Standard 2

For our puzzle we have picked our place and organized our pieces, now we are ready to

assemble the border of the puzzle. In order to assemble the border your pieces have to be

organized so you have a general idea of where to place them. You can do this by color or pattern,

but your border has to be completed in order to start the puzzle. In education, and in the

classroom, you have to establish relationships with the families and community in order to begin

a successful school year where students feel supported and loved. Families are the first source of

education for a child, when you open the communication between families and help them feel

welcome they will work with you for the benefit of the child because the teacher, families, and

community all form a bond for the love and learning of a child. Through this experience I have

learned just how important building relationships with students' families are. These relationships

develop a strong connection to their children and future children in your class. Family and

community relationships start the border of the puzzle to a successful educational experience.

At the beginning of student teaching I first established relationships with families through

a welcome letter where I introduced myself and gave my contact information in case parents had

questions for me. I quickly established relationships through Classdojo, where I communicated

with parents one on one and multiple occasions for celebrations, information, and concerns. I

also communicated with the families as a whole group through class dojo by providing

information, and keeping them updated and involved in their child's learning. I made sure to post

if we were doing anything for the week, or post pictures of their child working on a task and

explained what we were learning. I also assisted with newsletters that were sent to the parents

keeping them updated on what their child was learning. I also established relationships with

families by attending the family book fair night held at the school. It was an amazing experience
and opportunity for me to meet families and understand different family dynamics in a fun

environment. I was able to meet the parents, grandparents, and siblings. I have spoken with many

families both in person and through Class Dojo.

Through communicating with the families I have also learned more about different family

dynamics, cultures, and communities. I also learned how to integrate this in the classroom. I

provide a lot of opportunities for the students to communicate about their families, communicate

about themselves, and involve parents in their child's learning through updates and pictures. The

students also completed a lapbook project where they worked with their families to think about

their culture and draw pictures/write about it. The students were able to present their projects to

the class, which was a great way to get to know each student and their families! Learning about

the students and families really helped me connect with them both. I loved being able to

communicate with the families and I feel like as the semester progressed I grew more

comfortable communicating with families and they felt more comfortable communicating with

me. Going into my first year of teaching I really want to establish family communications early,

and let them know they are an important part of their child's education. I want to work together

with the community and families to provide the best learning experience for their child.