Engaging Families (Mixed Age)

Family engagement and connecting with the community is an important tool that teachers can use. When engaging with families, keep the following things in mind especially with those with multiple children.

1. Create projects that include all grade-levels. When creating and setting up projects, keep in mind that some parents have multiple children in the house and may not be able to provide the one on one support for a special project. When making projects, note that the more age-friendly based it is, the more participation you will get.
2. Set up a mock student schedule for parents. Parents may come to you and ask what you think a good schedule is for their students. To make the transition easier, create an ideal one for your parents who are at home or working. Include breaks, free time, as well as time dedicated to a specific schedule.
3. Create a contact matrix/support list. Contact and support lists are important to have in emergencies, but also on a daily basis for your parents to have off hand. Creating something like the one below allows parents to have a paper copy off hand. 
   

   Situation	Person to Contact
   Laptop/Device isn't working	District IT Department Email@email.com 555-555-0123
   Concern about student	Teacher or Counselor Email@email.com 555-555-0123
   General Questions	Program Director Email@email.com 555-555-0123

4. Parent Tips or FAQ. If you or your students are new to online learning, they may have questions regarding the transition or just how you run your classroom. To alleviate some worry, create an FAQ page or file that you can share with your parents of the most common questions that they have. You might want to include some website tutorials, log in information as well as some of the contacts from your support list.