How To Handle Difficult Parents: A Teacher's Survival Guide

Be it "Pinocchio's Mom," who thinks her child never lies, the "Caped Crusader," who will stop at nothing to have a book eliminated from the curriculum, or the "Helicopter Mom," who hovers and swoops in to protect her child from disappointment, this humorous handbook helps educators deal with impossible parents. Each chapter features a hilarious caricature that illuminates common parent anxieties followed by specific, practical methods for addressing the problem. Easily implemented advice on face-to-face confrontations helps teachers approach each conflict with the confidence to get their point across and the composure to keep their professional principles intact.

Suzanne Capek Tingley is a school superintendent and an educational administration teacher at the State University of New York–Oswego. She has written for Education Leadership, Education Week, and The School Administrator and is the recipient of the Outstanding School Administrator Award from the New York State Association of Library Media Specialists. She lives in Watertown, New York.