Mom: *Blood drains from her face as she realizes her credibility with my principal is now gone.*
Me: “At this point in the quarter, it is too late for your child to turn in make-up work. Please be sure to be checking your child’s agenda every Friday for an update concerning her progress. In order for your child to be successful, you need to be involved. Do you have any questions?”
Mom: *stammering with excuses and apologies for not checking*
By this point I could tell that my principal was stifling laughter, so I knew that I had won. Mom left very quickly, and I never received one of those harsh emails again.
Diva’s behavior didn’t improve at all, but I rode the satisfaction of that W all the way through to summer.
Aldon_Worldwarden
However, any principal I've worked with also knows this about the parents, so they put on a show to calm the animals down but trust you to do something to try shutting them up next time.