Here are some things you may want to know about your child:

* Reading ability -- reading level, fluency, comprehension level, phonemic awareness, high frequency word knowledge, sight word knowledge, ability to use different attack skills to decode passages read, letter knowledge.

* Writing ability -- writing level, correct letter formation, legibility, correct spacing between words, follows writing rules, letter reversals.

While there are many other subjects in school, reading and writing ability are used in most of them. If your child is struggling in another area, it may be related to a deficit in the language arts area. It is also important to know your child's reading comprehension level.

Children tend to comprehend on a lower level than they can read. Just because your child is reading on grade level, does not mean he can comprehend what he is reading -- that's very important to know.

* Math ability -- math level, numeral reversals, reading comprehension of math problems, learning style/s, legibility, fluency.

It is very important to know not only if your child can add, subtract, multiply, and divide. It is also important to know if he can apply those facts to assigned work, related work, read the math problems and solve appropriately. Can he use strategies learned to make educated guessed to new materials?

* Behavior -- in the classroom, related arts, lunch, recess, restroom, hallway, field trips, when there has been a guest teacher (substitute), etc.

Please keep an open mind when talking to your child's teacher about his behavior. Many times it is a parent's first reaction to defend the child actions, blame the teacher, blame another child, blame the environment, etc.

If the teacher says that your child is well behaved and there is nothing to worry about, cool. If the teacher says that there are some minor behavior issues, ask what they are. Be open to talking to your child about the behaviors and try to stop them before they become a major problem. If your child's teacher says that there are some major behavior issues, find out what they are and when they occur.

Have an open discussion with the teacher on what you can do as a team to stop them. Reassure the teacher that you support them and you want what is best for your child and do what is necessary to ensure your child's behavior improves.

Let me explain. When I was in school, not too terribly long ago, a child did what the teacher asked -- the first time he was asked. If not, the child got punished -- often paddled (that would be me in second grade because I couldn't sit down and keep my mouth shut). Then, when I got home my mom would paddle me. When my dad got home, guess what? Yeah, paddled again.

That is not what I am suggesting. My point is that teachers often have to ask more than once, twice, and three times. If that happened only with one child, then it would not be a big deal. Unfortunately, however, what often happens is that it is many children, many times per day. It wouldn't be a huge deal except that teachers have to teach. If a lot of time is wasted on behavior issues then there is a lot less time allotted toward education. It also means that the disruptive child's behavior is stealing precious education from those who are well behaved.

When this happens, the teacher cannot have as much fun in the classroom. Creative and hands-on lessons are often abandoned for a more structured and more easily controlled environment. In a culture where children are in constant need of visual and auditory stimulation, it is understandable why they are unmotivated in a paper, pencil classroom.

Parents tend to want to blame the teacher for not being able to control the child's behavior. What I suggest is that it is the parents' responsibility to teach the child appropriate behavior he enters school and then supports the teacher when the child does not behave.

So, as you attend your parent teacher conference (which I highly recommend), keep an open mind when listening to what the teacher has to say. Ask good, to the point questions, and take an active positive role in your child's education!

Good luck!

Larry Leonard is the Developmental Preschool Teacher and Teacher of Record for students who are deaf or hard of hearing at Eastern Greene Elementary School. He has a BS in Elementary Education, a BS in Deaf Education and is currently working on his Masters in Education. He's also a certified sign language interpreter. He can be reached by e-mail at empoweredthrueducation@hotmail.com or write me at 425 Poplar Dr., Ellettsville, Ind., 47429.