Maxwell AFB Elementary has been a busy place this summer! We have almost completed our Voyager Summer Program and our school has been host for may activities in support of our families here at Maxwell. It's hard to believe that school will begin in a month.
As anyone who has ever been a student (hopefully everyone reading this - don't forget to thank the appropriate people) would attest, it's the little things - things teachers and parents do on a daily or even hourly basis -- that matter most. While bold initiatives sound good, look pretty, and usually garner all the press, it's the unheralded acts that, in the end, deliver the results that our students need now more than ever. The following are a few of the many things that you as parents can do to improve student learning. (Don't worry, the teachers are getting their list on the first day of school. )
1. Serve kids a good, healthy breakfast. Before you do, check out the latest version of the USDA food graph.
2. Allow kids to explore.
3. Use big, humongous words (and encourage kids to do the same).
4. Ask tough questions - ones that involve more than one word per response.
5. Discuss paintings, films, books or plays.
6. When watching television, turn on the closed captioning.
7. Make TV interactive by discussing the shows you watch.
8. Post the names of the books you're reading at home: kids need to know that adults enjoy reading too!
9. Create quiet and comfortable learning areas at home.
10. Encourage kids to keep journals and write in them every day.
11. Tell and listen to stories often.
12. Be consistent with discipline, as children flourish when they know their boundaries.
13. Listen to and discuss all kinds of music. Karaoke is a fun way to practice reading!
14. Display student work, and the criteria used to evaluate it, everywhere.
16. Use mnemonic devices and other learning "tricks."
17. Read with your child for at least fifteen minutes every night, if not more.
18. Discuss, question, and debate what you read.
19. Read and write just for fun.
20. Constantly relate what is being taught to what is going on in the real world.
21. Listen to books on tape, CD, or MP3 player in and out of the car.
22. Allow kids time to reflect on what they learn.
23. Provide positive reinforcement whenever possible.
24. Find, bookmark, and visit great educational websites like pbs.org, smithsonian.edu, and nationalgeographic.com.
25. Explore your backyard, a nearby park, a local museum, an antique shop, etc.
26. Play intellectually challenging games like Scrabble, Chess and Sudoku.
27. Exercise (you and your kids) on a regular basis.
28. Don't complain - it rarely does any good.
29. Set high standards for yourself and your kids. Expect success.
30. Travel. Go to far-flung places that challenge the way you and your children view the world.
31. Make sure your kids (and you) get a good night's sleep.
I look forward to meeting all of you! Please call on me if I can be of service at any time.
