Be sure to attend this and your parent/teacher conference. As a prior classroom teacher, teachers do form opinions of students and their parents based upon their involvement. You want to know what’s happening in your child’s classroom, show up with questions in hand. Keep in mind the teacher’s time. Often times, parents show up during class time or without an appointment. Most teachers are flooded with meetings, documentation, grading, classroom upkeep and more. So, ask your child’s teacher when and how (try email) they can keep up communication with you about your child’s educational performance.
2.Standards
Know the California Educational State Standards for your child's grade. This information can be found at http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/ If your child's teacher is not teaching in accordance with the standards, be sure to supplement your child's education at home. McGraw-Hill publishes books called California Standards Practice with diagnostic and summative assessments. The books can be obtained via http://www.SRAonline.com
3. Schedule
Contact the teacher in the beginning of each school semester and find out if there's already a schedule of tests and quizzes. Get an idea of the teacher's schedule. Are there math tests every week? What will your child be tested on (text, in class lecture, labs)? What resources might be helpful to help your child succeed? How and when will your child know about tests and quizzes? How are tests graded and are there rubrics used for grading purposes?
4. Monitor
Continually monitor your child's work and progress. Your child may say he or she understands, but periodically make sure. Texts are generally written with guided learning in the beginning of each lesson. Go through the guided learning examples with your child. Pay special attention to ensuring your child knows the vocabulary, regardless of the subject. Reading comprehension is greatly enhanced if your child knows relevant vocabulary. Houghton Mifflin has Vocabulary Readers available online. Check your child' s understanding of reading material by asking open ended questions like, "Does this character remind you of anyone you know?" Or, ask your child where you would place a plant to help it grow using photosynthesis.
5. Keeping Up
Find out, based on your child’s initial performance (most teachers will assess students in the first couple weeks of school) what areas your child excels at and the areas your child needs improvement. If your child is performing below grade level, the teacher should inform you. Teachers generally document communication with parents. If your child is falling behind, you can seek a help at http://www.accreditedtutors.com There are also educational television shows teaching a wide variety of subjects from math to astronomy on Instructional Television (ITV), channel 16.
6. Friends
Find a way to meet your child’s friends. You want to know who’s influencing your child, educationally and socially. Whether you meet your child’s friends one on one or have a party, stay informed and involved in your child’s life. School resources, including information on social programs available at each school, is available through the San Diego County Education website at http://www.sdcoe.net/ Links to each public school in San Diego County are also provided via this site.
7. Organization
Help your child develop and routine and a sensible system for keeping his school work organized.
Give your child a snack and about 30 minutes of down time before starting homework. Use this time to set up a plan for tackling schoolwork. Find out what homework and tests there are during this time. Each week take the following steps to stay organized.
- Have a designated spot your child keeps his or her backpack and school work/supplies as well as a designated quiet area for school work.
- Keep a separate folder for homework due and a separate folder for items to be sent home to parents.
- Use backpacks with multiple pockets/sections (one for pencils, one for keys or money, one for folders, one for books).
- Have an “in box” or a place where your child can put items for your review (school announcements).
- Help your child clean out his or her backpack at the end of each week to avoid clutter.
8. Brain Food
Make sure your child has a breakfast with protein and carbohydrates to keep them full and able to concentrate on their studies. Pack and healthy and nutritious lunch or see what healthy choices are offered in the school cafeteria. Educate your child about the importance of eating healthy and how what they eat can help them perform better in class as well as in sports. There are many statistics available online to show important vitamins, like iron, necessary to learn well and improve memory. Nutritional information is available via http://www.fns.usda.gov/FNS/nutrition.htm
9. Attitude
Talk to your child about what was fun or interesting about his or his day. Get your child excited about learning and see if some of the school projects can involve your child’s interests. A fun book for younger students is First Day Jitters, by Julie Danneberg. The story is about a girl who feels anxious and curious about school and classmates. The reader find out at the end of the story, the anxious and curious girl is really the teacher! School can seem like a judgemental place where your child is constantly being graded. Reward your child's successes with systems like earning five A's equals a special outing. No matter how your child is doing in school, be sure to emphasize what he or she is achieving. Self esteem helps students maximize performance!
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