As a parent, I want to do all I can for my child to succeed. This is the sentiment of every parent, even for families in need of the most support. We are central in ensuring positive attendance, behavior, and academic outcomes and when asked, families can and do meet the mark. This is especially true when we see and feel the caring connection our educators have for our children. This is where my story begins.
My child has learning differences, and his 504 helps support his behavior challenges in the classroom. His teacher and I collaborated at the start of the school year and established a daily communication log aligned to support behavior goals. I appreciate the communication deeply, although if I am being honest, the frequent negative messages about the challenging behavior leave me with a desperate desire to defend and support my child. My child too is also impacted, less eager to go to school, more frustrated with his teacher and me and we start our morning in battle mode, with attendance and behavior outcomes jeopardized.
As a family engagement professional, I know I must initiate and serve as an active team member with my child’s teacher, who knowingly works very hard for my child and the other 28 kids in the classroom. As an initiator, my ask to the teacher was simple, what is my child doing well with a request to balance the feedback with the positives. His teacher agreed and now our communication log includes the positives. I can tell you; the simple shift is palpable.
Knowing my child’s teacher sees his strengths and not just his challenges, leaves me with a hopeful feeling and too, a deeper connection to my child’s teacher. The positive messages allow me to praise my child and reinforce his connection with his teacher while also encouraging my child’s growth. My child is also more eager to go to school. Overall, my engagement is strengthened, my son is more motivated, and the teacher is seeing less behavior challenges, making her job more seamless.
So, here is my call to action. If your school values the power of family engagement knowing its impact on academic, behavior and attendance outcomes, give positive feedback, especially when there are challenges and concerns. It is a simple sandwich equation. First share positive feedback on a child’s progress and efforts before leaning into the growth areas or addressing challenging behaviors and ALWAYS end with a positive note of hope and partnership!
Seeing the best in people despite our flaws is a win-win, especially in our family engagement efforts. I invite you and your fellow teachers to see the assets in students and families. Allow those assets to drive the work. I promise you, positive academic, behavior, and attendance outcomes will benefit.
If you are looking for support on your school’s family engagement efforts, please contact me, Andrea Summers, Family & Community Partnership Liaison. Whether through workshops, assessment of current practices and resources to support the work, I am here to assist. Reach out to [email protected] for more information.
Andrea Summers serves as the Family & Community Partnership Liaison on the SOS Team at the ESC of Central Ohio. With more than 20 years’ experience as an educator and administrator in Out-of-School Time (OST) and co-curricular and experiential learning programs, Andrea's expertise will guide districts in implementing effective family engagement and community partnerships strategies. Andrea will work with districts and schools to promote and embed effective systems that serve all youth, but specifically our community’s most vulnerable (i.e. those experiencing homelessness, in foster care, English learners, those with disabilities, migrant, military and justice involved). Andrea holds an M.S. in Nonprofit Management, with a concentration on Education Policy, from The New School in NYC. She earned her B.A. from Antioch College in Sociology/Anthropology with a focus on Education. She is certified in Adaptive Schools & Cognitive Coaching through Thinking Collaborative.