Parent Involvement
By Sharman Poplava, Executive Director TEACH Foundation
Do you want to get involved in your child’s school and don’t know how?
There are numerous ways to get connected, share your talents and abilities, and support your child’s learning. One of the most popular avenues is through the school’s PTO. These groups welcome other parents and caregivers who can help with school needs. Consider being a classroom volunteer who assists the teacher with daily tasks and materials. Sign up to mentor or tutor a student at your child’s school.
If you work during the day or juggle more than 1 job, you may need an opportunity that allows you some flexibility. Here are some ways you can participate in your child’s school:
• Volunteer to assist on state testing days
• Like books? Read aloud in class or help as a library assistant
• Chaperone a trip
• Help children with special needs
• Are you musical? Help with the band and offer your musical abilities
• Be a lunchroom or playground monitor
• Help plan or work school events and activities
• Do you have a special interest or ability? If the topic isn’t currently available to students, offer to help get a club/group started
• Help the principal prepare grant proposals and fundraising requests
• Are you a whiz at social media? Help the principals with Facebook posts and photos and update websites
• If you have a field of expertise or job that you’d like to share, volunteer to speak in the classroom or at a career day
• If you’re artistic and crafty, help with decorations at the school, in the classrooms and at events
In Hartsville, the PULSE programs offer a way for parents to get involved through the Comer School Development (SDP) Parent Team. The SDP is implemented at Southside Early Childhood Center, Thornwell School for the Arts, Washington Street, and West Hartsville schools. Each school’s Parent Team promotes at-school family involvement through the Comer process of child development.
To get started with any of these ideas, contact your child’s teacher or principal and ask how you can get involved. If you have time to give, the principal will find the right fit for you. Just being a presence at your child’s school is being a role model and can be a great way to communicate that education is important. Any time you have to give to your child’s school is time well spent.
One of the simplest things you can do that takes little time is to be the school’s advocate. We work better as a team and your school needs you to be on the team. Working together is more productive than anything else you can do. Talk to other parents and encourage them to attend school events. Call the school when you have a question or concern and stay informed by using the school district’s website.
To learn more about the TEACH Foundation’s Partners for Unparalleled Local Scholastic Excellence (PULSE) programs, visit www.teachfoundation.org
Sharman Poplava, is the Executive Director of the TEACH Foundation