Getting involved in your child’s school
By Marilyn Murray

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If you have spare time during the day, volunteering at your child’s school is the perfect way to keep informed in what’s happening within the school.  As little as one to two hours a month can make a big difference.  Admittedly, a teen’s first reaction to hearing that you’re coming to school will be “No way mom, you can’t” No one says you have to volunteer in your child’s class.  Anywhere in the school is fine.

Some suggestions are:

*If you have computer knowledge, maybe volunteering in the school office or computer lab assisting a student who is having difficulties might be the answer.

*Maybe you’re great at artwork.  How about working with a student team to do some hall artwork to promote good attitudes, or work on a monthly newsletter for students.

*If you love to read, how about reading with students who are falling behind or just learning a new language.

*Even the gym teacher could use an extra hand if you are athletically inclined.

I’ve yet to find a teacher that isn’t appreciative of any extra help they can get.  I personally am good with computers since it is part of my normal job.  When my children started taking computer classes in school, I was eager to get involved and help where I could.  Not only have I increased my knowledge, but it feels great knowing you helped a child of any age learn more.  Something as simple as typing up a students story to be published by the teacher or helping a student keep up with the class because he/she doesn’t have a computer at home to practice with.  I've at times typed up 35 stories in one night that students have written in child’s class.  Watching a child’s face light up when they see their story in print makes all my effort and time well worth it.

I find that children are more willing to come to parents for help with schoolwork if the parent is involved and up to date on what’s happening.  Not only am I helping a student who needs the extra one-on-one help, but I am increasing my knowledge too.  Helping other students helps me understand today’s way of doing things.  I no longer look at my children’s schoolwork with total confusion.  Bringing communication and spending time together is easy when it comes to homework.  Why not get your child to teach you how to do their new versions of math or science.  Or maybe even read a book together for their English class. 

A couple of web sites that I've used for helping with homework are:

www.britannica.com - A complete updated, online version of their encyclopedia and many links to other information.  Click on the Books icon and select the type of information you are looking for.

www.schoolwork.org - Has everything from History, Law, music, maps, Science, Grammer, dictionaries etc.

www.helpresource.com/homework_help.htm - Has everything from Kindergarten to College help.

www.math.com - A good search engine for assorted math question solutions.

http://kids.infoplease.com - Good site for homework help, fun facts, science etc.

http://www.bartleby.com - This is a wonderful site for all ages.  It gives access to the Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition:  The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition; Roget’s II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition; Simpson’s Contemporary Quotations; and The American Heritafer Book of English Usage, Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, Strunk’s Elements of Style; six poetry anthologies, including the Oxford Book of English Verse; Emily Post’s Etiquette; the Cambridge History of English and American Literature: An Encyclopedia in Eighteen Volumes; Frazer’s the Golden Bough (1922) and Thomas Bulfinch’s Mythology (1913).  Believe it or not, there’s more too.  Too much to list.  It’s a whole small reference library at your fingertips.

Marilyn Murray has volunteered her time to Parenthub.com by contributing articles on parenting issues that affects all of us. 
Thank You, Marilyn!

If you would like to contribute articles or resources please email oclo@parenthub.com.

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