Quick and Easy Ways to Connect with Students and Their Parents, Grades K-8: Improving Student Achievement Through Parent Involvement

by Diane Mierzwik

Overview

The research is indisputable. The more involved parents are with their child’s education, the more successful that child will be in school. Therefore, finding ways as a teacher to reach out to students and their parents is crucial in improving academic performance.
Quick and Easy Ways to Connect With Students and Their Parents, Grades K-8 provides strategies to enrich the classroom environment, motivate students, and improve communication with parents. Supplying numerous sample forms, documents, and letters that teachers can use or adapt for their own purposes, author Diane Mierzwik offers simple, classroom-tested methods for building relationships with students and their parents.
Designed for both beginning and experienced teachers, this hands-on guidebook includes information on:
• Facilitating constructive parent-teacher conferences
• Preparing for Back-to-School nights
• Reaching out to uninvolved parents
• Talking to parents about troubled students
• Motivating even the most difficult students
• Using e-mail as a communication tool and other time-saving tips
The activities, suggestions, and techniques in this book can help any teacher make a substantive impact on the lives of students.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781634507158
Publisher:	Skyhorse
Publication date:	04/26/2016
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	160
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Diane Mierzwik currently teaches seventh and eighth grade English at Parkview Middle School for the Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District in California. In her 16 years of teaching, she has had experience with first- through 12th graders. She has been Gifted And Talented Education coordinator, Leadership team member, Department Head, a mentor teacher, completed the Inland Empire Writing Project, and served as a Language Arts consultant for the California Language Arts Project. She lives in Yucaipa, California.
Diane Mierzwik teaches at Parkview Middle School for the Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District in California. She is also the author of Quick and Easy Ways to Connect With Students and Their Parents, available from Corwin Press, and Wishes in the Field, a middle grade historical fiction novel.

Table of Contents

	Preface	ix
	About the Author	xiii
Part I	Connecting With Students	1
1	Having Students Introduce Themselves	3
	Getting to Know Your Students	4
	Preparing for Introduction Activities	5
2	Greeting Students	7
	Standing in the Best Place	7
	Greeting Every Child	8
	Making the Greeting Personal	8
	Managing Your Greeting Time	9
	Creating a Healthy Climate at Your School	9
3	Making the Most of Classroom Time	11
	Handing Back Papers	12
	Collecting Work	13
	Commenting on Student Work	13
	Writing to the Teacher	15
	Initiating Informal Student-Teacher Conferences	16
	Using Non-Instructional Time	16
4	Congratulating Students With Certificates	19
	Creating Certificates	19
	Presenting Certificates	22
5	Connecting With Your Students Through the Curriculum	23
	Sharing Your Personal Life With Students	24
	Responding to Personal Questions	25
	Connecting Curriculum to Your Life	25
6	Recognizing Your Students as Stars	27
	Finding Out About Your Students	27
	Using Your Knowledge About Students	29
Part II	Connecting With Parents	31
7	Sending Home Your Introduction Letter	33
	Writing Your Letter	33
	Preparing to Send the Letter Home	38
8	Learning About Your Students From Their Parents	39
	Using a Parent Survey	40
	Using Parent Letters	42
9	Presenting at Back-to-School Night	45
	Preparing for Parents	45
	Organizing Your Presentation	46
10	Requesting Parent Suggestions	49
	Documenting Classroom Procedures and Expectations	50
	Clarifying Procedures After a Few Weeks	52
	Surveying Parents at the End of Unit/Quarter	54
11	Conducting Parent-Teacher Conferences	57
	Preparing for Conferences	58
	Meeting the Parents	59
	Recording Important Details After the Conference	60
12	Thanking Parents	63
	Thanking Parents for the Tough Job They Do	63
	Sending Back-to-School Night Thank-You's	64
	Reaching Uninvolved Parents	65
	Following Parent Contacts With Thank-You Notes	66
13	Contacting Parents Using E-mail	69
	Creating an E-mail Account	69
	Communicating With All Parents	72
	Contacting Parents Individually	72
	E-mailing Grade Updates	76
14	Phoning Home	77
	Calling for a Job Well Done	78
	Calling Home to Avoid a Problem	79
	Using Automated Phone Calls	82
15	Mailing Home Good News Postcards	85
	Using Postcards	86
	Sending Home Postcards	88
16	Inviting Parents to Visit	91
	Sending Open Invitations	92
	Inviting Parents to Volunteer in the Class	92
	Preparing for a Visit	93
	Inviting Parents for Class Presentations	94
	Inviting Parents to Gain Support for a Difficult Child	95
17	Getting Attention From the Media	99
	Using Your Local Education Reporter	100
	Using a Press Release	102
	Using Other Newspaper Outlets	103
	Gaining Outside Recognition for Students	104
	Resource: Sample Forms and Letters	107
	Index	133