Thinking about how my CT communicates with parents, I am not 100% sure how she goes about this. I have been in her room since September but have honestly never thought to ask her about this. I know from my own observations and interactions in the room that every student has a "mailbox" that I have filed letters to go home before. I also know that when a student is sick she will call home to notify the parent. Aside from this, I am not sure how she communicates, or even if she does communicate further than this. I remember in my childhood that my teachers didn't communicate with my parents aside from the letters home in our own mailboxes as well as at parent conferences.
I think that in my own classroom parents could be a lot more involved. I have never once seen a parent volunteer, nor have I heard any instances of this happening in the classroom. I think that they could be a valuable asset- we have many students who could use the one on one help, as well as it would give the parents an opportunity to see how the classroom is run. Of course though, in reality, most parents don't have the luxury of coming into the classroom. I think that in this case it would be nice to open the lines of communication by keeping steady contact with the parents; it would be nice to send home a letter each week detailing what's going on in the room that the parent would sign, or for the school to perhaps have a monthly parent night so that working parents might have an easier time engaging in their child's education. I am not sure exactly how engaged the parents of my students even want to be, but I am sure that with a little extra effort on each side the lines of communication could be stronger.
My CT stays in contact with her student's parents the same way you mentioned. Every Friday, the kids take home what they call a Friday Folder. In it includes work they've gotten back from the week past, homework that is expected to be done over the weekend, and a small note from the teacher updating the parents on what is going on the next week in class. Her letters are very short and to the point, however I still think that they are a nice addition to the Friday folders because, as you stated, many parents do not have the luxury to come into the classroom on a regular basis.
ReplyDelete