Parent Engagement in Early Learning: Strategies for Working with Families

by Julie Powers

Overview

This second edition of Parent-Friendly Early Learning brings to life real scenarios that care providers face in today's world. We know parent engagement is important for a child's success, but how do you turn parent-provider relationships into partnerships? Learn how to improve parent-teacher communication, deal with family issues and special complications, and how to work with the modern family.

Julie Powers has worked with children, families, educators, and communities for over forty years. She started preschool programs at the Dodge Nature Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, an inclusion-based program for Catalina Foothills School District in Tucson, Arizona, and was a consultant for the Air Force Child Development Centers. She has taught at colleges across the country and is currently an associate professor of early childhood education at University of Hawaii Maui College.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781605544380
Publisher:	Redleaf Press
Publication date:	03/29/2016
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	184
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Julie Powers has worked with children, families, educators, and communities for over 40 years. She started preschool programs at the Dodge Nature Center in St Paul, MN, an inclusion-based program for Catalina Foothills School District in Tucson, AZ, and was a consultant for the Air Force Child Development Centers. Mrs. Powers has taught at colleges across the country and is currently an associate professor of early childhood education at University of Hawaii Maui College.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Developing Relationships with Families 11

Scenario 1 "What Is Going On at School?," or Building Trust 20

Scenario 2 Fear of Men, Strangers, and Dangerous Persons, or the Boogeyman 25

Scenario 3 The Parent Who Drains You, or "Excuse me, but I have some children here who need my attention." 28

Chapter 2 Communicating with Families 33

Scenario 4 Recommending a Child for Assessment, or "What is wrong with Tim?" 46

Scenario 5 When Parents Don't Read Your Newsletters, or "Why didn't you tell me she has a field trip today?" 51

Chapter 3 Policies That Work for Families and Staff 57

Scenario 6 Parents Who Don't Follow School Rules, or "But we're special!" 66

Scenario 7 Fear of Health Problems Part 1, or the Sun Devil 71

Scenario 8 Fear of Health Problems Part 2, or Typhoid Mary 76

Scenario 9 The Parent Who Won't Leave, or "How can I miss you when you won't say good-bye?" 81

Scenario 10 The Late Parent, or "Is it 6:15 already?" 88

Scenario 11 The Parent Who Wants Special Treatment, or "If it's not too much trouble…" 92

Scenario 12 The Child with Special Needs, or "Why didn't you tell us?" 96

Chapter 4 Finding Common Values between Home and School 101

Scenario 13 When Beliefs from Home and the Program Don't Match, or Holidaze 106

Scenario 14 Controlling Pretend Play, or "Not my son!" 111

Scenario 15 Fear of Losing Influence over One's Own Child, or "Whose child is this, anyway?" 115

Scenario 16 Separating Twins, or "Why can't my boys be together?" 120

Chapter 5 Child Development Issues 125

Scenario 17 Taking School Toys Home, or "My little Jesse James" 130

Scenario 18 The Parent Who Personalizes Her Child's Rejection, or "Then you can't come to my birthday party." 134

Scenario 19 The New School Year, or "Where are my daughter's friends?" 139

Scenario 20 The Child Who Can Do No Wrong, or "Not my baby!" 144

Chapter 6 Involving Your Director to Work Well with Families 149

Scenario 21 Not Really Toilet Trained, or "Oops! Not again!" 159

Scenario 22 When a Child Reports an Event to Parents Incorrectly, or "I want to talk to the parents about what really happened!" 164

Checklist for Analyzing Scenarios 171

References and Recommended Readings 173

Editorial Reviews

"Strategies indeed! Julie Powers anticipates most dilemmas that come up between teachers and with parents and offers helpful ways to think through what to do in the moment and how to build strong relationships before and after a dilemma might emerge. I especially like how with each scenario she helps the reader identify the problem, be self-aware, and consider the parent’s perspective." — Margie Carter, best-selling author of Design's for Living and Learning

"From developing and enforcing new policies and understanding the modern family's special concerns and challenges to using social media and developing or revising school or classroom policies, this encourages teachers to understand and tackle the basics of communicating with parents. The addition of case history examples makes for a specific, important guide especially recommended for teachers who find parents challenging and who want to craft better lines of communication with improved results for all."
—California Bookwatch

"Thoroughly 'user friendly' in commentary, organization and presentation, Parent Engagement in Early Learning: Strategies for Working with Families is very highly recommended for academic library Professional Development and Parent Participation reference collections and supplemental studies curriculums."
— Midwest Book Review

From the Publisher