School Day Questions

Getting Your Child to Talk About School

Our children spend a majority of their day at school and unfortunately we can not always be there to make sure they are doing well but what we can do is ask them the right questions to see how their day went.
Our goal as a parent is to not show up at the school and sit through your child's day at class everyday but to always be in the loop regarding your children's experiences and keep an open level of communication with them. We all want to know that our child is well taken care of at school and that they get the attention they need as a student while being able to mix well with their peers. Asking your children questions about their school day is imperative to get a sense of how their day was and keep open that level of communication, and if they get into the routine of talking about their day after school then they will be willing and ready to tell you all about school every time they come home.
Though, if you feel that there is some kind of issue at school involving your child then you should call the school or write notes to the teacher to get an explanation from an adult, set up a parent teach conference or go to the school to sit in on the class for the day.
When we ask our children about their day we don't always get the whole picture since children have a way of being vague and can leave out a lot of details or they might not be able to give you a full account, that can make any parent worry. Also, children don't like to be pestered with tons of questions that they don't want to answer and they definitely don't want to feel like they are being interrogated. Here are some tips and question suggestions to start your child talking without making them feel like they are being drilled:


Tips for asking questions:
- Ask about specific events instead of being broad.
- Ask questions that your child will answer in detail instead of a question that can be answered with a yes or no.
- Ask them right after they are home from school so the memories are still fresh and they get in the routine of telling you about their day every day after school.
- Don't be judgmental about what they tell you, this will make them not want to talk to you, instead just listen and if there is an issue address it with them at a later time in the day so that your child does not associate answering questions with getting in trouble, tattling or causing issues.
- Don't pressure your child into answering a question, if they don't want to answer then they wont, move on to another question. If it is a question you want answered eventually then ask them the question at a later time or try again the next day.
- If you feel like your child is getting tired of questions then give them a break and ask them more at a later time.

Here are some suggestions for asking your child how their day has been:
- What was the most interesting thing you learned?

- How would your teachers say the day went?

- If you could have one class be longer/shorter what would it be?

- What was the nicest thing you did for someone today?
- What was the nicest thing someone did for you today?
- Did anything silly happen at school today?
- Did anything sad happen at school today?
- Who did you play with at recess today?
- What game did you play at recess today?
- What are you looking forward to at school tomorrow?
- Do you like your teacher? How would you feel if you had a completely new teacher tomorrow?
- If you could change anything about the way your day was at school today what would it be?