Engaging with Parents
Active involvement of parents at the preschool level and primary grades gives parents a unique opportunity to grow in their role as teachers and decision makers. Parents have a powerful role to play by helping with instruction at school and in the home. They can also influence learning by providing input into decisions regarding their child’s learning from prekindergarten through college.
In order to be effective advocates and advisors for their children, parents and teachers need to establish a working relationship together that is based on mutual respect and trust. This is built upon the recognition of the role of parents as teachers in the home and supporters of the best possible educational experience.
The Semillitas de Aprendizaje Cartitas Series – Letters Home with Family Activities series is designed as a companion piece to the Semillitas de Aprendizaje books – fostering school-family partnerships around storybooks that speak to children. Building stronger teacher, child and family relationships is a pillar of IDRA’s classrooms of excellence model. Through this model, parents are recognized as full partners in their children’s education and valued first teachers.
Each of the 20 Cartitas (10 English, 10 Spanish) is organized around themes and activities that arise from the bilingual big book stories and small math and self-concept books (García & Rodríguez, 2011) and is designed for early childhood educators to send home to families.
