Answers to Parent Involvement Questions

Effective Parent Engagement Strategies Workshop - Feb. 27th

How can I motivate and get parents to come to a parent workshop? 

*Integrate student performances into the workshop and door prizes.  Parents love to watch their students perform.  Save the performance until after the workshop and more parents will remain.

·        What are some effective ways that parents can work with their children at home to support their child's learning? 

*Research shows the most effective ways to work with your child is by participating in meaningful learning activities in the home.   Our interactive DVDs and CDs provide parents with modeled demonstrations on exactly how to help and what they can do.

·        What are some easy ways to get parents involved?

*Have parents participate in fun activities at the school such as games nights.  Be sure that you have food and door prizes.   Does your school have a Parent Resource Center for parents?   Parents feel comfortable when they have a non-threatening and helpful place within the school that they can go to for support. 

·         How do you plan for effective parent involvement activities?

*A needs assessment should be done to assess the interests and areas that your parents would like to receive additional support.   Once you know the needs of the parents, you can begin to plan for more effective and relevant activities.   Look at parents interests and hobbies and even invite parents to share their hobbies or talents with their child's class.  

 How do you know if the parent activities were effective or meaningful for parents?

*At the conclusion of each activity, do an evaluation to determine how parents felt about the activity.   If they enjoyed it, this may be something that you want to repeat next year.   If they did not find the activity to be helpful, you can spend time thinking about what else to do next time.

 How can we reach our growing ELL population?