Weblog

Nothing is more important to a student’s success in school than the involvement of his or her family.

Our twins are just nine months old, so I have not had the opportunity yet to participate as a parent in our schools—something I am looking forward to in another six years or so. I have, however, spent time in our schools, making presentations to classes and talking individually with students about civic participation and the legislative process. In talking with teachers about the challenges they face in today’s classrooms, parental involvement is often mentioned as a critical factor, and I hear from parents that they would like to get more involved but are just not sure how to do so.

Below are some links with tips on how you can get involved and help your child or grandchild succeed in school. Here are a few tips I think are particularly helpful:

Getting Involved in Washoe County Schools

Washoe County School District—You can get information about how to get involved in your child’s or grandchild’s school, get information on the curriculum and school policies and get tips for helping with homework by visiting www.washoe.k12.nv.us/parents.

School Superintendent Heath Morrison will be hosting a series of “Brown Bag” lunches with parents, business leaders and others interested in participating in our schools. The current schedule for these meetings is:

• Noon to 1 p.m. Sept. 8, Parasol Tahoe Community Foundation, 948 Incline Way, Incline Village.
• Noon to 1 p.m., Nov. 18, National Automobile Museum, 10 S. Lake St.
• Noon to 1 p.m., Jan. 6, Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows, 2680 E. 9^th Street
• Noon to 1 p.m. Feb. 3, Neil Road Recreation Center, 3925 Neil Road
• Noon to 1 p.m., March 3, McKinley Arts & Culture Center, 925 Riverside Drive
• Noon to 1 p.m. April 7, Sun Valley Neighborhood Center, 115 W. 6th St., next to the Sun Valley Pool.

You can get more information on these events by calling the WCSD Parent Involvement Office at 775-353-5533 or by e-mailing parentinvolvement@washoe.k12.nv.us.

Education Alliance of Washoe County, Inc. is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster partnerships between schools, parents, businesses and community leaders. Their website, www.ed-alliance.org has news of events and links to useful publications.

Other Resources

Nevada State Parent Information and Resource Center (PIRC)—PIRC’s website has a wide variety of suggestions of activities parents and grandparents can do with their children. Their website is www.nevadapirc.org.

Parent Teacher Association—the National PTA has tips on helping students with homework, instilling a love for reading, and working with teachers to help your student succeed. Visit www.pta.org/topic_student_success.asp.

US Department of Education—For a series of online brochures on topics ranging from helping your students with science and math to getting prepared for college, visit www.ed.gov/parents.

New Legislation to Help You Participate in School

The 2009 Legislature enacted a new law requiring businesses with 50 or more employers to provide their employees up to four hours of unpaid leave a year to attend school activities or to volunteer in their children’s school. For more information on how this law works, visit www.leg.state.nv.us or call or email me and I will send you a copy of the legislation.

School Safety—Protecting Kids on the Way to School

Making sure our kids are safe as they go to and from school is critical. The Legislature enacted a law in 2007 that gives school police the authority to issue traffic citations around schools for speeding, double parking and parking in “No Parking” zones.

If your child walks to school, be sure you have chosen the safest route. Make sure your child does not deviate from this route.

Posted in General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.