Noting that parents are as important to children's success as teachers, this book suggests ways busy parents can support their children's learning. Chapter 1, "What's a Time-Starved Parent To Do?" discusses the demands on parents' free time, the child's role in learning, the parent's role in helping children learn, and the importance of parent…

The world of school has changed dramatically in the last two generations, for many reasons, including cultural and linguistic diversity; great changes in family lifestyles; wide disparities in funding for schools; the prevalence of preschool education; and new educational practices for children with disabilities. Noting that the requirements of…

The report evaluates the sixth year of an Illinois Chapter One Special Alternative Instructional Program for limited-English-proficient (LEP) students entering grades 4-6, designed to develop students' English language skills and academic skills in mathematics and science, increase professional development opportunities and instructional…

This collection of three issues focuses on competencies for teachers of learners who are deaf-blind, living with deaf-blindness, and resources in Australia for parents and families of students who are deaf-blind. Articles include: (1) "Research-to-Practice Focus: Competencies for Teachers of Learners Who Are Deafblind" (Marianne Riggio),…

This final report discusses the activities and outcomes of a 4-year federally funded project designed to provide effective practices in the delivery of educational services to Pennsylvania children and youth with deafblindness from birth through 21 years of age and to their families and service providers. Outcomes of the project included: (1)…

This report summarizes evaluation results of some of Austin Independent School District's (AISD's) efforts to involve parents and community members during 2002-2003.

Suggests involving parents more fully in their child's reading, by sending books from school to be shared at home. Describes a program that groups several books by theme or author in a backpack, along with a book for parents, a response notebook, and inventory card. Suggests funding sources and management concerns for such a program, and includes…

Reviews research data to identify design criteria for a school-family policy system that includes evaluation of teachers' relations with families. Finds that evaluation of teachers' relationships with families is valuable to fostering school-family partnerships. Provides parent involvement policies to consider as fair criteria for evaluating…

Results of a longitudinal ethnographic study of Utah home schools reveals that past school experiences figure largely in present home school rationales and practices. Public school administrators need to acknowledge the effects of the past experiences of home schoolers, dispel their fears, and treat them as partners in the education process. (BJV)

Specific guidelines for assessing the unique needs of migrant handicapped students include: identifying the student's language and cultural background, examining adaptive behavior, determining the student's medical needs, involving migrant parents, choosing appropriate assessment instruments, employing curriculum-based assessment, and establishing…

Presents 5 activities for the K-1, 2-3, 4-5, 6-8 grade levels and for in the home in which students explore the concept of triangle through cooperative open-ended investigations. Provides related reproducible worksheets. (MDH)

Explores the barriers that physical appearance and cultural differences pose for children of Asian descent. Explores ways to facilitate second-language learning and provides information on classroom behaviors characteristic of Asian cultures and common surnames from various Asian countries. (HTH)

Describes four activities for grade levels K-3, 4-5, and 6-8 and for the family that explore statistical concepts using a manipulative familiar to students-SKITTLES candies. Concepts explored include frequency graphs, data collection and analysis, probability, measures of central tendency, averaging, and correlation coefficients. Includes…

Interviews with parents, teachers, and administrators of a California Bay Area elementary school explored the impact of Proposition 227 on parent involvement, student achievement, classroom instruction, and student and teacher emotions. Data indicate that an overemphasis on language of instruction overshadowed other critical issues such as…

Substantial research and theory suggests that smoking initiation is socially mediated, with both peers and parents playing important roles. To learn more about how parenting behaviors influence smoking initiation, students (n = 1002) from four middle schools were surveyed at the beginning of the sixth grade (T1), and the end of the sixth (T2) and…