Making the Most of Parents’ Day

By MAYA BOKHARI ‘20

Since I started at Milton in 2013, Parents’ Day has, believe it or not, been something I always look forward to. Anybody who knows me well could tell you at least one of two things: I love going to school, and I am very close with my parents. Naturally, any combination of the two would make me absolutely ecstatic. Unlike some of my peers, I will usually be disappointed about Parents’ Day only once it is over — most likely because it fell short of the excitement I expected. Still, I find a way to maintain my enthusiasm around Parents’ Day for each coming year, so I have collected a few of my thoughts on what makes the best Parents’ Day experience.

I can wholeheartedly say that my favorite course of the Class IV year was Physics. I was beyond thrilled that my parents would finally have a chance to meet the teacher whose class I so looked forward to each day. However, my Friday schedule did not include physics, so I would have to settle for just a parent-teacher conference. No matter how productive or insightful these meetings may be, our parents will never understand our true experiences in each class unless they sit through one. This year, even though I am taking two science courses, my parents will not see either of them because of my Friday schedule. Since I spend almost seven hours in science class every week, the sliver of Milton my parents will see on Parents’ Day totally eliminates what I consider to be some of the most exciting parts of my experience. Not only do I not have the opportunity to share what I love, but my parents miss out on an opportunity to make sense of the projects I have to work on late at night in open lab, the study groups I participate in, and the goggle marks I have on my face when I leave Pritzker. Students, parents, and teachers would benefit from an adjusted schedule to include all classes on Parents’ Day.

On the other hand, making the most of the classes our parents do see is largely up to the teachers’ lesson plans. Over the years, I have seen teachers struggle with the decision to either demonstrate a normal day in the classroom or engage parents in a more exciting, inclusive activity. In a sense, the “normal” interpretation would seem boring in comparison to the specific Parents’ Day plan, but some parents may want an accurate representation of their children’s learning experience. However, the class periods I have enjoyed most were the culmination of projects we had worked on in the days leading up to Parents’ Day. In my Class III Performing Literature class, we put on our performance of Oedipus for our parents. A play would not necessarily be out of the ordinary in a performance based class, but it was not representative of how we spent the majority of our class time. Even so, performances, debates, discussions, and games that involve students and parents alike, either as participants or audience members, highlight some of Milton’s greatest classroom events.

While our parents might not see all of our classes today, we have the opportunity to show them what we cannot describe. Milton’s atmosphere of genuine interest, enthusiasm, and curiosity comes through only in person. Our parents finally have the chance to experience these intangible qualities that we students feel everyday. Giving our parents the thrill of being a student again should be simple if we exhibit the true highlights of being a Milton student.