HELPING YOUR CHILD MAKE FRIENDS

Each beginning of a new school year presents an opportunity for our children to make new friends. This is especially true at Discovery School, where we welcome new and exciting families every year. Through the new friendships that are made, our children have the wonderful opportunity to live and experience new cultures, beliefs and traditions.

Making friends is a task comes easily to some, but not to others. And as much as parents would like to step in, we simply cannot make friends for our children. We can, however, give our children the tools they need to be social and to make new and be a good friend.

1.      PLAY DATES – As parents we can offer a variety of opportunities for play and socializing. Host friends over for play dates or lunch. See if you can participate in a carpool and sign-up your child for group activities such as art, drama or dance. Exposing children to different areas of play will help them learn to socialize.

2.      BE A GOOD FRIEND YOURSELF - Perhaps the most important lesson you can provide your child with about friendship is setting the example. You need to show your child how to be a good friend and how to make friends.

ü  Be kind, give compliments, wave to a friend.

ü  Be understanding of what others are going through by showing empathy.

ü  Don’t complain. Instead, teach your children to accept what can't be changed by working hard to change the things that can.

ü  Help your friends when they are in need

3.      KNOW YOUR CHILD –Ask your child how school went, what he/she did during recess, who he likes in class. Listen to what your child says happened on the playground. Support your child’s choice of friends and welcome them to your home. Try getting to know her friends and their parents.

4.      BE OJECTIVE AND FAIR – When things are hard for your child, stay balanced and keep things in perspective. Making friends is a lifelong process and it may have its ups and downs. Pain, unfortunately, is a part of it. We can support our children by listening and acknowledging their feelings.  Talk about your concerns with other adults who can support you -- such as a coach, teacher, friend, or family member.

If you’d like to learn more about how to help your child make friends visit http://www.parentingscience.com/kids-make-friends.html or watch http://www.greatschools.org/parenting/social-skills/4356-helping-your-child-choose-good-friends-video.gs to learn about talking to your children about making good friends. 

STARTING ON THE RIGHT FOOT!

As a parent, you are your child's first and most important teacher. When parents and families are involved in their children's schools, the children do better and have better feelings about going to school. A partnership between the school and home is crucial for student success!

There are many ways that parents can support their children's learning at home and throughout the school year. Here are some ideas to get you started:

1.       Meet your child's teacher. If you have not done so, try to find a time to meet your child's teacher. Let the teacher know you want to help your child learn. Make it clear that you want the teacher to contact you if any problems develop with your child. If you feel uncomfortable speaking English (or Spanish), don't let a language barrier stop you. What you have to say is more important than the language you say it in! Ask us and we will provide someone who can interpret for you.

2.       Get to know who's who at your child's school. There are many people at Discovery who are here to help your child learn, grow socially and emotionally, and navigate the school environment. Get to know all your child’s teachers, area coordinator, school counselor, and others.

3.       Find out how your child is doing. Ask the teacher how well your child is doing in. If your child is not keeping up, especially when it comes to reading, ask what you or the school can do to help. It's important to act early before your child gets too far behind. Also be sure to review your child's blogs every Monday morning.

4.       Make sure that your child gets homework done. Your child needs to see from you that you think education is important and that homework needs to be done each day. You can help your child with homework by setting aside a special place to study, establishing a regular time for homework, and removing distractions such as the television and social phone calls during homework time. If your child is struggling with homework, you should contact the teacher and let him/her know.

5.       Encourage your child to read. Helping your child become a reader is the single most important thing that you can do to help the child to succeed in school-and in life. The importance of reading simply can't be overstated. Reading helps children in all school subjects. More important, it is the key to lifelong learning. Reading is an expectation at Discovery School!

Welcome to all parents and students to what promises to be a fantastic school year!. I am very excited to be your full time assistant principal at Discovery School, and it is my hope that as the year progresses you will get to know the staff, the programs and the policies we offer in Discovery School.

It is the goal of the staff at Discovery to work with you to create a rich learning environment for our students. Student success is a shared responsibility between the school staff, students and parents. Our staff of highly qualified professional educators and support personnel is committed to providing our students many opportunities - both inside and outside of the classroom -for high caliber and quality learning, continual growth, leadership opportunities, and achieving at a high level of excellence!

It is a very exciting time at Discovery School. Our campus has never looked better, and our teachers have been working hard in preparation for the beginning of school. Children will be excited as they make new friends, embrace new challenges, and use the new facilities that have been purposely built and redesigned for their educational needs.

It is my hope that we will all meet any challenges with determination and excitement and celebrate all that makes everyone special. Education is a joint venture between school and home. As we work with our students to help them learn about the world around them through the prescribed curriculum, we very much appreciate the support that parents give their children at home as they strive to reach their learning goals. The foundation of a successful school is the cooperation between the students, staff, parents and community. Parents are a vital part of the Discovery School Community. Your contributions are invaluable to the school through volunteer time and support of school activities.

We look forward to a very positive and productive year together!  We extend a special, yearlong invitation to our parents to join us at school activities and events whenever you can.

I look forward to working with you and developing a relationship that will assist in the growth of your child/children.

Sincerely yours,

Ms. Cristiana Banegas

Elementary Assistant Principal