Parent Involvement

 

Research has shown conclusively that parent involvement at home in their children's education improves student achievement. Furthermore, when parents are involved at school, their children go farther in school, and they go to better schools. This is even documented in the California State Board of Education Policy #89-01: Parent involvement in the Education of Their Children.

 

Parent or community (grandparents, aunts, uncles, family friends) volunteering at Discovery Charter Schools is vital to the success of our program which is based on small group developmental instruction. Such a program's effectiveness is dependent on the commitment of every family to the philosophy of the school. Each family makes a decision to enroll their child at Discovery based on an understanding and belief in the philosophy of the school. That decision can only be reached after careful consideration of the family commitment that is needed to successfully implement the Discovery program.

 

Parent volunteers in the classroom is vital to the support of our school program. Discovery provides an enriching curriculum, which includes opportunities for hands-on learning outside of the classroom. The students frequently attend field trips, and we are always in need of parent drivers.

 

 

Parents of children in the Discovery program volunteer in all of the following ways:

 

1. Work regularly scheduled class room shifts of up to two (2) hours per week per child (with a maximum of 6 hours per family).


 

2. Serve in at least one classroom or school-wide support position in addition to the regularly scheduled work shift.


 

3. Attend training sessions and classroom meetings to ensure that parent volunteers will be effective partners.

 

4. Participate in at least one Work Day per year, which helps ensure that our students have an environment conducive to learning. Work Day tasks range from cleaning classrooms and the school grounds, to fixing computers, painting, or doing other special projects.


 

5. Help in a minimum of three (3) field trips per year per child as a driver or chaperone.

 

 

Below is a list of sample jobs that may be filled by parents, family members, or other community members.

 

Fundraising Coordinator

Class Rep

Field Trip Coordinator

Community-wide Jobs

Newsletter Coordinator

Public Relations

Gardening Coordinator

Garden Team Member

Materials & Room Manager

Grant Writer

Computer / IT

Auction Coordinator

eScrip Coordinator

Drop off/Pick up duties

 

Parents are sometimes confused about their role at school. While parents, teachers, and students are a part of the “community triangle” and work together as partners, each has a different role. As the educational experts, the teaching staff is in charge of the classroom, and the parent's role is to support the teacher. Parents well suited to the Discovery experience are comfortable trusting the teacher’s expertise, support the teacher, and contributing as asked.

 

We understand that volunteering in the class each week can be challenging for working parents. Thus, there are several jobs that can be done at night or on the weekends. Parent/Family involvment is a key element of the philosophy at Discovery, thus we will work with each family on an individual basis to find a way for them to successfully be involved.