Hi everyone! I'm Shana Grooms from Mrs. Grooms' Room!
Elementary Entourage is joining together to tell how we communicate with parents. I have absolutely loved reading all about the things we use to communicate. I can't wait to try some of the new ideas I have read about! I was so excited to see that some of my bloggin' buddies do some of the same things that I do! So if you feel like you have heard all this before...I apologize but review is always good, right? :)
Here are some ways I communicate with my parents:
Daily, I communicate with my parents through our homework folder. My students bring their homework folders to and from school everyday and inside my parents find a homework sheet, newsletters, homework, memos, and checked work.
When they sign their child's folder, I know they have seen their child's work. Often they will write me notes if they need to or jot down questions on the homework sheet. It's a casual way to communicate. And even though email is probably one of my favorite ways to communicate with parents, we stay so busy that I don't always get to check my email until later in the day.
Here is peek inside our homework folders. (You can find my left and right homework folder stickers in my store.)
Here is a template for my HAS or my homework assignment sheet. Please feel free to use it as needed, just click on the words to edit and change it to your classroom needs. This year I have been using Primary Punch's 25 Literacy Handouts for my parents. They are full of valuable information, easy to understand, super cute, and they are free! I print them out by printing four pages to one sheet of paper and I attach them to my homework sheet, kind of like a post-it note!
Every Monday, we send home our Communicator Folders. (I was smiling as I read The Super Sparkly Teacher's post because we use those same exact folders!) They ARE awesome folders to use and I wish our school had the money to purchase them as homework folders, too. (Maybe our homework folder would last a lot longer! Ha!)
You can download a copy of the cover I use for my communicator folder if you would like a copy. Just click on the photo below!
Here are some other ways we communicate with our parents!
We send home two postcards a week for our students and parents! My parents LOVE LOVE LOVE this!! "There is MAGIC in the MAIL!" (A direct quote from my principal!) And it's true. My parents always come to tell me how much they appreciate getting a postcard from the teacher. One of my parents said she was going to be "framing that one!"
It most certainly takes a village!! Another thing that our parents like are the Make and Take sessions we have during our PTA nights. Since we have PTA once a month, we have a make and take event for our students and their parents. Sometimes we create a game, experiment, or activity that parent can take home to complete, practice, or play with their child. The entire session may last 20 minutes but it can have a lot of impact over time.
During our time with our parents and students, we explain what we are doing, why we are doing it, and how to assemble and use it. Our most important goal is to give our parents tools and resources to use with their children.
Communication is important and we have to communicate with our parents. What are some of the ways you communicate with your parents? I would love to hear some of your great and creative ideas!! Just comment below!
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