It’s inevitable – Parent Confrontation

If you haven’t had to do it in your children’s ministry yet, then there’s probably something wrong. It doesn’t happen every week, but it will be a regular occurrence if you have to deal with discipline issues. There are some important factors to consider when confronting parents and having to explain a discipline issue. After-all, you don’t want to be known as the minister who is constantly a negative bearer of bad news or unpleasant to deal with.

Here is a concise list of the things to keep in mind if and when you will have to confront parents about their child’s behavior and actions:

• Be respectful.
• Look into their eyes.
• Remember they are the authority figure in their child’s world.
• Be clear and concise – explain what rules have been violated and the actions already taken.
• Do yourself a favor ahead of time: have clearly communicated policies and rules in the classroom that both the child and parent are ALREADY aware of.
• Be willing to offer an exception if it’s obvious the rules/policies were not known ahead of time.
• Be forgiving, showing mercy and grace – Be willing to offer another chance.
• Have a plan for moving forward with the child – If is this just a warning: what will the plan for the future be should we have trouble in the next few weeks?
• Ask the parents to help you know what to do if the issue(s) ever surface again.
• Pray a positive prayer over the Parent(s) and child before they leave.
• Follow-up with the parent and the child later in the week.

What would you add to the list?