BACK TO SCHOOL

TEACHER COMMUNICATION
TOOLKIT  
 Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit
Welcome back to school!
This toolkit is intended to provide K-12 teachers useful resources that will kick off the school year
with great ways to build relationships with parents through proactive communication.

Strong teacher-parent communication is a key way to increase parent engagement, which is

critical to student achievement. Through proactive communication, teachers can establish a
welcoming and positive first touchpoint with parents, provide key classroom information, set
expectations and set the course for ongoing two-way communication with parents.

This Back to School Communication Toolkit includes the following:

•   Welcome back letter and phone message templates
•   Teacher-parent newsletter template (which can be used in a printed or emailed
format)
•   Back to School Night presentation template: What to, what not to include
•   Effective teacher website content
•   Time saving tips and communication do’s and don’ts
•   Communication inventory

Plan ahead and set aside a little time each week to focus on communication. Time invested in
proactive communication at the beginning of the school year equates into time savings, increased
parent engagement and improvements in student success over the long term. The templates in
this toolkit can be customized according to your own needs or personal style—they are intended
to be a guide for you to develop your own back to school communication approach.

Primary Grades Versus Secondary Grades: Communication with Parents

In primary grades, parents rely heavily on teacher communication because younger students may
have challenges accurately communicating information shared by their teacher with their parents.
Clear communication about assignments and upcoming projects—along with resources—can go a
long way in ensuring that parents can help facilitate a successful home learning environment to
assist their child with successful completion of homework and projects.

Typically, teacher to parent communication declines in the secondary grades, as students in

secondary grades become personally responsible for keeping track of assignments and projects.
Yet, regular communication with parents is a great way to ensure that parents know what
assignments their child is working on, resources that their child can use to be successful, and what
to expect.

The bottom line: Strong teacher-parent communication retains parents as

partners in their child’s educational success.

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Welcome Back to School Email/Letter Template

Tips for Success

Find out whether parents are using email, or if a printed letter sent home on the
first day of school would reach parents more effectively.

If you are sending this via email, send it to parents a few days before school
starts.

Ensure that your email/letter is translated into the prevalent languages at your
school.

Dear Parents,

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you and your child to classroom {number} at
{school name}! We are looking forward to meeting your child on the {first day of school} day and to
seeing all parents at Back to School Night on {day, date, and time}.

Please spend some time over the weekend (with your child) getting familiar with the {school
website-be sure to hyperlink the website} including my website {also hyperlink}. Please find the
class supply list attached to this email.

We recommend creating an email folder for any communication you have with your child's
teachers throughout the year. This will make it easier to go back to quickly refer to previous
communications. Also, I recommend setting up a filing system at home for your child's classwork.
If the papers are kept then your child can access them throughout the year.

Have a great weekend, and if you have any questions, please do not to hesitate to contact me by
emailing me or calling me at {telephone number}. I typically respond to emails and phone calls
within 24-48 hours.

Sincerely,
{Your Name}

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Welcome Back to School Message

Tips for Success

Primary teachers: A personal phone call to each parent in your class will be
greatly appreciated by your students and parents!

Secondary teachers: A welcome back email to parents may be more feasible

than a phone call, but you can choose 1-2 students each week and make a
positive phone call home. This is a great way to quickly build relationships with
families!

It’s okay to leave a message on voicemail—remember to smile while you are

speaking, because your voice will be instantly warmer!

Be aware of which households do not speak English and work with a translator
on making calls to those parents.

Sample message-can be sent via email or voicemail:

Hello, {parent’s name}, this is Mr./Ms. {your last name} and I would like to welcome your child
{name} to my class this year! I hope that you have had a wonderful summer! I am looking forward
to meeting your son/daughter on {day, date of first day of school} in room {number}. If you need a
copy of the class supply list, you can download it from my website at {URL}. Otherwise, I will be
sending a supply list home on the first day of school. Also, I wanted to invite you to Back to School
Night on {day, date, time}. Thank you, and I look forward to seeing {child’s name} on the first day of
school!

