Communication Tips for Parents

Forming a positive collaborative relationship between home and school is a key element for your child’s academic, social and emotional success. To strengthen this home-EL Classroom communication and collaborative process:

• Communicate closely, openly and frequently with your child’s EL classroom teachers. Find out as much as you can about how your child is functioning in his/ her EL classroom and ways you can support him/ her at home.

• Ensure that your child is coming to his/ her EL classroom ready to learn with adequate sleep and prepared with books, materials and homework.

• Support English Language (EL) teachers in reinforcing appropriate behaviour and work production goals for your child.

• Contact EL teachers if your child is having any difficulty in language learning or if you have any concerns. It is important to resolve problems as soon as possible, and speaking with the EL teacher is an important first step.

• Join efforts with your child’s EL teacher in providing the best language learning environment and educational programmes for our children.

Homework Tips for Parents

Homework is an important part of reinforcing and extending what your child is learning in his/ her EL classrooms. There are a number of ways that you can help support your child in his/ her homework process and optimize the benefits of this substantial amount of language learning time:

• Establish a routine and schedule for homework (a specific time and place), and adhere to the schedule as closely as possible. Don’t allow your child to wait until the evening to get started.

• Choose a homework location that is quiet, with low traffic and few distractions, but accessible and easy for you to be able to monitor homework production, if your child needs this.

• Limit distractions int eh home during homework hours (reducing unnecessary noise, activity and phone calls, and turning off the TV).

• Provide healthy snacks and build in study breaks during the homework process.

• Assist your child in getting started on EL assignments (for example, reading the instructions together, doing the first item together, observing as your child does the next question on his or her own). Monitor and give feedback without doing all the work together. You want your child to attempt as much as possible independently.

• Use a timer if your child has difficulty staying on the language learning task. Often a ‘beat-the-clock’ system is effective in motivating your child to complete the task before the timer goes off.

• Praise and compliment your child when he or she puts forth good effort to complete his or her language learning tasks with accuracy and neatness. In a supportive and non-critical manner, it is appropriate and helpful to assist in pointing out and making some corrections of errors on the homework. It is not your responsibility to make him/ her turn in a perfect homework.

• Help your child study for tests. Study together. Quiz your child in a variety of formats.

Questioning Tips for Parents

Asking good questions and being an active and thoughtful listener is important for building and maintaining those open lines of communication with your child.

Effective means of questioning your child include:

• Avoiding the ‘why’ questions (E.g., “Why …?”/ “Why did you do this/ that during your EL lesson?”) and typical queries (E.g., “How was your English lesson today?”/ “What did you learn in your English class today?”/ “How are you doing in your English class?”/ What is your favourite EL activity?”) which often cannot be answered or do little to elicit conversation or foster the kind of communication you would like to engage in with your child. Try instead: “What are you supposed to be doing right now?”/ “What is your plan to …?”/ “What do you need in order to get this done?”/ “How can I help you?”

• Asking questions that indicate clearly that you are interested in your child’s point of view: his or her feeling, thoughts, and perception of things.

• Framing questions that help your child develop in their problem-solving skills and to learn more responsible behavior. For instance: “How do you think we might solve this problem or answer this question?” / “Are there any other possible solutions/ answers that you can think of?”/ “What would happen if you tried …?” / “What would be an appropriate consequence for …?” / “You’re welcome to A or B. What’s your choice?”

Tips for Dealing with Challenging or Difficult Kids

The following tips may be useful for parents working with struggling kids:

- Take time to actively listen to the child. Be attentive. Listen without interjecting your opinions. Avoid being judgmental. Ask a lot of open and clarifying questions. Rephrase and restate what was said.

- Affirm and acknowledge your child’s feelings. Show care and empathy. For instance:  “I see you’re upset.”/ “I understand that you are angry now.”/ “I can see why you would be frustrated.”

- Use the word however and nevertheless - for example, “I understand you are feeling… However …” or “That may be so. Nevertheless …”

- Work together on establishing goals and identifying positive reinforcers that will be meaningful and motivating to your child.

- Teach problem-solving strategies – for example, identifying the problem, brainstorming possible solutions, evaluating pros and cons, choosing one and trying it, reviewing effectiveness, and trying another if it was not working.

Adapted from How to Reach and Teach All Children in the Inclusive Classroom by Sandra F. Rief and Julie A. Heimburge (2006). Page 126 to 127, 146 to 147, 168 and 196.