Tips for Teachers
Welcome Families with Warm, Bright Classrooms
When you walk into your school tomorrow, view it through the eyes of a student's family. Is this a place you'd want to spend time? Are the halls bright and inviting? Is it easy for a visitor to find her way around? A warm and friendly staff certainly plays a big role in making people feel welcome, but don't let the physical environment communicate a completely different message. Consider taking the following small steps. They may leave a big impact.
Create a Family Resource Room
Parents will feel not only welcome, but supported as well. If you don't have an unused room, try transforming a corner of the office or even a section of the school's lobby. Install a computer with Internet access and nearby printer; put in a phone; have a bookshelf filled with books about parenting, education, and child development. Add a comfortable chair or two so parents can spend some time exploring the resources. (Make sure furnishings are designed for adult use and comfort. As teachers, we may be accustomed to sitting at child-sized tables and chairs, but most parents aren't.) Provide toys and texts for younger children who may be accompanying a parent to school.
Greet Family Members Warmly
Talk with them often, and not only when you have unpleasant news for them.
Create a News Board
Reserve a bulletin board in the hallway for community news, information, and resources. This is a great place to post items your parents might find useful, such as the school calendar; clinic locations and phone numbers; and notices for ESL programs, computer courses, and cooking classes. Encourage families to add their own ideas to the resource room or bulletin board.
Get Feedback
Elicit parent feedback about what they would like to see in the resource space, and incorporate these suggestions when you can. Better yet, encourage the adults to furnish and decorate the space themselves during a work party.
Make Classroom Meeting Nights Easier
Provide childcare and food for your parents on their classroom meeting nights. Parents will be much more relaxed and inclined to attend meetings if they aren't scrambling to pick up children from daycare, find a sitter, and figure out what they're serving for dinner beforehand.
Create a Parent Club
Open the school to parents for group activities to allow them to get to know each other. Establish a book club, knitting group, or some other social club, then open the building in the evenings to let them meet.
With a little effort, you can make parents and families feel as if they belong at their child's school. That sense of connection can make it that much easier to involve them in their child's learning. If parents truly feel welcome at the school—not just by their child's teacher, but by the entire school community—they are much more likely to view the school as an ally in their child's development.
Callie Rivas
Implementation Specialist
Committee for Children
