Nurture your child's strengths and interests.
Share the adventure of learning something new with your child.
Recognize and model making mistakes as an opportunity to learn, not a mark of failure.
Encourage safe risk-taking.
Help set priorities.
Seek positive peer connections.
Avoid over-scheduling.
Allow time for reflecting.
Pursue unfamiliar learning opportunities.
Encourage selective excellence, rather than across-the-board perfection.
Keep your sense of humor!
Communicating with School: A Positive Approach
Request a convenient time to speak with your child's teacher.
Provide, in writing, your questions and concerns before meeting the teacher.
Be willing to compromise and collaborate on behalf of the student's needs.
Provide a home perspective to your child's teacher on a regular basis.
Keep a file of communications, learning plans and testing data on your child throughout his/her K-12 years.
Provide both positive and negative feedback for changes in your child's learning plan, school assignments and learning activities.
Always give your child's teacher a second chance to discuss educational issues about your child.
Determine reasonable timelines and methods for communicating with your child's teacher.
Do not expect your child to provide complete or accurate descriptions of school-day experiences. Communicate directly with your child's teachers if you have questions about what is happening in the classroom.
Celebrate excellence both for your child and for those who teach your child.