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Teacher Parent Newsletter Template

Tips for Success:

A weekly newsletter sent to parents will help provide them the information
about what curriculum you are covering, assignments and any other important
upcoming dates.

Find out whether parents are using email or if a printed newsletter sent home
with students would reach parents more effectively.

Ensure that your email/letter is translated into the prevalent languages at

your school

Include testing dates, holidays (and other non-school days), and schedule
changes during the school year, as relevant.

Provide links (or attached handouts) with information that will help parents
assist their child with their assignments, homework tips, and more.

Keep your newsletter simple and brief, and limit to one page—if you are
printing the newsletter, you can find some great (and free) templates online
(Pinterest has a number of links to fun templates!). Including classroom
pictures is a nice personal touch.

Remember to save your newsletters in a folder (either in your email or on your

desktop) so that you can re-use the content next year!
 

Primary Grades-Content Outline Secondary Grades-Content Outline

Week of: Week of:

What we are Learning (break down by subject What we are Learning (break down by topic
area): area):
Birthdays (and a reminder of how you Books we are reading (if applicable):
celebrate birthdays in your classroom): Suggestions for Extended Learning at Home:
Books we are reading: Important Dates/School Events:
Suggestions for Extended Learning at Home: Other:
Important Dates/School Events:
Other:

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Sample Classroom Newsletter- Primary Teachers
MRS. SMITH’S CLASSROOM NEWSLETTER-WEEK OF AUGUST 10-17, 2017
Dear Families,
Hope you had a great weekend! This is our 1st email newsletter of the school year! We had a great
start to our week and are settling into our schedule and routines.
WHAT WE ARE LEARNING
Language Arts
•   Today we took our 1st spelling pretest. There was a letter that went home with the students
today explaining our spelling program in our class. Please let me know if you have any
questions. Our spelling tests are on Fridays.
•   Reviewed nouns and will learn this week what a common and proper noun are.
•   Narrative Writing- this is our focus this trimester. Currently we are reading stories together
and using graphic organizers to understand how the characters, setting, plot, and problem in
the story are developed.
Math
•   This week we are continuing topic 1 on Numeration. We are working on finding numbers on a
number line and rounding numbers this week.
•   On Tuesday taking a tour of the math website on our Chromebooks. Students will come home
with their username and log in directions for the math website.
Social Studies
•   Citizenship, rights and responsibilities
•   3 Branches of Government
Suggested for Extended Learning at Home:
Language Arts: Review spelling words with your child and the differences between a common
(city, planet, person, etc.) and proper noun (names given to nouns-Folsom, Jupiter, John)
Math: Review the number line handout with your child (attached with this email).
Social Studies: Review the three branches of government with your child-legislature (House and
Senate), executive (President), judiciary (Supreme Court)
What We are Reading: We are reading Where the Red Fern Grows in class. Please remind your child
to read for 30 minutes each evening in his/her own book.
August Birthdays: Happy birthday to Lily M., Hayden M., Makenna E., and Roxy W.! We will have
our birthday brunch/celebration at the end of the month—more information will be sent home
next week.
Other News
•   Please let me know if you do not want your email, phone number etc. shared with our
homeroom parents or other classroom volunteer organizers.
•   I will be sending out a volunteer sign up for teachers and classroom prep for this month, and
contacting those who volunteered for specific jobs in our classroom. Thank you!
•   I am available before school from 7-8 a.m. and after school from 3-4 p.m. if you would like to
call or meet with me. I can be reached at {telephone number, extension, email address}.
Important Dates/School Events:
•   Thursday, August 22, 6-7 p.m.: Back to School Night
•   Friday, August 23: Minimum Day-students will be released at 1 p.m.
Sincerely, Mr./Ms. {your name}
Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit
 
 Sample Classroom Newsletter- Secondary Teachers
MRS. SMITH’S CLASSROOM NEWSLETTER-WEEK OF AUGUST 10-17, 2017

Dear Parents:

Welcome again to Room {number}! I hope your child has had a great start to the school year.

