1. Model in the classroom that all students matter and that differences are what make people special.
2. Be friendly and welcoming towards all students and their families.
3. Remember to understand that parents might experience a learning curve when dealing with new experiences or materials.
4. Encourage families to participate in class volunteer times and be engaged in their children’s learning.
5. Allow parents to feel comfortable enough to reach out and ask any questions that are on their minds.
6. Remember that each student is different and that not every method or instructional tactic will work the same for each student.
7. Remember that not all families have the same means …show more content…
The first way is to create a friendly and welcoming demeanor in the classroom. I will do this by sending out a summer welcome letter to my students and their families. I want to start off the year by introducing myself and inviting the families to come see the classroom before the first day of class. This will allow me to get to know the families and allow them to get comfortable with me too. The second way will be to provide opportunities for the families to get involved right away. I want to be open with the families, so that they know what to expect when they volunteer. I am hoping that once they volunteer they will want to be more involved with their child’s education. I want to allow all families to have a chance to volunteer, if they have the time and if they want to volunteer. I will have a sign up list posted in my classroom. The sign up list will have a list of activities and different time slots that a family member could sign up for. The third way will be to send out reports every other week about the student’s weekly activities. I want to provide families with the knowledge of how their student is doing in school. I hope that families will see the effort that I am putting forth in their child’s education and hopefully, they put forth the same effort with their own child. I will have 2-3 different categories on the report. The 1st category will be a …show more content…
Darling (2005) says “because of these contrasting perspectives of family life, any definition of what constitutes a family would be arbitrary.” I need to remember that every family is different which in turn means that every student will be different. It is important that I make an effort to get to know each of my families. Scully, Barbour and Roberts-King (2015) say “getting to know families is the way to understand and appreciate what they provide for their children and their hopes for them (p.82).” Knowing my families will help me not make assumptions about their lives. I need make sure that I don’t make assumptions about families because that will harm the relationships that I might build with them. I need to remember that every family might not have the same amount of leisure time with their child, or the same amount of resources. These are all importance aspects to remember whenever I am doing anything in my classroom. I should not make assumptions about how much time a student will have to do homework with their family, or if they will be able to afford more expensive classroom materials, or fieldtrips. The early childhood sector needs to build on current knowledge and practice and embrace new approaches if it is to remain relevant to the families it serves (Hadley, 2012). Overall, it is important to remember that I will get all types of families and students in my classroom