There’s a hopeful tone to the beginning of each school year. Like the optimism surrounding the New Year, everyone believes in and is working toward positive change. But much like those resolutions to lose weight or stop smoking, there’s a lot of hard work involved in exacting necessary change. Experts recommend having an accountability partner when it comes to creating healthy habits, and it’s no different in our schools.
The phrase “it takes a village” exists for a reason; it requires teamwork and community to help a child reach their potential. Keeping parents and other stakeholders in the loop is an integral part of creating the kind of community that keeps students safe and helps them flourish. Open communication is the key to welcoming parents into our village and inviting them to be accountability partners.
Help parents by educating them on what happens in your school, how and why you want them involved, and what they can do at home with students to work toward common academic goals. By bridging the gap between school and home, parents feel more at ease and are more likely to get involved when they know what’s going on in the classrooms. Some great ideas for opening lines of communication are:
There is a plethora of information to disseminate to families and sharing it in a timely fashion is key to successful school-to-home communication. When parents feel like a part of the decision-making body, they’re more apt to take active roles in their students’ learning. It is up to school leaders to create a welcoming “open door policy” that supports the idea of parents as accountability partners. So, how do we make that happen without losing our mind?! By using a single platform like ZippSlip.
ZippSlip offers mobile and online tools that are so easy to use you almost don’t expect much from the seemingly simplistic applications. But don’t underestimate its power! ZippSlip has the ability to send mass digital communications, collect and secure critical student information like medical and enrollment documents, connect with your existing student information system, and more! If our goal is to engage and include families, we must give them every opportunity to be involved in their student’s education. It’s quick and easy to provide those opportunities with ZippSlip.
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