WHAT WE ARE LEARNING: ALGEBRA & NOTE TAKING

This week we are focusing on note-taking and our first algebra unit. I provide a lot of focus on
note-taking in math. It is very important that your child takes notes with me as I teach each
lesson. If they don’t take good notes then it may be harder to look back for help for the homework
and quizzes. Also, the notes will be very helpful for “open notes” quizzes. I have attached a copy of
the notes we have taken so far.

SUGGESTIONS FOR EXTENDED LEARNING AT HOME:

Please compare your child’s notes with mine to see that everything is being written down. I will
also send copies of all notes at the end of our first chapter (chapter 3). If your child is absent,
please email me and I will send you a copy of the notes.

Second, all homework assignments are expected to be completed and ready for checking the next
school day. Your child will keep the pages in their workbook so they don’t get lost or ripped (too
much). All students will be asked daily if their homework is completely finished and I will make a
note of that in my grade book. If you see any classwork/homework assignment
on PowerSchool that shows an “I” (incomplete) or an “M” (missing), your child did not receive
credit for that assignment. If you see a “1”, your child received half credit because the assignment
was late. If you see a “2”, then your child received full credit for that homework assignment. If
there is ever a discrepancy on PowerSchool, please remind your child to come and talk with me as
soon as possible. Homework assignments are listed on my website by your child’s period.

There is a lot of extra practice your child can do to help them with the math. They can practice at
home anytime on i-ready.com. They can also print many extra practice worksheets from
the California Math website. Any extra practice your child completes can be checked with me in
class to see that they are understanding the math.

IMPORTANT DATES/SCHOOL EVENTS:

I look forward to seeing everyone next Thursday, August 25 at 6:00 p.m. at Back to School Night.

OTHER INFORMATION:
I will also now be available after school for help. If your child is needing extra help they can now
stay after school for a bit or they can still pop in before school as early as 8:00 a.m.

Sincerely,
Mr./Ms. {Your Name}

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Back to School Night-Presentation & Communication

Tips for Success

Prepare: A well-prepared and thoughtful back to school presentation will help

facilitate a professional and effective approach to sharing this information and is
something that you can send to parents following back to school night or post on
your website (for parents who were unable to attend).

Communicate: Communicating before and after Back to School Night will help
reinforce the information you shared and relationship-building with parents.

Inform: Focus on providing information that will engage parents as partners in

their child’s education. Therefore, avoid providing a lot of background
information on things like Common Core (except to explain what its intended
outcomes are), historical information, or other information that is too detailed.

Keep it Succinct: You have a short amount of time (usually 10-15 min) for your
presentation, and by that time of the day, parents usually have an even shorter
attention span! Limit each presentation slide to 3 bullet points of one sentence
each.

A sample presentation is included with this toolkit so that you can easily customize the
information for your Back to School Night (BTSN) presentation. An outline of the information is
provided below, along with pre- and post- BTSN communication letters that you can send to
parents.

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Back to School Night Presentation Outline
Introduction: Share information about your background.

Communication/How to Reach Me: Provide information about how you and the school will
communicate with parents and how (and when) parents can communicate with you.

Preparing Your Child for Success: Provide an explanation about the importance of sleep,
providing a supportive (and quiet) homework/reading environment, and support for times when
their child is frustrated.

Overview of Curriculum: Provide 2-3 bullet points each that summarize each area of the
curriculum, how students will be assessed, and what students may be working on day to day.

Overview of Your Approaches to Learning: This is where you can provide information about your
amazing approaches to learning in the classroom, whether it’s project-based learning,
personalized/independent learning, etc.

