The research evidence is beyond dispute. When schools work together with families to support learning, children tend to succeed not just in school, but throughout life. In fact, the most accurate predictor of a student’s achievement in school is not income or social status, but the extent to which that student’s family is able to:

1. Create a home environment that encourages learning
2. Express high (but not unrealistic) expectations for their children’s achievement and future careers
3. Become involved in their children’s education at school and in the community

1. Create a home environment that encourages learning
2. Express high (but not unrealistic) expectations for their children’s achievement and future careers
3. Become involved in their children’s education at school and in the community

• These benefits for students:

1. Higher grades and test scores
2. Better attendance and more homework done
3. Fewer placements in special education
4. More positive attitudes and behavior
5. Higher graduation rates
6. Greater enrollment in postsecondary education

• These benefits for parents:

1. More confidence in school
2. Teachers have higher opinions of parents and higher expectations of their children, too
3. Greater confidence in themselves as parents and in their ability to help their children learn at home
4. Greater likelihood that the parents will enroll in continuing education to advance their own schooling.

• These benefits for schools and communities:

1. Improved teacher morale
2. Higher ratings of teachers by parents
3. More support from families
4. Higher student achievement
5. Better reputations in the community.

• Children need routines and consistency in their lives. In-depth surveys of achieving and under-achieving 12th-grade African American students in Chicago, and culturally diverse fourth-grade students in Los Angeles, indicate that children who are academically successful tend to come from families who engage in a regular routine of activities.

• TEACHABLE MOMENTS … Be Their Favorite Teacher.

• Even after children are of school age, they still spend 70% of their waking hours (including weekends and vacations) outside the school setting. This time represents a tremendous learning opportunity which schools and families need to recognize.

• Home learning activities such as reading aloud, and frequent open family discussions are associated with improved student achievement.

• Be Their Hero … Be There with Positive Support!  Be a Role Model.

• Parents who provide frequent verbal support, praising children’s skills and efforts, telling them they love and care about them, and using endearing rather than derogatory nicknames, tend to have children with higher self-esteem, who consequently do better in school.