Parent School Partnership
Below are some of the suggestions for schools working with parents. These ideas are collated from the Fun with Phonics, Phase 1 INSETs that were held at the end of January 2007. Perhaps these suggestions need to be considered along with other areas of the curriculum and other year groups.
Communicating the changes in phonics teaching to parents and supporting them to help their children:
Newsletters
- In community languages
- With information on the sounds children are learning
- Occasionally include activities that could be carried out at home
Meetings/Curriculum Evenings
- Involve bilingual practitioners if available
- Workshops
- Termly – work with your child session
- Reception have meetings with parents with a focus on phonics
Resources for Parents
- DVD / Cd of songs rhymes and letter sounds (to buy?)
- Story / game sacks (possibly with translations in home languages)
- Books with tapes / CDs in home languages and English available to borrow
- Song sheets sent home
- Picture cards including captions in English and community language and related questions on back
School / setting website
- Activities section
- Making songs and rhymes – to print off but perhaps audio files as well
- List of useful websites
Displays
- Display boards with annotated examples and photographs of activities happening within the setting
- Posters (Basic Skills Agency)
- Poster informing parents including sounds, key vocabulary, games that parents could play at home
- Signs and labels in home / community languages
Family learning
- Basic skills agency:
- Keeping up with the children
- Talk to me
Involving parents
- Stay and play
- Inviting parents to action songs and rhymes sessions
- Open days (sessions) for parents
How are parents contributing to the children’s profiles re: CLL development?
- Evaluation sheet with story / game sacks
- Informal interaction with parents; talking about what they have been doing at home, at the weekend
- Through parent meetings
- Home-school visits
