Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Communication is key!

I consider my job a blessing.  Daily.  Over the years I've been lucky enough to teach in Kansas, Minnesota, and Tennessee.  I've had opportunities to teach high school and middle school.  Right now I'm living the dream -- 8th grade.  I love this age.

Along the way I've had many personal blessings as well.  In addition to a supportive husband, I have four beautiful, unique children.  They are a joy.  God used these blessings to open my "teaching" eyes along the way.  I took ten years off of my career to stay home with them, so I was able to participate in the educational system on the other side.

This as made me a better teacher.

I've participated in parent-teacher conferences, organized PTA projects, spent hours volunteering, joined in on the IEP team for my child, and spent hours supporting homework projects.  Throughout these years, I've experienced the full spectrum of parent emotions at school.  Most of the time I agreed with what has happening, occasionally I felt there were better approaches, but every day I thought, "What would I do in this situation?" 

You see, parents are important.  As educators, we get to see their child for the majority of the day.  We see them interact with peers, watch them perform, and evaluate their completion of learning targets. However, parents hold vital information about their child.  Connection to that piece is beyond valuable.

How do you do that?  Communicate, communicate, communicate.  Invite parents to be a part of the conversation.  I do this in several ways.  First, I try to share important dates, information, projects, and celebrations via group e-mails.  Parents are always given the opportunity to opt out, but they rarely do.  In no way do I think every parent reads every e-mail, but it's there for those who do! 

Wait!  I teach middle school.  I just said I send out mass emails every week or so?  YES!  Students are never too old for communication with the school.  This changes the conversation at the dinner table from "How was school today?" to "What did you think about ____________ that you're reading?"  (Sometimes parents actually read the book with the kids -- and LOVE it.)  E-mail can open the door to communication without filtering through the child. 

What else do I do?  I take pictures.  I love pictures.  I share pictures with parents.  (First I always know what children don't have signed releases and make sure I comply with parent wishes.)  Parents LOVE this.  I see their child in a different setting, and once again it allows for more conversations.  The kids love it, too.  I always tell them that I share through parents -- not directly.  Taking a picture allows the child to see that he/she matters.  Each child is essential to the classroom and has value.  A simple picture validates this knowledge.

Twitter is another great tool.  To be honest, I am just starting to realize the full potential there.  I have a school account which I use for parents and students.  Sometimes it's just a quick picture of books we're reading, a project we're doing in class, a shout-out to a great idea. I also use it for homework reminders and assignments.  (What a great way to teach digital citizenship.)  Finally, it's used to make personal connections with kids.  Just because it's the end of the year doesn't mean I turn off my heart for each child. 

Our district utilizes SharePoint as a communication tool.  I do my best to keep this updated with learning targets for the day, copies of handouts (if available), and PowerPoints used to review major concepts.  I show each child how to access this information in class.  I believe this is important because it empowers the students to not make excuses for "forgetting" things at school and allows them the opportunity to process information again.  I do my best to be available for questions via e-mail and Twitter from students, and many of them take advantage of this. 

In closing, laying the groundwork through communication allows for a stronger educational connection through school and home.  It breaks down the barriers of "us" vs. "them" and helps create an environment where the child feels secure to explore, make mistakes, and learn. 

3 comments:

  1. Great post, Amy! I email my English 9 parents every Wednesday. I call it my What's Up Wednesday email; I include Internet links, attach files for projects, and provide a look at what is going on in my classroom from Wednesday to Wednesday. Additionally, I tweet my students each evening to remind them of homework, etc. Many parents follow those tweets as well. Communicating with parents and students has made me a better teacher and allowed parents to help their children learn to be accountable. Students are never too old to communicate with their parents :)

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  2. I agree Mel! With parents being aware of what's happening, the conversations have the potential of richness. Love that!

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