It’s Time for a Parent Check-in

Are you doing okay parents?

As a retired teacher and principal, I value the role parents play in the education of their children. That is why I am a family engagement influencer. That is also why I share my mission to

ignite family engagement in education.

The role parents play in their child’s education has changed over the past several months. Things are very different for parents and all that they do to support their child’s education these days.

It’s really different.

Our Current Time

A lot of parents everywhere are extremely overwhelmed during the very difficult times that we currently live in.

Many are feeling hopeless because the steps that they take are moving in reverse order. They just can’t seem to move forward or make progress in their lives anymore. Some unhappy parents feel like a cloud of gloom and doom constantly overshadows them. Other melancholy parents feel like they are being consumed and sinking fast because the joy that each day used to bring has literally vanished.

These are very real emotions that confront mothers and fathers across the globe because of the stress brought on by the pandemic. Some of the troubling circumstances that have caused these savage emotions to remain very raw minute after minute, hour after hour, and day after day include:

• unemployment and significant financial loss;
• the inability to provide for the family along with the inability to pay the bills or to purchase enough food to sustain them;
• being filled with unstoppable with grief because of the loss of loved ones and friends due to the coronavirus;
• the lack of leisure time activities filled with opportunities for social bonding and simply celebrating with family members and friends; and
• managing household affairs compounded by working from home.

Educating children and youth has become one of the most difficult area of life for parents to navigate.

This is especially true for parents who have either made the decision or were forced to enroll their child in a full-time online program at home, at least for the time being, or enroll their child in a hybrid program so that part of their education is received at school and the rest is received at home.

Parents are now faced with much more stress-inducing challenges related to balancing and managing every detailed responsibility associated with their family life, their work-life, and their personal life with supervising their child’s education within the home.

As a family engagement influencer, I am concerned about the overall well being of parents. So, I am extending a lifeline to support them by checking in with them.

Parents, Are You Okay?

This section is written especially for parents.

I have several suggestions for you to help alleviate some of the stress that you are experiencing as it relates to your child’s current learning experience.

1. Be sure to keep the lines of communication open between you and your child’s teachers and the school leaders. It is important to read all the communications that they provide in emails, online messages, and letters as well as postcards. The same is true for telephone communications. Your child’s educators will help guide you and they will provide ideas for you to use as your child goes to school at home. Since it is okay if you get stuck and can’t help your child, it is also okay if you initiate the communication to get the clarification and help that you need. Educators will be happy to extend their assistance to you. This two-way communication will reinforce the reality that you and the teachers work together s a team to support your child’s learning.
2. If other parents and community members in your area have developed learning pods, get involved. Conduct an online search if you are unaware of any in your area. If there are other families from our school who are interested in this concept, be open to starting one so that you can share educational responsibilities with other parents. This will eliminate your feelings of isolation as you supervise your child’s learning at home.
3. Remember to stay organized. Things like maintaining a daily schedule of events including live lessons and a daily planner to help remember to complete special tasks and assignments will help your child remain focused and on-target with their school work.
4. Also related to organization is making sure that you keep a quiet and dedicate learning space for your child at home. This includes a place in that home that is free of distractions and has proper lighting. This also includes a space where all school supplies and materials are easily accessible for your child.
5. It is important to permit your child to take breaks throughout their school day at home. Providing your child with opportunities to receive fresh air and sunshine is important just as giving him or her a chance to exercise periodically. Activities like walking the dog, riding the bike or skateboard, and engaging in play during breaks will energize and refresh your child to embrace their educational tasks.
6. Take the lead in supervising your child’s sleep schedule each night. Just because they attend school at home does not mean that they should spend limitless amounts of time on their devices, watching television, or doing other things. If your child lacks an adequate amount of sleep, it will be impossible for him or her to concentrate and remain alert for their online learning and instruction.
7. It is also critical to make sure that your child eats a healthy breakfast and lunch each day along with healthy snacks. You must make sure that he or she remains properly hydrated throughout their school day, too. This contributes to their overall success while learning.
8. Here is something extremely important for you to consider. When your child attends their in-person school, they may be there for seven to eight hours each day. A large amount of this time is devoted to transitioning and participating in non-instructional activities. Things like riding to and from school on the school bus, participating in the daily homeroom period, eating breakfast and lunch, having recess, and moving between classes account for some of this time accounts for the use of some of this time. In a typical day at an in-person facility, your child spends approximately five-hours and thirty-minutes actively engaged in various forms of learning. So, you should not feel as though he or she is being shortchanged educationally if they spend that amount of time focused on structured learning at home. Here is a link to an article that I recent wrote about this topic.

I have offered additional words of encouragement especially for parents in my article linked below.

My Most Important Message for Parents

My goal is to encourage you.

Many times, especially during these uncertain days, words of gratitude are not heard as often as they need to be. So, I sincerely say thank you to parents for all that you are doing to ensure that your child is learning at home.

All the sacrifices you are making and the support that you are providing within your home have been appreciated by your child’s educators. You really are a valued member of your child’s educational team.

I join them in letting you know that you are really doing a wonderful job.

Be sure to watch a video version of this topic on my “Ignite Family Engagement with Dr. Deborah M. Vereen” YouTube Channel. I invite you to tune in below:

Here’s my golden ticket that helps me accomplish my mission.

Dr. Deborah M. Vereen is a retired Teacher and School Administrator. Her website is www.Drdeborahmvereen.com and her YouTube Channel is https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS1DPhBeA29UlybU9jzDkdQ .