By working closely with a teacher, you can become allies in the mutual effort to help your child. Be the Teacher's Friend It is important for you to be able to communicate your concerns to the teacher without engendering hostility. The first step toward good communication is to make an effort to understand the teacher's point of view.

Remember, your child is not the only student in her class. The regular teacher may have 20 or 30 children to worry about. She must manage the classroom and structure lessons and activities. She cares about your child, but there may be other children with equally or more severe learning problems or disruptive children who need to be monitored and limit the amount of attention she can devote to your child.

If you have the time and your school permits it, offer to volunteer in the classroom. Even though you are concerned about your own child's welfare, use your time assisting the teacher to get to know and observe the other children and develop a sense of the classroom dynamics, as well as a typical day's schedule. When you think about accommodations for your own child, ask yourself how these will fit within the environment you observe.

Try to establish a friendly relationship with the teacher. If you cannot volunteer in the classroom, ask the teacher if there are other ways you can help or if she needs any classroom supplies. An inexpensive purchase for the classroom, such as a few reams of binder paper or a extra boxes of pencils, may win the teacher's appreciation. If the teacher's first contacts with you are as an involved and helpful parent, she will be more open to suggestions about your child.