Home & School Connections

 

(Mrs. Meltzer / home-school connection)

Part one-

It is important for students to have a connection between their home life and school to have academic success. As a teacher, the way we can encourage this is to create assignments that connect home and school life. A way we can do this is by asking our students how much sleep they get every night. I liked this example because everyone sleeps so this is a good connection to bring to class. Teachers can teach how it is important to get the right amount of sleep for your age so you can pay attention, learn, and remember information. The results of the lesson can be brought home to parents and get them involved with what their children are learning about in school (Dell’Angelo, 2014). 

Back to school night is a night where teachers can set expectations for students and parents. During this night, you have to be transparent. You need to be clear with what you expect and want and not have parents assume. Assumption isn't good because that means your directions/expectations are confusing. As a teacher you also want to explain your thinking. Letting parents know which kind of websites and apps you plan to use to teach their children is important. Parents need to know their children's privacy is being protected. You need to explain how you’ll use these apps to differentiate instruction (Stephens, 2015). Not all students learn the same way so teaching with different tools and visuals can be helpful and reassure parents that you care about their child. 

Family engagement is another way to merge home and school life. We want families to always feel included by the school, not only include them when there are activities or parties. You want families to feel included in elementary school because if they're not, the chances are they won’t attend anything after elementary because it can be intimidating. We should also be reaching out to families to build relationships. Not just reaching out when their child did something wrong and needs discipline (Wolpert-Gawron, 2016). In 1995, the Logan Square neighborhood convinced the schools to let parents assist in classrooms. One of the moms in the clip said she didn't realize how important it is to have relationships with the teacher and principal. Having parent mentors in the classroom helps the teacher because it can be challenging to assist every student's needs. The bond between the parent mentor and the students are so amazing that sometimes you can't tell who the teacher is because they’re so involved (NBC today show: Education nation - putting parents to work in the classroom, 2012). I love this concept because getting families involved with students' school life creates better relationships and more awareness for the curriculum. 

I attended the Board of Education Meeting at Martin Avenue School in Bellmore, NY. At this meeting, it was discussed how they are improving their science and social studies curriculum. They are going to use inquiry based instruction which they said is the heart of science and social studies. They explained how inquiry based learning requires students to inquire, think critically, solve problems, and communicate. Students can investigate essential questions, big ideas, and the world around them through a series of inquiry-based, exploratory learning experiences. This process provides students opportunities to build on their experiences, apply their skills, and express their knowledge and ideas which will set them up to be lifelong learners. This meeting relates to this week's topic on home/school connection because the school board is telling the families what they’re childrens new curriculum will consist of and how it will help them become lifelong learners. I mentioned earlier how when it comes to apps and websites we as teachers should tell the parents what we plan to do with them. Using inquiry based learning is telling the parents the benefits and how it will set their children up for success.

Part two-

Communicating with families is so incredibly important. They need to be aware of their students' academic success, good or bad as well as behavior and how they act in school and towards others. I plan to work with elementary students and a way I plan to keep in contact with families is to first start by stressing the importance of having up to date contact information. This goes for the teacher and the family. Both parties need to have the correct information to reach out (Breiseth, 2021). Another way I plan to communicate with families is to have a social media page for my classroom. With permission from the parents, I can post pictures of the kids to show what we are doing/learning about in class. I can also post updates about important dates or school events (Creative Ways for Teachers to Communicate with Parents, 2022). I really like this concept because parents can see what their kids are doing in real time and can talk to their children about it. It also allows the parents to see the teacher's motivation for the student to be engaged with the activity/lesson. 

(Haq, 2022)

References

Breiseth, L. (2021, August). Communicating with ell families: 10 strategies for schools. NEA. https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/tools-tips/communicating-ell-families-10-strategies 

Creative Ways for Teachers to Communicate with Parents. Powerschool.com. (2022, May 23). https://www.powerschool.com/blog/creative-ways-for-teachers-to-communicate-with-parents/ 

Dell'Angelo, T. (2014, December 10). The Beginners' Guide to Connecting Home and School. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/beginners-guide-connecting-home-school-tabitha-dellangelo 

Haq, N. (2022). What are some funny memes about education? Quora. https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-funny-memes-about-education 

Isnachicago. (2012, September 25). NBC today show: Education nation - putting parents to work in the classroom. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubo6L0qQv6Q&list=PLvzOwE5lWqhRPzheyprYHcA8SZl9Qvnpz&index=2 

Mrs. Meltzer / home-school connection. Clarkstown Central School District. (n.d.). https://www.ccsd.edu/Page/2271 

Stephens, D. (2015, August 26). Back-to-school night: The ultimate conversation starter for a successful school year. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/back-to-school-conversation-starter-darri-stephens 

Wolpert-Gawron, H. (2016, May 17). 8 ways to encourage family engagement in secondary schools. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/8-ways-encourage-family-engagement-secondary-schools-heather-wolpert-gawron