Daily Schedule: Sample of your daily classroom schedule.

Special Projects: Summary of special projects students will do in and outside the classroom
(specify this) during the school year. Explain what parents should expect with the take home
projects.

Field Trips (if applicable): Summary of field trips, including requested donations for field trips, and
potential chaperone needs (you can always explain that you will take volunteer sign ups later).

Report Cards: Overview of report cards and whether you plan on holding student/teacher
conferences. This is a good time to provide an overview of the online grading system, as well.
Grading Policy: Overview of your grading policy (if applicable).

Homework Policy: Overview of your homework policy.

Additional Notes about Homework: This is where you can note whether students should be
more/less independent with homework, how to contact you about homework questions/concerns,
etc.
Parent Volunteers (if applicable): Provide a listing of what types of volunteers you need for your
classroom this year.

Birthday Celebrations Description (if applicable): Provide a description of your classroom’s

monthly birthday brunch (or celebration)

Positive Behavior Approaches and Discipline: Overview of your school’s/district’s and your own
positive behavior approaches and classroom discipline. Refer to Student Rights and
Responsibilities document for additional info.

Absences & Illnesses Procedure: Explain how you will handle independent study requests,
homework for students who are ill, etc.

Questions & Conclusion

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Back to School Night Sample Invitation Letter

Hi, Families,

Back to School Night is coming up on August 15th! I am looking forward to meeting all of the
parents of the incredible students in Room {number}. {School Name}’s PTA will have food trucks
before the Principal’s Message in the multipurpose room at 6 p.m. Then, at 6:30 p.m. K-2 parents
will visit their children’s classrooms, and at 7 p.m., 3-5 grade families can visit their classrooms. I
will provide an overview of what we will be doing in class this year and answer any questions that
you have.

I am looking forward to seeing you on August 15th! Please contact me if you have any questions.

Sincerely,
Mr./Ms. {Your Name}

Back to School Night Sample Thank You Letter

Hi Families,

Thank you so much for coming last night. I am excited to have your child in my class and for the
school year ahead. Enclosed is the PowerPoint from last night. I know there was a lot of
information, so I will be sending out more communication in the coming weeks as we settle into
our routines.

Today I will be sending home information I received from the office to those who either need to
create a Powerschool account or have not logged into an existing account recently. If you could
take some time to read through the information and make sure that you have logged into this and
your child is set up, that would be great!

At the beginning of next week, I will send out a volunteer sign up link and contact those who have
volunteered for the regular volunteer jobs and touch base with you. I will also send out our first
classroom email news. I use email for most of my communication, so if there is a different email
address you want me to use, please let me know. I am using the email addresses that you indicated
you wanted used for communication on the green student information sheet that went home the
first day of school.

Thank you, and have a wonderful weekend!

Sincerely,
Mr./Ms. {Your Name}

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Effective Website Content
We are in the communication age—as such, most people will first seek to find information online.
Websites are an excellent way to provide information to parents in a 24-7 format, which saves you
time in the long run.

Websites can be a natural extension of your classroom where worksheets can be downloaded,
homework information can be posted, reminders and important dates are available, and more.

Tips for Success

Keep your content updated—this will encourage parents to visit more

frequently.

Use images and photos to bring life to your website.

Let your personality shine through on your website, but balance this with
professionalism.

Clearly communication information in a succinct and easy-to-find format.

Website Content Outline

Welcome message (on home page) Grade and Homework Policies
Classroom Wish List Clearly labeled assignments (and
Student Supply List downloadable assignments, where
Back to School Night Presentation (saved possible). Secondary teachers: organize
as a pdf so it can be downloaded) this by periods/courses
Parent Teacher Conference Information Important Dates/Events
Daily Schedule Link to School Calendar
Classroom Policies and Expectations Resources (based on the subjects you
Teacher Newsletters: Your website is a teach)
great place to keep an archive of these for Helpful Websites
the year so parents can easily re-locate the
information

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Social Media

Social media is one of the most popular communication tools for teachers, parents and students.
Given its real-time functionality, ability to post pictures and to reach many people at once, social
media is quick, easy and accessible.

