parents

A quality early childhood program values daily interactions with parents. We may see parents at arrival and dismissal. Then, there are phone calls and emails. We understand the value of connecting with families and caregivers because we know that these connections are essential for everyone’s success.

We have all experienced the parent or caregiver who is unhappy. They don’t understand the work we are doing, appreciate the curriculum, or see that their child is learning and growing. They claim they have no idea what is happening in the class, that no one tells them what is going on. Though we feel that we are doing our best, this parent is unhappy and is threatening to take their child out of the program.

If we have a child who seems unhappy, disconnected, or uneasy, we know what to do. We know that children are individuals, each with a unique way of approaching the world. We know that children have learning styles. What we also know is that parents and caregivers have learning styles, too. Are we communicating at some parents instead of communicating with them? The good news is that it is relatively easy to figure out someone’s learning style. Carefully observe what the person does and says as carefully as you observe and listen to a child.

These learning styles are: visual, auditory, tactile/kinesthetic, and mixed modality.

Visual learners learn by seeing.

They:

• want photos and visual demonstrations,
• read the articles you give out on development and curriculum,
• want a visually stimulating classroom environment filled with children’s work,
• make eye contact and can be impatient if they must listen for too long,
• write things down,
• and/or may not express emotions, but their facial expressions are usually good indicators of their feelings.

Auditory learners learn by hearing. They thrive on conversation and group discussion and do best when they can talk a problem out.                                                                             They:

• remember what was discussed,
• may not make eye contact, but they’re listening,
• will ask a lot of questions, enjoy listening but also need to talk,
• brainstorm and negotiate,
• verbally express their emotions and may seem loud and aggressive,
• will, when given time to speak (and when someone is really listening) will calm down and be open to a discussion,
• and/pr may have little awareness of the aesthetics of the classroom.

Tactile/Kinesthetic learners learn by action and touch.

They:

• will remember best what was done or experienced, not necessarily what they have seen or heard,
• need multi-dimensional presentations,
• need something in their hands during presentations or discussions,
• when speaking, may fidget and use their whole body to communicate,
• will touch your arm, give you a hug, or even stamp their foot,
• and/or their emotions show in their body language.

Communicating with parents and caregivers with an understanding of their different learning styles has implications for every aspect of school communication:

Consider that and take a step back. Take the time to really get to know them. Have a face-to-face meeting. Tone of voice cannot always be accurately conveyed in an email. When you meet, don’t interrupt. Let the person speak. Listen and observe. Ask for clarification and allow them to elaborate on their thoughts and feelings. Ask what they need.

There can be many reasons parents are not as connected with us as we would wish. We don’t need to make it more difficult. We are all here to do this sacred work together, in partnership. It is the only way we will succeed.

Written by Idie Benjamin and Dale Side Cooperman for TABPP, a Torahaura Production, Edited by Dale Sides Cooperman for ECE-RJ UNITE

Director of Early Childhood Education

Congregation Albert Early Childhood Center

Albuquerque, MN

This year I begin my 18^th year of teaching preschool. And while much has changed in the past 18 years, as the adage goes, the more things change, the more they remain the same!

I took a year off last year to be with my own children as their school did not return to in-person learning until April. I was confident that when I returned to teaching this fall, things would be back to “normal.” Sadly, with the new Delta variant and breakthrough vaccination cases, many of the protocols and safeguards we created last year are still in place this school year. One of those safeguards was not having parents drop off their children in the classroom. Schools implemented this safeguard differently, in our school children are dropped off in front of the school office. Because of this, as teachers, we are only able to briefly communicate with parents and the parents cannot see the classroom daily. This presents a problem.  How do you communicate with and stay connected to parents that you don’t get a chance to see regularly?

I have always been a teacher that enjoys communicating with parents. I like talking to parents at drop-off and pick-up. This practice allowed me to have a meaningful conversation with each parent at least once a week.

This year I will have to be more creative. Emails home will have to be more frequent, more detailed, and filled with more pictures. Instead of checking in with each parent face-to-face, individual emails will be written once a week. Even though the method of communication has to change, the reason for it has not.

 As early childhood educators, we know that we are partners with parents to help their children learn and grow. We also know that the stronger the relationship between the school and the parents, the better the outcome is for the child. So, although many things may look different this year, the relationships and connections we create remain just as important.

Lynn Thedell, Teacher
Congregation Beth Israel, San Diego, CA

Helping parents feel included provides the perfect school/home partnership we all know is key to student success.  

However, COVID-19 has brought new challenges for sharing classroom happenings with parents. The moment we decided that no adults other than staff would be in our building, it became apparent that we needed a new classroom communication strategy. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but pictures alone cannot give parents the information they desperately seek about what their children are doing at school. What packs the biggest punch? Try this three-pronged approach to helping parents feel knowledgeable and included.

Exhibit: Use visual documentation to capture the most important moments during the day. Children in action. (Building, listening, playing, and exploring). Choose to share moments that capture emotion. You can say they are having fun outside, but seeing it is especially important. Parents want to see their children engaged with other children; they need to see that their child has friends.

Elevate: Use keywords to emphasize what the picture is showing. “When children explore, they build higher-level thinking skills. This provides the pathways for more complex reasoning.”   “Playground time provides the perfect space for social and emotional growth. Taking turns, pretend play, and risk-taking are just a few examples of how important this time is for their overall growth.”

Educate:  Provide context for the picture by explaining how it fits into the overall curriculum. “We are learning about ____. Today we went outside and measured... and inside we....”  Describing how each piece of the day scaffolds in either topic or skill allows parents to feel like they are part of the learning. It also gives them ideas of how what they are doing at home contributes to their child’s learning.

This works best when teachers establish a consistent vocabulary of skills and development with parents. Here are common terms used to define developmentally appropriate learning:

• Social-emotional skills– building/regulating emotional responses, feels empathy, engages in play
• Cognitive skills -learning (academic foundations), thinking (infers information), problem-solving (poses questions and solutions)
• Language Development - express themselves, develop more complex vocabulary and sentence structure
• Physical Development - gross motor (building strength that allows greater movement and challenges), fine motor (pre-writing muscle development, smaller piece use and cutting)
• Multi sensory – using varied materials and engaging more than one sense

Jennie Rubin
Director of Early Childhood Education
Temple B’nai Or, Morristown, NJ

February 2021