Melissa Keir-Small Town Romance Author
  • Welcome
  • Blog
  • Melissa's Books
  • Missy's Children's Books
  • Contact me
  • Privacy Notice
  • Welcome
  • Blog
  • Melissa's Books
  • Missy's Children's Books
  • Contact me
  • Privacy Notice
Search

Melissa's Musings

Chalkboard Romance and the Pitfalls of Parent/Teacher Relationships

1/25/2014

 
Picture
Lauren Walsh, a divorcee and elementary teacher, wanted to feel sexy again, after her ex tossed her aside for a younger woman. Her teaching partner and best friend encouraged her to sign up for The Playhouse–a renowned dating agency.

Mac Thomas remained trapped in a marriage to a money grubbing socialite. Forced to stay away from his young son, Mac lost the ability to trust. After the death of his wife, he returned to care for his son but his sister wants more for him. She sets him up with The Playhouse.

Passion ignites, but Mac’s a parent of one of Lauren’s students. A teacher and a parent dating could cost Lauren her job and her chance at happiness. Will Mac be able to convince the school and Lauren, that love is the most important thing?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


When writing Chalkboard Romance, I wrote about a fictionalized relationship between a teacher and one of her student's parents. It happens. You've probably heard about the teachers who fall for the students...but teachers fall for the parents too. In fact, I did. I married one of my former student's dad. 


For Season of Love, Christina Cole asked me to write about the pitfalls of parent/teacher relationships. I'm sharing that post with you here. 


Pitfalls of Parent-Teacher Relationships by Melissa Keir

What are the pitfalls or dangers behind parent/teacher relationships?

I’ve been a teacher for over twenty years. A lot has changed in education during that time. As schools have become more competitive as they market to entice families to select their school, parents have become more important as well as a more vocal majority. Not only are they dictating curriculum but also having more say in which teachers are let go. In order to be successful, teachers must establish positive relationships with parents.

A teaching friend who is divorced recently met with her daughter’s teacher. The teacher was frustrated because my friend’s ex-husband was pursuing the teacher online. The two were a part of a national dating website and the ex-husband was sending daily *winks* and seeking the teacher out for a date. At this point, the teacher had to finally be firm- no dating parents. Although this wasn’t dictated from the school, but her own personal choice, dating parents has it’s own pitfalls. As if STALKERS weren’t bad enough?

I’m actually married to a former student’s parent. John’s (my student-name changed) parents were divorced. I’d heard tales about the fighting between the parents at conferences and meetings. It appeared that they never got along. John’s mom was in my classroom all the time because she was worried about John. He was behind in school. I arranged for him to get extra help and that year his reading grew, surpassing his grade level. I was very close with his mom as we worked together to help John succeed.

As a divorced parent myself, it was important to me to keep both parents informed of events in the classroom. The first time I met John’s dad was at an overnight field trip. He was nice and appeared to be flirting with me and one of my teaching partners. She knew him from the gym (and had been John’s teacher the year before). It wasn’t until that summer (and when John wasn’t my student) that I even considered seeing Mark.

Naturally our frienship turned into a romantic relationship. As I returned to school, I was excited about the year ahead and my new love. This is when I should have been happiest but problems cropped up. The teachers who were on my team, were against my relationship. They called me into a meeting and basically yelled at me for an hour, until I got up and walked out. They felt I was ruining the school with my relationship. My teaching relationship with those teachers was forever changed. NOT friends forever!

In fact, as that year progressed…John’s mom turned against me. She’d decided that her ex-husband wasn’t so bad and wanted him back. Funny how once you’ve let something go, it suddenly seems more interesting. I’ve been married for eight years now and could’t be happier. EVIL EX-WIFE…still gets in the way at times.

However, not only can parent/teacher relationships be a struggle due to romance, they can be a struggle due to history. This year, I actually have a former student’s child as one of my students. Liam’s father was once my student during my first year of teaching. He was a student that I really liked and felt for because he didn’t have a good home life. I used to provide them food and drive them home from school. I became another parent that they came to when problems happened. So when I received my class list this year, I was excited that I would have Liam, but also a little worried because of my friendship with Liam’s dad and family. Liam’s mom assured me that she didn’t want Liam to turn into her husband. She knew he wasn’t the best student. I don’t judge. Liam is his own person and I teach each child according to what they know and where they need to go. Liam would never be penalized because of his parent.

Within the first week of school, Liam’s mom came to me upset about my writing and my author website. She felt it was too promiscuous, all because her husband was making jokes about me being a sexy teacher. My writing has never been an issue. I’m friends with many former parents yet, now I was embarrassed. I explained to her that she didn’t want me to judge her son by his father, she shouldn’t judge me.

Most teachers today don’t have a morality clause in their contracts but are “at will” employees. Districts can let them go without notice and without reason. The complaints of a few parents or accolades as well…go a long way toward making a teacher’s job harder or easier. Chalkboard Romance shows just what damage one parent can do.

My advice is to be the best teacher you could be…love the students…work hard and let the gossips roll off your back.



BUY LINKS:
Secret Cravings Store
All Romance Ebooks
Amazon
Barnes and Noble


Stacey Brutger link
1/26/2014 03:37:48 am

Great blurb. Sounds like a wonderful book.

I enjoyed the peek into your teaching world.

Melissa Keir
1/26/2014 04:39:14 am

Thanks Stacey. It's all glamorous and bonbons every day! I still remember the one time a parent got all in the face of my very pregnant teaching partner because their son didn't get an "A" on his project. Well it wasn't done to quality. He didn't have all the information... Child was in 5th grade and could have done his work.

Lucy Kubash link
1/26/2014 04:02:14 pm

The very first story I had published years ago was about a teacher falling for the single dad of one of her students. When I recently self-published the same story as part of a collection, I thought about how it was more of an issue now than it was then. I'm glad your own story has a happy ending!


Comments are closed.

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Melissa Keir

    Gator Girl Extraordinaire

    RSS Feed



    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011

Proudly powered by Romance
Melissa Keir-Author

Photos used under Creative Commons from emilyonasunday, imagesbyk2 Photography, Beverly & Pack, thisreidwrites, jDevaun, Ken Wilcox., jan_krutisch, wiesiek_kr, ginnerobot, Tim RT, erasergirl, wheatfieldbrown, fivehanks, Ⅿeagan, theilr, symphony of love, Abhishek Singh Bailoo, Max Braun, Daniel Leininger, EliJerma, sean_reay, DafneCholet, Pablo Tocagni, kevin dooley, CarbonNYC, Loren Javier, marco monetti, shannonkringen, Peter Werkman (www.peterwerkman.nl), tekkbabe, Aditya Rakhman, MilitaryHealth, almarWho, raganmd, snowkei, wuestenigel, Amal Hathaway, augustineisnotmyname, digitizedchaos, photologue_np, -stamina-, Jessica_Branstetter, I woz ere, Erháld, Tostie14, kdinuraj, feline_dacat, RobBixbyPhotography, glaciernps, aussiegall, Pink Sherbet Photography, Poul-Werner, Loren Javier, Diamond Farah, AForestFrolic, williamcho, shannonkringen, gagilas, ben.fitzgerald, Tony Fischer Photography, rufusowliebat, emilianohorcada, George Deputee, LadyDragonflyCC - >;< - Spring in Michigan!, brick red, citymaus, Emery Co Photo, midiman, Thragor, jdegrazia, dane brian, sibikos, nan palmero, r.nial.bradshaw, US Army Africa, bambe1964
  • Welcome
  • Blog
  • Melissa's Books
  • Missy's Children's Books
  • Contact me
  • Privacy Notice