Did you read the newsletter? How about my blog?

Hello??? Is anybody even reading this?

Do you ever feel like this when you send out parent emails or newsletter?

How do I reach all my parents? How do I keep them involved in their child’s education? How much is too much information? What will my parents take out of my communication? Is technology the answer? Am I ready to try classroom blogging?

First things first, what types of parents are out there? How much involvement do they want in their child’s lives? There are three main parenting styles. First you could have a “cop” for a parent. They demand their children obey and accomplish all goals with perfection. When communicating with this type of parent, they will want to know everything that is expected so their child can achieve perfect results. Second, you could have a “social worker” for a parent. They minimize consequences and try and protect their children. When communicating with this type of parent, they will make excuses for their child and try and cover for their child. Finally, you could have a “coach” for a parent. When communicating with this parent, they will be active but allow the child to take responsibility. They will not cover for their child and will respect you as the teacher. Now, how do you reach all types of parents in a reasonable yet effective way?

Scholastic offers several different ideas for communication with parents. Ideas like phoning home, writing a note or email, or sending out a newsletter, are great ways to keep your parents involved. The site also offers tips for writing a great newsletter. Keep the tone the way you want to convey your room, keep the length short and to the point, and decide how frequently you want to send a newsletter. But what can be done to showcase the technology generation z is so used to? Is classroom blogging an answer?

Education World describes blogging as “elementary. Students as young as kindergarten are blogging daily. Research has shown students become better writers when they have an authentic audience over the internet. So what does this mean for my classroom? Students can blog along with their teacher, or contribute their own information for a blog. Education World offers tips in getting started with blogging whether you are a primary or an intermediate teacher. You can also find advice for safety tips.

Since research shows students become better writers when they have an authentic audience, ThinkQuest is a tool you can use to not only keep parents active in their child’s learning, but you can allow your students to publish more than just their writing on the internet. It has tons to offer for all ages of students and is a free program. Blogging would only be the beginning.

Whether you choose to communicate through blogging with your students or not, I think all students need to learn to be Cybersmart. They will not only benefit from it in the classroom but at home as well. There are so many resources in technology to use for communication, take the plunge and try one out. Your generation z students might thank you and it might rub off on your parents too.