Parent Presentation: Lincoln Elementary School 2014 Emily Boswell ECE497: Child Development Capstone Course Kristina Bodamer January 10, 2014

My Role in Your Child’s Development Availability  I am always available to help your child or you through the learning process. I can be reached by phone, , or just drop by the classroom with questions. Smaller Class Size  To best care for your child’s education, our school has limited class size to give your child the one on one attention he or she deserves. Homework Assistance Program  If you as a parent do not understand your child’s homework, there is a program that can help. I will work with you one on one to make sure you are playing a vital role in your child’s success. Keep Learning Fun  I plan on making learning fun for your child. I want them to want to come to school every day and to be excited about their success in the classroom.

Kindergarten Developmental Goals As your child enters kindergarten, there are learning expectations we are going to strive to meet by the end of the school year. These include:  Identifying colors by name  Counting to 20 in English and Spanish  Reciting the days of the week, months of the year as well as the seasons of the year  Beginning to work on following directions, and solving problems  Exploring different cultures through music and song  Exhibiting the ability to identify differences in objects

Family and Community Partnership The partnership between family, community, and school is very important and plays a vital role in the success of our students. I strive to make sure there is no disconnect between learning at school, and learning at home. “Schools can build parent-school partnerships by strengthening personal relationships between teachers and parents, showing parents how to support their child’s education at home, building bridges between minority home cultures and the culture of the school, enlisting the help of neighborhood organizations with deep roots in the lives of families, and including parents in school governance so they remain invested in school goals” (Berk, 2013).

Bronfenbrenner’s Model: The Mesosystem and Your Child “A child’s academic progress depends not just on activities that take place in classrooms but also on parent involvement in school life and on the extent to which academic learning is carried over into the home” (Berk, 2013). As your child’s teacher, I will build that relationship with you where you feel comfortable with the bridge of learning from classroom to home. I will offer what is known as Saturday School. This is held once a quarter where you come to school with your child. We will have a full day of learning as any other normal day of class. You will make the commitment at the beginning of each school year that you will participate and be a learner right along with your child, then when at home, you become the teacher. This shows your child you are invested in their education and shows the teacher that you are a willing participant in the success of your child.

Types of Epstein’s Parental Involvement To be successfully involved in your child’s academic career, there are six dimensions of parental involvement: “Parenting: family obligations and support of their child Communicating: home- school communication Volunteering: family involvement in school life Learning at home: parental involvement in the child’s schoolwork at home Decision making: parental participation in the decision making process and in the management and defense of the child’s interest Collaborating with the community: partnership with the school, businesses, and other local organizations” (Beauregard, Petrakos, & Dupont, 2014).

Parenting Involved parents have a huge impact on their child’s learning, behavior, and over all outlook on life, and school. An involved parent can impact their child in the following ways: Approved attendance in school A student sees the importance of a good education and where it can take them in life When a parent respects their child’s education, the child will in turn respect the parent more as well The child will develop positive attributes that they see their parents exhibiting A better balance begins to be displayed between school, household chores, and play Our school will offer parenting classes once a month to help you be the best parent you can be. We will help with anything from cooking, to reading. We will offer information on job training as well as furthering your education through higher learning.

Communicating Communication between families and teachers is vital to the success of the child. Good communication between a teacher and parent can have great impacts on a child: The child is aware of their progress in class and they know either from their teacher or parent what they need to do to keep their progress up. The child is fully aware that they need to have good attendance and follow the rules of the school and classroom. The child has the ability to have input in their class choices and learning avenues. The child knows and understands that they play a role in the communication channels as well relaying information from class to the parent at home. I can be reached by phone, , or drop by any time you have a question. I will hold conferences with you at least once a quarter. If you need translation services, I will have that available. I will send notes home with your child once a week on progress made in class that week. If you cannot read the notes, I can call you weekly and go over your child’s week with you.

Volunteering Volunteering is a great way to get involved in your child’s education. Some of the benefits for parents who volunteer include: Parents have a better understanding of the role the teacher has in their child’s education. Volunteering in the school helps parents become more comfortable in the school setting. Gain self esteem and feel good about your self knowing that you are able to show your abilities working in a school. Volunteering shows that the schools welcome the parents and families into the school and that they want them to be a part of the school. When volunteering, a parent will learn new skills that they may use in a future job search. Our school holds a volunteer training sessions once a month. We will send home lists of volunteer opportunities with your child so you can look them over and see which ones you may be interested in. You can volunteer in more than one area and can do this as often as you like. Our volunteers are very important to us and we would love to have you join the team. We welcome your ideas of new volunteer opportunities and will work with you to find the best fit for you.

Learning At Home Learning at home helps both the parent and the child succeed. Some of the benefits for both child and parent include: A child develops a positive attitude towards school and homework. Parents helping with homework learn how to support their child through the school year. Children see their parent more as a teacher and they learn that they can count on them to help with assignments when needed. When helping a child at home, the parent sees the challenges the teacher has and forms a newfound respect for the teacher and the role they play in their child’s education. When parents help, the child feels success when turning in completed homework assignments. Our school has a homework assistance hotline that parents can call if they have questions on how to best help their child through an assignment if they do not understand the assignment themselves. We offer coaching and will break the assignment down in a way the parent understands so they can then help their child understand. We offer bi- lingual services through this hotline as well.

Decision Making When anyone is given decision making responsibilities, they feel more involved and valued as a person. When a parent is given decision making abilities, they feel included in their child’s future. Here are some other benefits of decision making abilities: A parent knows that their voice and concerns are being heard and are valued. When other parents voice similar concerns connections and relationships are formed that strengthen the parental voice. Parents and students feel that the rights of their children will be protected and respected. Parents learn about school and districts policies when they attend school board meetings and votes. All parents are invited to all school meetings. We send notes home as well as each parent to let them know when these meetings are. We encourage them to bring lists of questions or concerns with them to make sure their addressed. If they are afraid of public speaking, we offer coaching classes as well to address these fears before hand so they are ready to have their voices heard. We want the parents to be as involved as possible when it comes to decision making.

Collaborating With The Community Schools often team up with local businesses and other organizations to best care for the students within the community. Students and parents benefit from this collaboration in many ways: Students see local businesses and organizations helping them through school and may look to these places for future employment opportunities. Skills, and talents are expanded through activities off school campus’s and outside of school hours. Parents develop relationships with organizations they see helping their child succeed. Parents also see how important their child’s school is to their community. As your child’s teacher, I often reach our to our local recreation centers, city parks, and local businesses to see how to best form partnerships with the school. I look to create relationships with local authorities through field trips and visits to the school from the local fire department or police. This creates a good relationship with the students and lets them know not to fear authoritative figures.

Reference Beauregard, F., Petrakos, H., & Dupont, A. (2014). Family- school partnership: Practices of immigrant parents in quebec, canada. School Community Journal, 24(1), Retrieved from id=32521 Berk, L. E. (2013).Child development. (9th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Epstein, J. (n.d.). Epstein's framework of six types of involvement. Retrieved from k_of_Six_Types_of_Involvement(2).pdf