good....and I know this because I've been doing It for quite awhile. Just remember that even the best advice has it's limits and you need to have some too. So, if you've got a parent that makes you want to have an extra glass of wine at night.... you might just need to say "this Is NOT a me problem."
You are not going to make all parents happy and that's the cold, hard truth. You CAN, however, ask for help, and keep your boundaries (which Includes closing your email app after contract hours).
So, go turn off all your notifications and remember that you are doing the best you can. Oh, and if you know a teacher who needs to hear this...forward this to them immediately!
Love, Sam