Parents

Get Involved

Whether your child is starting kindergarten or entering their last year of elementary school, there are many opportunities to get involved at their school. Many children love to see their parents at school or at school events. If your child feels uncomfortable with your involvement, make it clear that you aren't there to spy but just to help out the school community. 

Some ways to get involved

1. Attend parent conferences

2. Chaperoning field trips

3. Read a book before bed each night

Parental involvement in homework has been found to have a positive impact if the parent does not display actions that are perceived to the child as controlling. It is best for parents to be involved with their kids in their schooling from the start, and not begin stepping in to help once the child is struggling.*

*Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01217/full#B51

Being on Time

Other than being sick, having your kids come to school on time shows dedication and interest to learn and succeed. When kids show up late or don't show this could lead to catching up in class work and could infer with learning.

Did you know?

1. The likelihood of success in learning is strongly linked to strong participation in school programs which is linked to arriving on time.

2. Class disruption can make your child feel uncomfortable.

Homework Expectations

It is beneficial to create a study environment that has no distractions such as TV or a cell phone, this way the child can focus their time on studying or doing some homework. Also, it is a good idea to be available nearby to help them understand the assignment instructions such as:

1. Establishing a routine (set ground rules like setting a time and space each day for them to start their homework).

2. Homework sessions (establish with your child how much homework they have and find a strategy that fits their needs to accomplish their school work. Starting at a young age on homework strategy will teach your kids to do homework independently later on).

3. Connect school to “Real World” (while helping your child with homework, it’s a good idea to talk about the importance of meeting deadlines of when homework is due just like a real job). 

Goal Setting

Showing your children that goal setting is encouraging but also can improve their confidence and build their self-esteem. Having them write down some goals can guarantee them to make better decisions & stay focused. 

1. Connect to your child about some goals you as a parent accomplished. Talk about how good it feels to accomplish a goal that you worked hard for. 

2. Create a chart for them so they can monitor their progress of how close they are to achieving it. 

3. Reward them when they do achieve their goal, this shows that they can do it. 

Modeling Good Behavior

Having a child learn good manners will help them become attentive as they get older, not only that parents love to hear from other parents, teachers, and the community how polite their children are.

Here are some ways to teach your children:

1. Always say please and thank you, by saying this your child will start duplicating your actions.

2. Clean up after yourself (after making a mess make sure you put your dishes in the dishwasher and trash in the garbage bin). 

3. Apologize, this shows empathy and taking responsibility for your actions.

4. Smile and have a good attitude! 

Household Rules

Household rules create clear boundaries of what is acceptable and what is not. Establishing clear rules is a simple way to reduce behavior problems and being consistent with your discipline. 

1. Rules that promote safety, such as sitting on the furniture only, no jumping or standing on top of it, also not answering the door when mom or dad is in the shower.

2. Post a chart of rules showing what each family member does for chores.

3. Develop healthy habits like teaching your child to brush their teeth after breakfast and before bed.

Quality Time

In our life we tend to get busy with work, driving our kids to and from extracurricular activities and we lose our quality time with our children.

Spending time with them helps:

1. Strengthens family bonds (families sharing everyday activities together).

2. Positive behaviors (spending time shows children to spend less time getting involved in risky behaviors).

3. Encourages communication (communicating with your child will allow them to create an environment for them to feel comfortable talking about situations).

Kindness and Respect

Being a role-model in kindness and respect will allow your child to want to be like you showing them how to talk to others and treating them how you want to be treated will impact their life, some examples are. 

1. Listen to what others have to say before expressing your viewpoint.

2. It provides a solid foundation for relationships.

3. How to be thankful.