Reading Response #2

I understand that the textbook we are looking at for this class is about literacy development in very young children, and I understand that it is an important area of study, as literacy development does begin at a very early age-- some might argue that it begins almost as soon as one is born. However, as someone who is planning on becoming a middle grades teacher, it was an interesting exercise to try and connect with some of the suggestions about building School-Home Connections made in this chapter of the textbook.

By sixth or seventh grade, very few students have the same eagerness about school as younger children. They aren't proud of their locker's decorations or neatness, they don't want their parents showing up to school where they could embarrass them in front of their friends. The "tween" years are some of the most awkward and difficult years of a person's life, and to many of them, the last thing they want is their parents hanging around.

I still remember a time my mother chaperoned a school dance when I was in sixth grade. A song came on and she screamed "YEEE-HAW!" at the top of her voice. I was mortified. Parent involvement in middle school is a lot trickier than it is when their children are five years old.

One hopes that by the time students reach middle school, they already have had previous teachers who established learning communities through respect and frequent communication. By helping parents to establish good relationships with all their child's teachers early on, it can benefit the type of good relationship they have with middle and high school teachers.

At the middle grades level, the amount of parent involvement is fairly low. There are no opportunities for parents to come eat lunch with their child or read stories to the class. The amount of at-home learning activities goes way down because the parents might not have had as much schooling or might not remember the content from when they were in school. Communication between the teacher and parents, at least from my own memory, is limited to calls (and now emails as well) home when students are misbehaving or failing the class, newsletters about general school events such as field trips or special celebrations, and parent-teacher conferences.

These interactions are just as important at the middle school level as they are in early childhood. I believe that students at this age should still see that their parents are invested in meeting their educational needs. Regardless of whether a student is six years old or in sixth grade, parent involvement must be fostered for the benefit of everyone.