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Parent Power
V O L U M E

I S S U E

My goal is that every single member of the

East Baton Rouge Parish School System team
will recognize the importance of our charge. I
have high expectations of myself and our
employees. We are a customer-driven organization. Our focus is on providing the students
of this school district with the best choice for
quality education in the parish.

The Importance 2
of Good
Attendance

Teachers Too

Our schools will be safe and orderly learning

environments. As a parent, I know that safety
is the single most important factor when
choosing a school for your child. We must
protect the learning environment in the classroom. Great instruction is our key focus, and it
must be protected and honored. Disruptions to
the learning environment will not be tolerated.
I am confident that the leaders on our campus
will carry out this philosophy creating an
academic atmosphere second to none.

Start the School 4

Year Right:
Tips for Parents

Help Your
Child
Develop Good

Study Habits

August
Events

2 0 1 5

Now, we are set forth about the task of

educating the next generation of leaders. Our
district continues to show strong, steady
academic growth.

Training

Parents Are

A M
U A
G R
U CS H
T

Greetings from the Superintendent

INSIDE
School Action
Teams for
Partnerships

8 ,

Welcome to the East Baton Rouge Parish

School System, where we are building the
future of Baton Rouge. It is an honor to have
been recently selected to lead Louisianas
second largest public school system and
serve its more than 42,000 students in prekindergarten through 12th grade.
As the 2014-15 school year came to a close,
I had an important opportunity to visit many
of our schools before students left for the
summer. I am energized by what I saw. The
history of the district is one filled with a strong
tradition of school pride and academic
success. Many of our communitys leaders
have passed through the halls of our schools.

The East Baton Rouge Parish School System

has a solid foundation, and I look forward to a
successful future.

Sincerely,

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School Action Teams for Partnerships

Several EBR schools and personnel with the Early
Childhood Education Department attended an all-day
family engagement training conducted by Dr. Joyce
Epstein on Thursday, June 25 , 2015. Dr. Epstein is
Director of the Center on School, Family, and
Community Partnerships and the National Network of
Partnership Schools (NNPS), Principal Research
Scientist, and Research Professor of Sociology at
Johns Hopkins University. In 1995 she established the
(NNPS), which provides professional development to
enable school, district, and state leaders to develop
research-based programs of family and community
involvement.
Photo above, left to right: Natalie Jadid, Principal of Wildwood Elementary,
along with Wildwood Teachers, Leah Hebert and Haley Johnson

Participating teams learned about the following

program structures and examples of best practices for
each:

The framework of the six types of involvement

Meeting challenges to reach all families
Focusing partnership practices on academic and
behavioral goals
Taking an action team approach

During the afternoon segment of the training, teams

drafted a One-Year Action Plan for Partnerships for the
2015-2016 school year, linked to their own school
improvement plans and goals for students.

For continued support of their efforts, team members

will be able to participate in a phone conference with
Dr. Epstein for follow-up technical assistance/support
scheduled for January 2016.

Photo above, left to right: Principal Karla Johnson, Nicole Johnson and Elenita
Boo of Eden Park Superintendents Academy, Shana Wilson and Martis Jones
representing Glasgow Middle School.

Talking To Your Child About The Importance of Good Attendance

Good attendance makes a difference! It improves
academic performance and promotes future
success. Share these reasons to go to school
every day.

Each days lesson builds off what was taught

before. Missing just one class can put you behind.

Absences can affect other students if the teacher

has to reteach things that were missed.

In-class activities, such as experiments

demonstrations, usually cannot be made up.

Missing class discussions and explanations can

make it harder to understand assignments.

Class participation is often included in grading.

Poor attendance leads to lower grades. It also

raises the risk of dropping out of school and taking
part in criminal behavior.

Good attendance is an important habit. You can

lose a job for missing too many days of work.

and

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Parents Are Teachers, Too

Reading
Turn off the TV and read a book with your child, with
each of you acting out the role of a character in the
book. Record your performance so you can listen to it
together or share it with other family members.
If your child has completed his homework and wants
to watch a favorite program, use that time to reinforce
reading skills. Turn on the closed captioning so your
child can read along as he watches and listens to the
program.

Writing

Before your kids started school, you were their

primary teacher, instructing them in the ABCs and
123s. Now that theyve moved on to more complex
subjects, its likely that youve shifted into the role of
coach, making sure they finish their homework and
get to school on time.
But even as children advance through the grades,
their parents remain their most important teachers.
Your attitudes toward education influence how your
kids think about learning. By looking for learning
experiences in your familys daily routines, you can
help your children see a connection between what
they learn in school and the real world.
Kids can find out about fractions while measuring
ingredients for a recipe or practice math skills by
counting change at the grocery store. They can have
some fun and develop verbal and critical thinking
skills by devising alternative endings to books or
movies. Incorporating these types of creative activities outside of school hours can help kids develop
academic skills and reduce the amount of time they
sit passively in front of the TV.
Use these simple ideas to reinforce learning at
home and develop your childs academic skills:
Math

Help your child visualize fractions by folding napkins

into halves, quarters, etc. If youre using paper
napkins, have kids label the fractions with a marker.
At the grocery store, explain how fruits and vegetables are sold by weight, and have your child weigh
the items you select. Ask her to estimate how much
the items will weigh before putting them on the scale.
Then have her estimate how many items she would
need to add or remove for the items to weigh one
pound.

