50 Ways Parents Can Help Schools
The Center for School Change lists the following ways that parents can become involved in schools:
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Come to school to assist.
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Share information with a student or class about a hobby.
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Share information with a student or a class about a career.
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Share information with students about a country you visited or lived in.
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Tutor one or a small group of students in reading, math, or other area.
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Help coach an athletic team.
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Help check a student's written work.
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Help put out a school or classroom newsletter (can also be done at home).
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Help sew or paint a display.
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Help build something (such as a loft in a classroom or new playground).
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Help students work on a finalexhibition or project (can also be done at home or workplace).
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Help answer the schools' phone.
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Help plan a new playground for the school.*
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Help plan a theme-based presentation for students.*
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Help present a theme-based program for students.*
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Demonstrate cooking from a particular country or culture to students.*
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Share a particular expertise with faculty (such as use of computers, dealing with disruptive students).
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Help students plan and build an outdoor garden or other project to beautify the outside of the school.
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Help coach students competing in an academic competition (such as Odyssey of the Mind, Future Problem Solving, Math Masters).
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Help bring senior citizens to school to watch a student production.
- Help arrange learning opportunities in the community.
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Help set up an internship or apprenticeship for a student at your business, organization, or agency.*
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Host a one-day 'shadow study' for one or a small group of students about your career in business or some other organization.
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Go on a local field trip with a teacher and a group of students.
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Go on an extended (3-5 day) cross-country field trip with a teacher & students.*
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Contact a particular local business or organization regarding possible cooperation.*
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Help to create a natural area outside the building where students can learn.
- Serve on an advisory or decision-making committee.
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Serve on the school-wide site council.
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Serve on a school committee that reports to the site council.
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Serve on a district committee representing the school.
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Serve as an officer in the school's PTA.
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Help organize a parent organization for the school.
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Help design a parent and or student survey for the school.
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Help conduct and or tabulate results of a parent survey regarding the school.
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Share information or advocate for the school.
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Serve as a member of a 'telephone tree' to distribute information quickly.
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Write a letter to legislators about the school.
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Write a letter to school board members about the school.
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Go to a school board meeting to advocate for the school.
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Go to another school to provide information about this school.
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Help design a brochure or booklet about the school.
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Help translate information from the school into a language other than English.
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Help translate at a parent-teacher conference for people who don't speak English well.
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Provide transportation to a parent-teacher conference for a parent who needs a ride.
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Write an article for publication in a magazine about the school's activities.
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Help arrange for a political leader (mayor, city council, state representative, member of Congress) to visit the school.
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Increase financial resources available to the school.
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Help write a proposal that would bring new resources to the school.
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Donate materials to the school.
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Arrange for a business or other organization to donate materials to the school.
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Help with a fundraiser for the school.
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Help other parents develop their parenting skills.
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Help teach a class for parents on ways they can be stronger parents.
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Help produce a videotape for parents on ways they can be more effective parents.
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Help write, publish, and distribute a list of parenting tips."
*Columns on these subjects are available from the Center for School Change, Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, 301 19th Ave. South, Minneapolis, MN 55455; (612) 626-1834.
This list is not copyrighted; readers may reproduce it for their own use.
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