Working with parents...

[sarah707]

A very common Ofsted inspection action is to work in closer partnership with parents.

Some childminders struggle with this requirement - they do all they can but parents are not keen / too busy to engage.

Regardless of what parents think, it is very important to keep plugging on and involving parents in their child’s time with you. Here are some ideas...

• Write diaries and send them home, asking for them to be returned each session - if diaries are lost email parents instead and keep a copy of the emails for evidence

• Ask parents to tell you what their child is doing at home - and write it as ‘handover notes’ in their child’s diary - or on a ‘parent input’ sheet in the child’s learning and development file if the diary is often missing / lost

• Add a ‘comments from home’ section to each child’s learning and development folder to remind yourself to ask questions and fill it in

• Ask parents to bring back a photo or postcard from family days out to go in the child’s learning and development file - write some follow up planning to support the child’s new interest

• Collect leaflets from the children’s centre, outings brochures etc and give them to parents - record that you have shared the information with them in your self evaluation (or Ofsted SEF) update notes

• Involve parents in summary assessments of their child’s learning by asking them what their child can do at home - most parents like to boast about their child’s latest achievements

• Find out what the children do at the weekend and write it in their learning and development folder - plan some activities to link in to what they do at home - feed back to parents about what you are doing

• Organise annual or 6 monthly evenings for parents to come in and see their child’s file - provide a drink and cake - make them feel welcome and important - ask them to write a little comment about how they feel their child is getting on

• Every child must have a 2 year progress check - ask parents to add their comments - if they are reluctant to contribute, explain it is a statutory requirement and they will be helping you to comply with the law

• Make cards with the children for special family days - grandparents day, weddings family festivals etc. Keep a photo in the child’s learning and development file as evidence of what you have done

• Send home questionnaires - if parents aren't very good at sending them back, ask questions every so often and write down their replies for your self evaluation (Ofsted SEF)

• Set up a website with a parents page - or a secure Facebook parents page - and share activity ideas on there. make sure you have a risk assessment and parents written permission before including photos of children - secure the site if children’s faces are visible - involve parents to make sure they know the value of an online place to catch up with what their children are doing

• When children learn a new song, send home the words and a YouTube link so parents can listen to the music and sing it at home. Ask parents how they have got on next session and write down their feedback

• Think about how you can send ideas for activities children might enjoy following up at home without patronising parents. For example, let parents borrow a favourite book and puppet and, when it comes back, ask them what their child did with the resource at home so you can plan to challenge their learning during future activities

• Provide resources for children to use at home with their parents and ask them to bring the finished picture, drawing, model etc back to show everyone

• Include information about activities and adventures you are planning next with the children in your newsletter - and ask parents for their feedback. Are they happy with your current planning? What would they like to see their child learning next?

• Ask parents what music their child enjoys listening to / television programmes they enjoy / favourite books etc at home and write it up in their learning and development file

Please add more...

[PixiePetal]

some great ideas Sarah - as usual!


I do some of those already, enough to show there is input. One family easier than others to get involved but isn't that just the way!

[dawn100]

I have struggled to get parents to write anything down anywhere, often rathering to talk to me verbally. I do daily diaries which parents do bring back every session, I reguarly email which parents may respond to but is more often about change of hours than anything to do with their childs development or interests. I've sent home questionnaires / feed back forms with very little put on from parent other than happy with what already being done. I could go on with a list of what I have done. As I was very aware of ofsteds expectation of seeing evidence of working in partnership I started to write down the comments that parents said to me on drop off and add it to their learning journal eg informed by mum 'bob has taken his first steps at the weekend' or informed by dad 'billy loved feeding the ducks'. I explained all they ways I tried to communicate to parents but said I found they prefered to talk verbally. My inspector was very happy with this though I do know another inspector another day might not be.

[dawn100]

Forgot to say that us a great list most of which I have tried or do already do but a possible one or two others to try thanks for the list.

[lilac_dragon]

Parents are very hit and miss with sharing info.
I use a Daily Diary and will often add "Thanks for telling me that lo has.......... I'll do this do that to extend it"
Or " Lo tells me that they went to -the zoo, the park, the ducks, the moon! at the weekend. Very excited about it, let me know what you thought and I'll suggest it to other parents".
Sometimes I'll get a reaction, sometimes not.
One parent is very involved with new boyfriend, one works really long hours and another has 4 children altogether, so gets home and has dinners and homeworks to attend to so no time other than verbal communication at drop off.
We all do our best, I'm forever sending home leaflets, programmes of events, words of songs, suggestions for books and craft activities. I put it in the Diary, but there's very rarely a response back.

[lizduncan72]

Thanks for this Sarah, it can be so hard at times to engage parents and get feedback from them, feel like I'm hitting my head against a brick wall sometimes!!!

[Tulip]

Fabulous, thanks for that

[kats]

Thanks Sarah, thats really helpful x

[hectors house]

I tried to encourage parents to share good outings they had been on with other parents - bit like a parent's trip advisor, I started it off by telling them all about a great a reasonably priced day I had at Slimbridge in the Spring but no-one attempted to share where they had been at weekends or days off or any local events they were planning on attending - 2 of the parents bumped into each other at a lambing day event on a local farm, pity they hadn't shared their plans, I may have liked to have taken the other mindees!

[cherry]

Thank you Sarah

[clairer]

Some really lovely ideas there!