Cut apart each panel of a comic strip and remove the

words. Have your child determine what order the
drawings should go in, then ask her to fill in the words
for the characters.
Provide kids with a paintbrush and a pail of water
and have them write messages on a sidewalk, or give
a child a flashlight and have him spell words for you
on the wall of a darkened room.
Science
Conduct a simple experiment with your kids to determine what household objects will float or sink in water. Or hold a test to see whether hot or cold water will
freeze faster, checking the water at set intervals.
If you have some empty bottles on hand, ask your
child to add different amounts of water to them. Blow
on the rims of the bottles to see what sound they
make. Ask kids to arrange the bottles from the lowest
to the highest pitch.
In addition to strengthening academic skills, many
home learning activities, such as helping prepare
shopping lists, teach children about adult responsibilities. Parents, you can give your older children a view
into their world by showing them a bank statement or
insurance document and using it to start a discussion.
I encourage you to use exercises like these to teach
kids effective study skills and skills theyll need in the
workplace, such as motivation and perseverance.

As we began this new school year, please take time

to visit your childs school via Open House or other
schoolrelated activities that afford opportunities for
you to interact with your childs teachers and
administration.
Remember, parents are a childs first teacher!

HAVE A GREAT SCHOOL YEAR!

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Start the School Year Right: Tip for Parents

Listen without fixing.

around as much and there may be fewer opportunities

to volunteer. Make a new years resolution to get
involved with your schools PTA, parent education
forums, or start an independent support group with
parents of your childs friends. If your school doesnt
offer parent education forums, ask your principal about
organizing one.
Take small steps toward giving your adolescent
independence.

Just once during the first two weeks of the new year,
resolve to listen to your childs story about something
that happened in school without immediately fixing the
problem, interrupting or teaching a constructive lesson.
Concentrate on listening first and then later on, when
you and your child are both calmer, give advice or guidance and keep it short, very short!
Make a habit of finding time to talk and listen.
Pay attention to the times of day your child is most
naturally open, whether it be during after-school snack,
while watching TV, at bath or bed time, and protect
those times as very special. In the new year, get in the
habit of talking and listening for just a few minutes a
day.
For Parents of Young Children

As children want freedom, parents tend to hold on

tighter and tighter, which creates conflict. Let your child
achieve small successes. For example, start out your
teen driver driving short distances and gradually build
up to longer trips. Or if your child wants a later curfew,
give him a chance to show he is responsible by giving
him a slightly later curfew. Tell him youll extend it after
he has met his current curfew for a specified period of
time, and also consistently keeps you informed about
where he is and who he is with.
Learn to listen to your child with your ears and not
your mouth.
Make an effort to remain calm, slow down and listen to
find out what your child is really asking before jumping
in with an answer.
Schedule time to relax.

Try not to overextend.

Make an effort to limit activities for your kids, especially
younger kids one or two activities are enough, especially for parents with more than one child. Otherwise, it
causes stress all around.
If you have a child with special needs, he may already
be getting extra services at school, such as working
with a learning specialist and/or a tutor. If you add on
more than one or two extracurricular activities, youll
have overload.
For Parents of Adolescents
Get involved.
Once your child hits middle school, its harder to stay
involved at his school. Your child may not want you

Too many things on your family to do list? Consider

adding one more to your list this year: relaxation!
Schedule a family Saturday night at the movies at
home. Consider renting a classic family movie such as
Wizard of Oz, National Velvet or films of more recent
vintage such as E.T. or Shrek. Make popcorn, curl
up on the couch and turn off the computer, cell phone
and video games. Enjoy!

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Heres How to Help Your Child Develop Good Study Habits

ing time in. It should have a comfortable chair and a
desk or table that has plenty of surface space to
spread work out on.
Well lit. Good lighting is important for reading. A task
light, which focuses light on a specific area, is a good
choice and uses less energy than having several
lights on in a room.

Help your child find a regular place to study every

day.

Give your child a planner to keep track of homework and due dates.

Post a calendar and have your child keep track of

school dates as well as all other activities.

Encourage your child to take notes in class.

Teachers talk about what they think is important.

Have your child review notes every day.

Keep a phone list of study buddies your child can

call with questions.

Teach your child how to use a textbook. Make

bold-faced headings into questions. Make flashcards of key vocabulary words.

Make sure your child has the tools needed for

studying. A dictionary, calculator, pencils and paper should all be available.

Organized
Keeping the space clutter-free and tidy can help save
time and frustration. You can use recycled cans and
shoeboxes to organize supplies. Let your child
decorate these for fun!

Well Supplied
Ask your childs teacher what supplies your child
needs for homework. In general, your child will need
paper, pens, pencils and an eraser. Other extras your
child might need include a stapler, markers and highlighters.

Set up a homework area:

It should be:

Quiet
For most students, noise can make it very hard to
concentrate and pay attention to school work.
When you are supportive and your child studies
every day, school success is sure to follow.

Comfortable
Try to create a space that your child will enjoy spend-

August 4th & 5thOfficial Professional

Preparation Days for School Personnel

August 6th1st day of school for students

*Parent Power is a publication of the East Baton Rouge Parish School System