When parents have high expectations for academic learning in preschool, some of the blame falls on us as educators. If they believe that academic skills taught in a traditional “school way” are what is most important, it’s because we have failed to communicate otherwise. Our job is not simply to teach children, it is to educate parents on what effective, developmentally appropriate learning looks like during the preschool years.
Quick and Easy Ways to Share Information with Parents:
- Your Website–whether you have a dedicated website for your business or simply a social media page, use it as a tool to show parents how you teach through play.
- Newsletters–a monthly newsletter is a great place to include some basic information about how play teaches a variety of social, emotional, and academic skills. I like to highlight one skill each month.
- Pictures–take lots of pictures of the learning happening in your classroom during play and share a few each week with every parent, with a short explanation of the skills you see their child working on.
- Articles–I rarely share these class-wide, but they can be very helpful when a parent has a specific concern. Articles that share research information without too much jargon are great!
- Texts and emails–if you run across a little tidbit of information that you think parents might find helpful, send it in a quick text or email. Keep these short and sweet.