You’re certainly not obligated to tell your child’s teacher about your divorce, and you can keep it to yourself if you would like. Many people don’t want to bring this up because it makes them feel uncomfortable or they just think of it as a personal subject.
That being said, there are some compelling reasons to let your child’s teacher about the divorce, especially if you know that much of it is going to play out during the school year.
Teachers will better understand behavioral changes
One thing to remember is that children can sometimes have behavioral changes when something uncomfortable is happening at home. Even if your child is generally accepting of the upcoming divorce, your teacher may see some of these shifts in their personality. It can help teachers connect with the student if they know why it’s happening.
Teachers can lend support
Similarly, parents need to remember that teachers are often there to provide support for younger children. They may talk to them about what’s going on at home or allow the child to ask questions. Children need this support system. Telling the teacher might make it even more beneficial.
The teacher may need to know about custody arrangements
If one parent has limited or no custody of a child, then the teacher definitely needs to know about that. For example, maybe only you were given custody, so your co-parent shouldn’t be picking up your child from school. Or maybe you share custody but you are often going to have a grandparent who does drop-offs and pick-ups. Teachers need to know about this to help keep children safe.
As you and your family move through this divorce, just be sure you know about all of your child custody options and how you can use them to put your child first.