However, in recent years, many teachers have come under fire (and have actually been fired) due
to unprofessional—and sometimes inappropriate—social media content.

There are a few steps that you can take with your social media account to keep yourself out of hot
water as a new teacher, and still maintain your social media presence.

Tips for Success

Read and understand your district’s social media policy.

Avoid friending or accepting friend requests from parents or students.

Untag your name and delete any photos that could be construed as
unprofessional. These include, but are not limited to photos that include:
alcoholic drinks, skimpy clothing, photos involving inappropriate gestures or
actions. And yes, this includes college and other “pre-“ professional pictures.

Set your social media settings to restrict others from tagging you.

Do not post pictures of your students on social media.

Avoid venting about your profession on social media, including using quotes
that could be construed as complaining.

Remember, everything on social media is public, even if your settings are private.
A good rule of thumb: If you don’t want it to show up on the news, don’t post it!

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Time Saving Tips & Communication Do’s and Don’ts
Repurpose information: Your back to school night presentation? It contains most of the content
that you can use on your website. Re-use information wherever you can—there is no need to
reinvent the wheel.

Use technology to provide a single communication platform: There are several single
communication platforms that provide a “social media”-like environment for teachers and parents
to communicate with each other, share pictures, news, etc. ParentSquare, Bloomz, Simply Circle,
Snapp School, Hubbli, and Remind are examples of a few. Check with your Principal and/or IT
department to see if your school already has a communication platform for teachers to use with
parents.

Avoid communicating too much: If you find yourself hitting the “Send” button several times a day,
you’re communicating too much…and wasting precious time! Few parents enjoy receiving 5 emails
per day from their teacher or PTA leader. Like the boy who cried wolf too many times, you’ll find
yourself not being able to reach people when you really need them. They’ll start tuning out your
messages. If you have a lot to say, try combining your requests or updates into a single email or
newsletter.

Keep in mind that parents of younger students may prefer more frequent communication (like
once per day), but parents of older students (second grade and up) may prefer less frequent
communication. Parents of middle and high school students may be fine with once to twice per
month communication.

Communicate consistently: Choose the same day each week and time to send communication
pieces to parents. When you communicate regularly and consistently, parents are “conditioned” to
expect your communication email on Mondays at 3 pm, and they are more likely to open your
emails. That translates into higher parent engagement for you. This also ensures that you are
conditioning yourself to send out your communication pieces each week.

One hour of preparation=is several hours of time saved: Set up your newsletter template and
save it in an easy to locate file (use Google Drive in case you decide to work on your newsletter
from home) so that you can fill it out each week. Set up reminders in your calendar for working on
your newsletter and other communication pieces.

Avoid mistakes: Double check your spelling, punctuation and grammar before sending your
communication pieces. You want to best reflect yourself as a competent, professional, and
qualified educator to your parents.

Translate communication pieces: Some of the hardest to reach parents are those who don’t share
a common language with the teacher. However, trust and relationship building can be
strengthened through translated communication pieces.

Avoid setting up a “reply to all” situation: Clogged in boxes aren’t appreciated by most people,
and to avoid causing this problem (for yourself and parents) the best way to prevent this is to put
your email address in the “To” section and everyone else’s email addresses in the “BCC” section.

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
 Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory

Purpose

This Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory is designed to provide you with some
insights into your communication strengths and potential areas for development. By answering
each question candidly, you will receive a profile that displays your level of competence in four
key communication areas. This inventory is intended to be viewed only by the individual who
completes it.

