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Parents' evening questions to ask, by year group
Debs · 12 October 2026
The short answer
The best parents' evening questions are about your child, not the class: Are they happy and settled? Who are their friends? Are they working at the expected level, and what's the one thing we could help with at home? Add one or two for their year group, such as phonics in Year 1 or GCSE options in Year 9, and write the answers down before you leave.
Parents' evening: a ten-minute slot, a tiny chair, and a teacher who has said "she's a pleasure to have in class" thirty times since 3:30pm. You walk out, get to the car, and remember the one thing you actually wanted to ask. A short list of questions, written before you go, fixes most of that.
Questions to ask at any parents' evening
These work for any age. Pick three or four; you won't have time for more.
- Are they happy and settled? Who do they play or work with?
- Are they working at the level expected for their age, and in which subjects are they ahead or behind?
- What's one thing we could do at home to help?
- Is there anything you'd like us to know, or anything you've noticed?
"She's a pleasure to have in class" is lovely. "What's the one thing we could work on at home?" is useful.
Left: decide what you want to know before you sit on the tiny chair. Right: two lines of notes stop the conversation evaporating by the time you get home.
Questions to ask by year group
Reception and Year 1: how are they settling, making friends and managing on their own (coats, toilet, lunch)? How is their phonics and reading coming along? In England, Year 1 children take the phonics screening check in June, so it's worth asking how they're doing. Years 2 to 6: how is their reading, and what should they be reading at home? Year 4 children in England take the multiplication tables check in June; Year 6 take SATs in May. Ask what to practise. Our guide to spellings, reading logs and homework has ideas for keeping on top of it.
Secondary school: are they handing homework in on time? Are they in the right sets? Who should we contact if there's a problem? In Year 9, ask about GCSE options; in Years 10 and 11, ask about predicted grades and what would move them up. And at any age: is there anything about friendships, behaviour or confidence we should know?
The question you remember in the car park is always the one that mattered.
Booking, going and following up
Most schools now book parents' evening online (through a booking system or a link in an email), and the good slots go quickly, so book on the day the email arrives. If you're separated or both working, ask whether you can have a video call or separate appointments. Take your list, take notes, and if something needs a longer conversation, ask to book a follow-up rather than squeezing it into ten minutes. Afterwards, tell the other parent what was said, so you're both working on the same thing: here's how to share school information with your partner.
Parents' evening questions by stage
One or two of these, plus the general ones above.
| Ask about | Good question | |
|---|---|---|
| Reception | Settling in, friends, independence | How are they managing on their own? |
| Year 1 | Phonics and reading | How are they getting on with phonics? |
| Years 2 to 6 | Reading, maths, times tables | What should we practise at home? |
| Year 7 to 9 | Settling in, homework, sets | Are they keeping up with homework? |
| Years 10 and 11 | Predicted grades, revision | What would move their grade up? |
Mistakes we've all made
- Not booking on the day the email came, and getting the 7:50pm slot.
- Spending eight of the ten minutes on the reading book that went missing.
- Forgetting to write anything down, so by Thursday nobody can remember what was said.
- Not telling the other parent, who then asks the teacher the same questions next time.
Book it on the day it's emailed
Debs, your own school admin assistant, reads the school's emails, so when parents' evening bookings open it goes on your "Don't forget" list with a button straight to the booking page. Your slot goes on the family calendar, both parents can see it, and Debs can draft a message to the teacher for you to check and send. See everything Debs can do.
Questions parents ask
What questions should I ask at parents' evening?
Ask whether your child is happy and settled, whether they're working at the expected level, which subjects they're ahead or behind in, and what you could do at home to help.
What should I ask at a Reception parents' evening?
Ask how they're settling, who their friends are, how they manage on their own with coats, toilet and lunch, and how their phonics and early reading are going.
How long is parents' evening?
Most appointments are five to ten minutes per teacher. At secondary school you may see several teachers, one after another.
What should I bring to parents' evening?
A short list of questions, something to take notes with, and any concerns your child has mentioned at home.
Can I ask for another meeting after parents' evening?
Yes. If something needs longer than the appointment allows, ask the teacher to book a follow-up meeting or a call.