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Content Connection
The Busy Parents Guide to Involvement in Education
Brought to FEN
by National PTA®
Parent involvement -- your involvement -- in education
increases your children's chances for success in school and in life.
When you participate in your children's education, say hello to the warm
feeling of satisfaction you get when you know that you've helped your
children.
Start first with the ideas that appeal to you most and will easily
fit into your schedule, and then add others as time permits. The good
news is that no matter how little time you have, you will find a number
of things that you can do every day to help your children.
The important thing to remember is this: Involved parents do make a
difference.
What You Can Do At Home...
- Put on a happy face. At the end of a busy day your feet may hurt
and your head may pound, but when your youngsters come running to
you full of enthusiasm about something at school, put on a smile and
match their excitement. When you put them off with, "Later, later,"
their joy in the accomplishment disappears.
- Table talk. Talk about what your children are learning in school
while at the table eating supper. After the meal is finished, pass
around any papers they've brought home for everyone to discuss and
admire.
- Don't stow it, show it! Instead of stowing school papers and
artwork in a forgotten drawer, show it off. Use a wall, the
refrigerator door, or a bulletin board for the display. Take a
minute now and then to look at the changing displays with each child
and talk about how proud you are of the work that's exhibited. When
papers are taken down from the bulletin board, preserve in a special
folder for periodic review.
- Change "Whatdja get?" to "Whatdja learn?" When tests and reports
come home, take the emphasis off the grades and focus instead on the
information and skills they learned by doing the work. Give children
a chance to show what they know by asking simple questions about the
subject. Increase your children's knowledge by sharing anything you
know about the topic, or by looking it up in an encyclopedia.
- Talking texts. Ask your youngsters to read their textbooks to
you while you fix dinner, sort laundry, or drive the car. Any text
will do-a reader, a social studies book, even a math book. When they
finish a section, discuss any questions the book presents in order
to expand their comprehension of the ideas in the text.
- Classroom chronicles. Children who get home before their parents
can record descriptions of the school day on cassette tape, while
events are still fresh in their minds. These Classroom Chronicles
don't replace the time you spend with your children, but rather
serve as springboards for discussion when you listen to them with
your kids later in the evening.
- Family merry-go-round. When you ask, "What happened in school
today," and get the answer, "Nothin' much," it's time to hop on the
Family Merry-Go-Round. Start a sentence that each person in the
family must complete in turn. "The most surprising thing I learned
today was . . ." "One of the things I did well today was . . " The
sentence merrily goes 'round till everyone has shared their
experiences.
- "I can" cans. Give each child an empty juice can covered with
contact paper and labeled "My 'I CAN' Can." Whenever your children
learn a new skill, be it academic, artistic, or athletic, write it
on a piece of paper and stuff it in the can. Review the contents of
the cans periodically, and watch your children's self-esteem soar.
- Make mistakes OK. When children can learn from their mistakes,
instead of feeling discouraged by them, they are on the road to
success. Make mistakes OK by talking about your own errors: "One
mistake I made today was . . ." Encourage your youngsters to
describe mistakes that they made, and then talk about solutions:
"One way I can keep from making this mistake again is . . ."
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