How to Complete the Inventory

To complete this inventory, read each statement carefully and honestly assess how often the
particular statement applies to you. For instance, in Section I - question number 1, if you
sometimes find it difficult to talk to other people, you would place a check mark in the
"Sometimes" column for question number 1. And for question 2, if others often tend to finish
sentences for you when you are trying to explain something; you would check the "Usually"
column and so on until you have completed all questions in all four sections of the inventory.

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 
Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory-Section I

USUALLY SOMETIMES SELDOM

1. Is it difficult for you to talk to other
people?
2. When you are trying to explain some-
thing, do others tend to put words in your
mouth, or finish your sentences
for you?
3. In conversation, do your words usually
come out the way you would like?
4. Do you find it difficult to express your
ideas when they differ from the ideas of
people around you?
5. Do you assume that the other person
knows what you are trying to say, and
leave it to him/her to ask you
questions?
6. Do others seem interested and attentive
when you are talking to them?
7. When speaking, is it easy for you to
recognize how others are reacting to
what you are saying?
8. Do you ask the other person to tell you
how she/he feels about the point you are
trying to make?
9. Are you aware of how your tone of
voice may affect others?
10. In conversation, do you look to talk
about things of interest to both you and
the other person?

SCORE: SECTION I TOTAL

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory-Section II

USUALLY SOMETIMES SELDOM

11. In conversation, do you tend to do
more talking than the other person
does?
12. In conversation, do you ask the
other person questions when you don’t
understand what they’ve said?
13. In conversation, do you often try to
figure out what the other person is
going to say before they’ve finished
talking?
14. Do you find yourself not paying
attention while in conversation with
others?
15. In conversation, can you easily tell
the difference between what the person
is saying and how he/she may
be feeling?
16. After the other person is done
speaking, do you clarify what you
heard them say before you offer a
response?
17. In conversation, do you tend to finish
sentences or supply words for the other
person?
18. In conversation, do you find yourself
paying most attention to facts and
details, and frequently missing the
emotional tone of the speakers’
voice?
19. In conversation, do you let the
other person finish talking before
reacting
to what she/he says?
20. Is it difficult for you to see things
from the other person’s point of
view?

SCORE: SECTION II TOTAL

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory-Section III
USUALLY SOMETIMES SELDOM
21. Is it difficult to hear or accept
constructive criticism from the
other person?
22. Do you refrain from saying some-
thing that you think will upset
someone or make matters worse?
23. When someone hurts your feelings,
do you discuss this with him/her?
24. In conversation, do you try to put
yourself in the other person’s
shoes?
25. Do you become uneasy when
someone pays you a compliment?
26. Do you find it difficult to disagree
with others because you are afraid
they will get angry?
27. Do you find it difficult to
compliment or praise others?
28. Do others remark that you
always seem to think you are right?
29. Do you find that others seem to
get defensive when you disagree with
their point of view?
30. Do you help others to understand
you by saying how you feel?

SCORE: SECTION III TOTAL

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory-Section IV
USUALLY SOMETIMES SELDOM
31. Do you have a tendency to change the
subject when the other person’s feelings
enter into the discussion?
32. Does it upset you a great deal when
someone disagrees with you?
33. Do you find it difficult to think clearly
when you are angry with someone?
34. When a problem arises between you and
another person, can you discuss it
without getting angry?
35. Are you satisfied with the way you
handle differences with others?
36. Do you sulk for a long time when
someone upsets you?
37. Do you apologize to someone whose
feelings you may have hurt?
38. Do you admit that you’re wrong when
you know that you are/were wrong about
something?
39. Do you avoid or change the topic if
someone is expressing his or her feelings in a
conversation?
40. When someone becomes upset, do you
find it difficult to continue the
conversation?

SCORE: SECTION IV TOTAL

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 Interpersonal Communication Skills Inventory Scoring Key
Instructions: Go back and look over your responses to each question. In front of each question, write
the appropriate score using the table below.

For example, if you answered “Seldom” to Question 1, you would get 3 points. Write the number 3 in
front of Question 1 on the inventory. Proceed to score all other questions.

