HOW TO
Talk to Your Kids About School
If you’re lucky enough to get the whole family together for a meal on a weeknight, you should win a parenting prize. Between sports practices and music lessons, you’ve already moved mountains. But when you’re finally seated, dinner table conversation probably goes something like this:
“How was school today?”
“Fine.”
“What did you learn?”
“Nothing.”
It’s enough to make you want to throw the dinner rolls around.
Fortunately, educators, parents, and app developers have created genius solutions that can help give parents a window into their children’s day.
Here’s to more lively dinner table conversation!
For day care and pre-K
‣ With Brightwheel, parents of kids in day care or pre-K get photos, videos, and updates directly from educators and staff in real time. See when your child ate or napped throughout the day, identify what milestones they reached, and securely check them in and out.
Digital student portfolios
‣ ClassDojo, Seesaw, and FreshGrade are holistic programs that students, teachers, and parents can use to communicate with one another. But the apps really shine as student portfolios: Kids can upload photos and videos of their work to show to parents, while teachers can connect with students through their profiles and offer words (or emoji) of encouragement.
Parent–teacher communication
‣ Remind and Edmodo excel at facilitating parent–teacher communication. Remind sends updates about specific lessons so parents can ask about a particular moment from their kids’ school day. And Edmodo sends you a copy of everything shared in the classroom, so you’re always on board with school announcements, homework assignments, and—of course— grades.