Curious Parents Education Resources

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Be Cool with Your Child’s School

By Carol A. Josel

When parents partner with school—staying informed, volunteering, and attending meetings—children benefit academically and socially. So much for Labor Day; now it’s on to real life. Your child’s backpack is brimming with new school supplies, and the yellow buses are rolling again. Now, what? Big sigh of relief? Summer’s out, school’s in, so back to your own life? No! No! Not so quick, please.

Get Acquainted

Your involvement in your child’s school is said to be the single most important factor in her academic success, so get started. First, make “friends” with your child’s teachers, securing their phone numbers and email addresses, asking about the usual response wait-time, as well. Meanwhile, if her behavior and/or performance become a concern, don’t wait for a call. Make an appointment right away, and arrive promptly at the scheduled time. Teachers perform all day long, usually with only one scheduled “free” period—and that’s often devoted to parent-teacher conferences. Once it’s over, kids start piling into their classrooms again, so, besides being on time, bring a reminder or two of what to say, take notes, share your findings with your child, and put suggestions into action. Ditto for after-school meetings; teachers want to get home, too.

In the meantime, don’t you want to get clued in to what her administrators and teachers are like, along with their homework, test, and writing assignment expectations? Don’t you also want to know how technologically up-to-date the school is and how clean its cafeteria? Don’t you want to walk in your child’s shoes for an hour or two and recall your own school days? Say yes, find out the dates of the autumn and spring open house/parent nights, mark them on your calendar, and be there.

School Guidelines

And, while you’re at it, acquaint yourself with the school’s codes, guidelines, and bell schedule to avoid misunderstandings. These include disciplinary procedures, bussing rules, and their policy on absences. At the same time, make a note of these phone numbers: main office, attendance office, guidance counselor, reading specialist, librarian, and school nurse; know the school emergency closing number, too. Also, determine the district’s grading system and when interim assessments and report cards are issued. And insist that your child abide by the dress code, which usually means clothes that fit—not too loose, not too tight, not too revealing--and no flip flops. Finally, keep up-to-date about in-service days, early dismissals, late arrivals, and standardized testing dates by checking the district Web site regularly.

The choice is yours: stick to the sidelines, or get active in the life of your child’s school—being in the know and watching behavior and performance improve along the way. What could be better than all that?

A learning specialist for 25 years, Carol Josel has authored three books and currently supervises student teachers at Gwynedd-Mercy College. Contact her at carol@schoolwisebooks.com and visit her Web site, schoolwisebooks.com