1. Opening Doors
How Home Visits Can Strengthen School-Family Relationships in the Upper-Grades
1647 Boston, MA

2. Who We Are
1647 is reimagining family engagement as a partnership between families and schools that is essential to student success.
We are based in Boston, and partner with schools throughout Massachusetts.

3. Shall We Dance?
“What is a film/book/television show that you’re really excited about right now?”
“When you were young, who was your hero?”
“What did you like most about middle school or high school?”

4. You Will Walk Away With:
Data and stories that support the impact of relationship-building in the upper grades
Models for how to implement home visits in middle school and high school

5. The Myths of Family Engagement in Middle School and High School
Families are tired by middle school and just want teachers to teach their kids.
Students need to be independent, so families shouldn’t be overly engaged and teachers shouldn’t call home.
Families can’t support their students academically in upper grades or with their college planning.
Others?

6. Family Engagement in Secondary Schools Matters
Jacquie
Sanders, M., Epstein, J., & Connors-Tadros, L. (1999). Family Partnerships with High Schools: The Parents’ Perspective. Center for Research on the Education of Students Placed At Risk, 32.

7. Change in Parental Roles
Elementary: Parent as Teacher
Secondary:
Parent as Coach

8. Support Student Success
Five Roles that
Support Student Success
Communicate high expectations
Monitor the child’s performance
Support learning
Guide the child’s education
Advocate for the child

9. School Structure Changes
Grade-level team meetings
Advisory

10. The Power of Family Engagement – stories from our schools
Nobody cares what you know, until they know that you care!

11. Core Practices of Home Visits
Home visits are for relationship building
Visits are for everyone!
Visits are voluntary
Visits are scheduled in advance
Staff go in pairs and are compensated or incentivized for their time
Staff reflect upon their assumptions going into visits and what they have learned after visits

12. Logistics of Home Visits in Upper Grades
Creation of a Family Engagement Leadership Team (FELT) on campus to lead colleagues in this work.
Scheduled home visits through advisory. Advisory teachers conduct and lead visits for students on their advisory roster and attend with another teacher from the grade level team.
Provide tools to support teachers in coordinating schedules.

13. Logistics of Home Visits in Upper Grades
Communicate home visits to students and get them invested. Student attends the home visit and may even generate some of the questions.
Share learning from home visit with other teachers who instruct the student.

14. Creating Proof Points with a Coalition of the Willing
Get school leader & union buy-in
Invite staff to home visit training (provide coverage!)
Identify leadership team across small schools or grade levels
Pair participating teachers for scheduling & support
Offer Professional Learning Community to connect with other teachers at other schools
Provide new trainings each year to expand the work

15. After the Visit: Then What?
Use what was learned on the home visit to meet the unique needs of students and families
Invests students
Lesson planning
Future communication to family
Brings families into schools
Maintain the relationship through consistent communication

16. Questions on Your Mind

17. Keep in Touch! Elizabeth Canada, Director of Coaching, 1647
Heather Fabiano, Special Education Teacher, High School Learning Center in Lawrence, MA