ERIC Number: ED539387
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 15
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Home-to-School Connections Guide: Tips, Tech Tools, and Strategies for Improving Family-to-School Communication
George Lucas Educational Foundation
Communication between home and school is good for kids. Keeping families up-to-date about upcoming events is important, but it's not enough to fully engage parents as partners. When schools and families really work together, that sets the stage for all kinds of benefits. The National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education reports that family-school partnerships lead to gains for just about everyone involved in education. What's more, students with involved parents tend to do better regardless of family background. From better social skills to more regular attendance to increased graduation rates, kids of all socioeconomic levels show gains across a variety of indicators when their families connect with school, according to research by the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory. This practical guide shares tips, tools, and strategies to strengthen the bonds between schools, families, and communities. Many suggestions have come from "Edutopia" community members who have contributed a host of good ideas in blogs and online discussion groups (edutopia.org/groups). Technology tools offer great potential for connecting home and school. Several tips focus on ways to use these tools to bring parents closer to the classroom. This guide includes suggestions for using popular social-media tools such as Facebook as well as technology platforms designed specifically for school settings. This guide offers ten tips: (1) Go where your parents are; (2) Welcome everyone; (3) Being there, virtually; (4) Smart phones, smart schools; (5) Seize the media moment; (6) Make reading a family affair; (7) Bring the conversation home; (8) Student-led parent conferences; (9) Get families moving; and (10) Build parent partnerships. (Contains 30 online resources.)
Descriptors: Parent Participation, Parent School Relationship, Parent Conferences, Family School Relationship, Interpersonal Communication, Communication Strategies, Guides, Educational Technology, Telecommunications, Computer Mediated Communication, Reading Programs
George Lucas Educational Foundation. P.O. Box 3494, San Rafael, CA 94912. Tel: 415-662-1600; Fax: 415-662-1605; e-mail: news@edutopia.org; Web site: http://www.edutopia.org
Publication Type: Guides - Non-Classroom
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: Community; Parents; Teachers; Administrators
Language: English
Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard Company
Authoring Institution: George Lucas Educational Foundation
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A