Parent Involvement in Early Childhood Education

							Parent Involvement in
   Early Childhood
     Education
Family Involvement in
 Education Makes A
Difference In School
      Success –
     Start Now !
 Research Shows Parent
  Involvement Makes A
       Difference
• Helps Children get ready to enter
  school
• Promotes School Success
• Prepares Youth for College
• Promotes Success in Adult Life
      What Can I Do
       At Home?
• Look for everyday learning opportunities at home
• Talk, using complex words and sentences
• Read to your young children every day
• Have books in your home, provide an example –
  read for pleasure
• Teach them to identify letters and numbers
• Connect printed words and letters to sounds
     What Can I Do
      At Home?
• Name, count, sort household objects
• Explore the world of nature with your
  child
• Provide consistent routines and discipline
• Monitor and limit “screen time”
• Name feelings and talk about how you
  handle them.
 What About When My
 Child Starts School?
• Seek out quality preschool experiences, check out
  the staff, their credentials, the discipline policy
  and whether the program is accredited
• Volunteer in the classroom and for any policy
  making committees
• Attend parent-teacher conferences
• Communicate regularly with staff
• Voice your concerns and express your thanks
What More Can I Do
 To Be Involved?
• Take parent education programs in the
  community or in-home, if offered
• Attend parent-child activity groups, if
  offered by your school, library, etc.
• Access other community resources if your
  family needs help
   What About Dads?
• Two involved parents are better than one!
• Research shows positive outcomes for
  school success and social adaptation when
  dads are involved
• Other males can take on these roles
    Different Parenting
          Styles
• Moms and Dads tend to have different
  parenting styles
• Father is more likely to be playful, to
  encourage risk taking and not as quick to
  intervene in the face of child’s frustration.
• Mother is more likely to provide physical
  care, more likely to stress emotional
  security and personal safety, quicker to
  intervene in child’s frustration.
Positive Outcomes When
   Dads Are Involved
• Better grades at school
• More likely to enjoy school
• More likely to participate in
  extracurricular activities
• Less likely to repeat a grade
• Less likely to be truant or to be expelled
• These positive outcomes continue: less
  delinquency, delayed sexual activity,
  increased empathy and pro-social behavior
     What Keeps Parents
     From Being Involved?
•   Time
•   Culture / Personality
•   Parents own history at school
•   Uncertainty
•   Some schools may not welcome parents
•   May be other issues for dads:
    – Staff may seem to prefer or expect to work with mom
    – More school staff are women
    – More boys have difficulties at school
    National PTA Standards
    for Parent Involvement
•   Communication
•   Parenting
•   Student learning
•   Volunteering
•   School decision making & advocacy
•   Collaborating with the community
             Summary
The research shows that family involvement in early
childhood education makes a difference in school
success and throughout life
Look for everyday learning experiences in the home.
Sign up for home visiting programs, parent education
and parent support programs, parent-child activity
groups, etc.
Be involved in your child’s preschool program
Male involvement is important in a child’s development
Stay involved in your child’s education from Pre-K - 12
             References
• “Early Childhood Standards of Quality for
  Prekindergarten” Michigan State Board of
  Education. March 8, 2005
• “Family Involvement in Early Childhood Education”
  Harvard Family Research Project. Spring, 2006
• “Father Presence / Father Involvement”
  Minnesota Institute of Public Health.
• “Father Facts” National Fatherhood Initiative.
  2002 www.fatherhood.org
• “Parent Guides” #18 & #19, Michigan Department
  of Education. www.michigan.gov/mde
                                  Prepared by:
                                  Mike Acosta, School Social Worker
                                  Wexford Missaukee I.S.D.
                                  macosta@wmisd.org