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I have never seen a student led parent conference, but I really like the idea of it. When I had conferences with my teacher and my parents present, it was mostly the teachers talking about me in front of me, which damaged my self-esteem. When students show their work samples and explain them to others, I can imagine feeling a sense of pride in being able to voice what students learn, as opposed to hearing what teachers observe. I also read about something I find imperative when communicating with parents, which is Google SMS Translate, and other translating tools in order to communicate with parents who do not speak English. In the classroom, I have seen my mentor communicate with parents in a variety of ways. For instance, she keep parents informed daily on how their child is doing in school by using the Class Dojo app. In addition, when the teacher sends home student planners, if she needs to talk to parents, she will write a note in the planner. The parents will sign the note and write a response to it. Many of the parents send emails and use that as a big form of communication, as well. I think my first year as a teacher will go more smoothly having learned about ways to communicate with parents, especially because dealing with parents it probably what I find the most intimidating about being a teacher.

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One new idea that I learned about facilitating home-school communication is the weekly communication sheet, which is found in the power point. Although this may mean more work for a teacher, I think that a weekly communication sheet for each student is an awesome idea. I have noticed in my placement that things like this are only done for students with behavioral needs, but what about the other parents? There are more than likely other parents who would love updates on their children. This sheet is also a great way to document that the teacher did inform the parent of what is going on in the classroom.

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I like the idea of a student-led parent conference. Students are given the opportunity to present their progress and accomplishments to a more familiar and comfortable audience. Not only does this provide topics for discussion but give students confidence in the control of their own learning experiences when they are allowed an important role in a discussion about them. Students would be put on a equal level that shows them that their point of view, feelings, and experiences matter as they put it in their own words.

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One way I learned to facilitate home-school communication is to include an assignment for the children to complete involving their families. The Edutopia article suggested this activity. An assignment that would involve the students searching for information about their own families will promote the involvement of students' families and allows families to know what their students' are learning in school. I think these assignments would be engaging for students and families.

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I really liked the post card idea. I think having the teacher send home a post card to the student helps to foster a relationship before the student and the teacher even have chance of meeting each other. I remember when I use to receive post cards informing me of who my teacher was going to be for the year, however, I liked how the example from the power point was detailed and personal to the student.

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I like the idea of "Go Where the Parents Are". This idea promotes teacher involvement in things that parents are involved with outside of school. This idea has teachers taking the extra step to try to connect with parents to get them more involved in the school and classroom community. This includes getting on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to post about the skills that students are working on as well as the events going on in the school. I feel as if this would get parents more involved in their child's learning because it is more informal and less intimidating. Formal letters home might be intimidating and might strain a relationship in my opinion, so having more of a casual conversation with parents could help them become more involved.

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In the article "Edutopia-Home to School Guide", I really liked when they said "Go where your parents are". We often forget, as educators, that giving parents feedback on their students is just as important as it is to give our students feedback. We often overlook the communication we have with our students' parents. In this part of the article the author talked about how to connect to students in a way that the parents will understand and be able to access the information. The article suggests that schools and teachers turn to social media to get information out to parents because this is a common ground that most parents have. Additionally, social media can remove the language barrier that some families have. We, as educators, need to be just as invested in our families as we are our students because these groups of people are the center of these students lives.

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From the Edutopia PDF. Tip number 3 discusses using streaming video or video conferences to improve classroom/home communication. I think a great way to keep home/school involvement would be to set up a class site on which parents and teachers can communicate through video. If the teacher is not available the parent can leave a video message and the teacher can respond when available. Also the teacher could send home video homework assignments designed specifically for certain students. The parent and student would watch the video at home and maybe record themselves completing the assignment or open a discussion regarding the assignment.

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"As principal, your leadership will

ensure that these conferences achieve their maximum

potential." I think it is important that the conferences are more than just the parents and teachers. It is often thought of just the parent and teacher, but it is important for the teacher to feel that he/she is backed up by the principal if need be, but also that the principal makes an inviting environment for the parent/families. This is one area that is not emphasized during the education program, so this tips sheet is helpful, especially since we will have to be doing this next year.

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One of the resources that I explored talked particularly about how parent involvement and home-school communication can increase positive student behavior and attitudes toward learning and how home-based reinforcements can be beneficial for everyone involved. I have seen an example of this first hand in my field placement. A student in my class, who often has a hard time focusing in school and needs constant redirection was placed on a behavior chart by her parent in conjunction with her classroom teacher (the chart stays in her planner so no one but the teacher can see it). The teacher writes in the student's planner everyday about her work ethic for the day, her behavior, etc. and based on that, her parent will update her chart (there is an end goal/motivator set). I really like this because it allows the child to be accountable for her own actions and remember to work diligently!

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I really like the missing homework form. It is a great way to hold students accountable for completing the work, and it also involves the parents in a way that makes sure the work gets done. I have also seen the parent letters done in a classroom before, and I believe that is a great way to build a home-school community.

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The parent letter that is sent home on the first day of school. The letter has the class's daily schedule, the morning routine, volunteer opportunities, books/assignment rules.