Each section contains 10 questions. After scoring all questions, go back to Section 1. Total the score
of Section 1 and put that number on the line “Score Section 1 Total.” Proceed to total all scores for all
other sections.

Enter your score here:

SCORING KEY

Quest. # Usually Sometimes Seldom Quest. # Usually Sometimes Seldom

1 0 1 3 21 0 1 3
2 0 1 3 22 3 1 0
3 3 1 0 23 3 1 0
4 0 1 3 24 3 1 0
5 0 1 3 25 0 1 3
6 3 1 0 26 0 1 3
7 3 1 0 27 0 1 3
8 3 1 0 28 0 1 3
9 3 1 0 29 0 1 3
10 3 1 0 30 3 1 0
11 0 1 3 31 0 1 3
12 3 1 0 32 0 1 3
13 0 1 3 33 0 1 3
14 0 1 3 34 3 1 0
15 3 1 0 35 3 1 0
16 3 1 0 36 0 1 3
17 0 1 3 37 3 1 0
18 0 1 3 38 3 1 0
19 3 1 0 39 0 1 3
20 0 1 3 40 0 1 3

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 Interpersonal Communication Profile
Interpretation: Look at your score for each section as one indication of the degree to which you
effectively communicate. Plot your scores on the table below using an “X” for each section score.
Draw a line to connect them column to column. This will create a profile of your strengths and
opportunities for improvement.
Scores in the 1 > 15 range indicate areas of your communication skills that need improvement.
Scores in the 16 > 21 range indicate areas of communication skills that need more consistent
attention.
Scores in the 22 > 30 range indicate areas of strength or potential strength.
Area (s) of Strength:
Area (s) of Improvement:

Score Section I Total Score Section II Total Score Section III Total Score Section IV Total
Sending Clear Messages Listening Giving and Getting Handling Emotional
Feedback Interactions
30 30 30 30
29 29 29 29
28 28 28 28
27 27 27 27
26 26 26 26
25 25 25 25
24 24 24 24
23 23 23 23
22 22 22 22
21 21 21 21
20 20 20 20
19 19 19 19
18 18 18 18
17 17 17 17
16 16 16 16
15 15 15 15
14 14 14 14
13 13 13 13
12 12 12 12
11 11 11 11
10 10 10 10
9 9 9 9
8 8 8 8
7 7 7 7
6 6 6 6
5 5 5 5
4 4 4 4
3 3 3 3
2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1

Back to School Teacher Communication Toolkit

 Interpersonal Skills Inventory-Resources for Success

If you would like to find ways to continue to strengthen or improve upon your interpersonal
communication skills, please find some valuable online, video and book resources, below.

Online Resources

Guidelines for Effective Interpersonal Communication -Dartmouth University:

www.dartmouth.edu/~ombuds/resources/communication.html

Effective Techniques to Improve Interactions: https://hms.harvard.edu/departments/ombuds-

office/guidelines-interpersonal-communication/effective-techniques-improve-interactions

Emotions and Communication:

https://facweb.northseattle.edu/jreis/transformations/emotions_and_communication.htm

Active Listening (includes a video): https://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/ActiveListening.htm

Mindful Listening: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/mindful-listening.htm

Books

Interpersonal Communication: Relating to Others, 7th Edition

Authors: Steven A. Beebe, Susan J. Beebe, Mark V. Redmond
ISBN-9780205862733

The Tactful Teacher: Effective Communication with Parents, Colleagues, and Administrators
Author: Yvonne Bender
ISBN- 0974934437

A Teacher's Guide to Communicating with Parents: Practical Strategies for Developing Successful
Relationships
Authors: Tina Taylor Dyches, Nari J. Carter, and Mary Anne Prater
ISBN-0137054068

Videos  
 
Understanding  Communication  Skills:  
https://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/CommunicationIntro.htm  
 

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