I love BTSN. My oldest is in college now, and except for his pandemic years, I went diligently to put a face to his teachers' names. I do the same for my other kid. Indeed, last year she accompanied me to BTSN because she was happy to show me her school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Find out if there’s a Zoom option.

Oh my god, I wish my school did this via Zoom.

I'm a teacher.

The issue isn't schools being able to do this, its parents being able to handle it. Even on daily zoom meetings there is always some minor issue, try magnifying that 100x.

Our school holds monthly Teams meetings, with typically around 100 parents on the call. Usually there aren't any problems, and if there is one, it's usually resolved within a few min.

I went first year of middle school, then never again. Who cares? Don’t go.

Even the hallway experience of Back to School Night is a nice reminder of what it's like for the kids - i.e., absolutely awful in middle school.

I go out of respect for my kid’s teachers and advisor who have to be there late into the evening even though they already worked the entire day.

I like seeing who their teachers are.

And our school has a social hour before with drinks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Find out if there’s a Zoom option.

Oh my god, I wish my school did this via Zoom.

I'm a teacher.

The issue isn't schools being able to do this, its parents being able to handle it. Even on daily zoom meetings there is always some minor issue, try magnifying that 100x.

The teachers that impress me the most end up being the worst teachers for my kid. It might be because my kid and I have really different personalities or the most charming teachers are not that great in action, there could be a million reasons but that has been my experience of several years so I'm always hesitant to even go now

I love going. I always come back telling my kid how exciting the year will be, studying X and Y (and I'm serious!). They roll their eyes.

I'm not sure it's helpful, though I do like being able to have some context when a kid tells me what a weirdo their teacher is. I also get some sense of who they have in class (only if I know the kid's parents, of course, which was easier in ES than now in HS). But I think it's fun!

I wish it were longer and we got more info.

It's a good day to get a bead on the teachers and know which ones are duds and need supplementing at home.

Anonymous wrote:As your kids hit high school, you have almost no idea of what their day is like and what their classes are like. If you have a kid like mine, everything is "fine" and he doesn't often want to share stuff. This is a small glimpse into who their teachers are and what his day is like. I am really happy to go. It signals to my kid that I care about his schooling. It gives me a mental picture of his day. I don't envy the teachers who have to prepare for this event but thank them for doing it.

They don't have a choice! I used to teach private school and it was worse: parents came and watched the entire class. I actually got sick with worry for two weeks ahead of it. It was the worst part of the entire year for me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Find out if there’s a Zoom option.

Oh my god, I wish my school did this via Zoom.

I'm a teacher.

I really really hated Zoom back to school night during the pandemic. Just email me the information, because if it's just a PowerPoint I'd rather read it at my own pace.

As PPs have beautifully stated, the things that are valuable about back-to-school are the things you see inside the classroom. I can't get that on Zoom. If you're not doing it live, I'll take an emailed document thanks.

As your kids hit high school, you have almost no idea of what their day is like and what their classes are like. If you have a kid like mine, everything is "fine" and he doesn't often want to share stuff. This is a small glimpse into who their teachers are and what his day is like. I am really happy to go. It signals to my kid that I care about his schooling. It gives me a mental picture of his day. I don't envy the teachers who have to prepare for this event but thank them for doing it.

Anonymous wrote:I love going. My kid spends 6 to 7 hours everyday at school so I think it is interesting to see their classrooms. I look and see what’s up on the walls, the seating arrangement (do they sit in rows or are the tables pushed together), listen to see how engaging the teacher is. So when later they talk about something that happened in class or who they sit by it hs easier to visualize it.

My son was in one high school class and the teacher droned on exactly like the teacher in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. The classroom was drab and messy, and the teacher seemed odd. My son asked me to drop that class and I agreed because I could barely stand it after 10 minutes. Instead he took that class online.

+1. I think it’s interesting to spend 1-2 hours once a year seeing where my kids spend the most time outside of our house.

I do find it helpful to have a sense of the teacher and their requirements so when my kids complain about a teacher I have a little bit of a sense of them and how to approach it. (One of my kids complained fiercely about how disorganized a teacher was — she had her two years running and after going to the BtS night the second year, I could confirm the teacher was a total space cadet.)

But I also find the experience super stressful. The first year I went I was not anticipating it and it was like a bad dream — I was constantly lost, finally found the classroom which was overcrowded with no seats, then the bell rang almost immediately and I had to fight my way through jam packed hallways to do it all again, seven times in two hours. It was like a bad version of 13 Again. I think my blood pressure was sky high when I left. This is my 6th year doing it, so now I get myself in a zen place before I start.