7.3: Family Engagement and Communication

Image Source: Family Engagement: Collaborating with Families of Students with Disabilities. IRIS Center Module. The IRIS Center Peabody College Vanderbilt University Nashville.

Fig. 7.3 Venn diagram describing family engagement as the intersection of getting to know families, meaningfully involving families, and building positive relationships with families.

What Does Family Engagement and Communication Look Like With the Families of Children With Differing Abilities ?

Family engagement and open communication is important for all families, but especially important when it comes to families that have children with differing abilities. They may require more communication from you than other families and in turn, you may need more family support in activities, such as accompanying the class on a field trip. You may need to send daily notes home to the family to communicate details of the child’s progress in a setting other than home.

You will need to ask questions with sensitivity and understanding—particularly in talks with families. Set a tone of welcome and understanding. When a family member shares a child’s diagnosis, follow-up question with a “And how does that affect ____________’s development?” to establish a shared understanding about the child's needs. You may be need to set a regular schedule of in-person meetings with the families to make sure all the child's goals and expectations are met and understood.

This approach can help assure a family member that the child care provider is genuinely concerned about the success of their child and is interested in providing appropriate, individually tailored care. The response from the parent will help the child care provider determine what accommodations might be needed, what other questions may be appropriate to ask, and whether specialists are involved or needed.

Image Source: Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND). Early Years Alliance.

Fig. 7.3.1. Mother holding toddler, grandmother interacting with children in preschool classroom

Collaborating for Inclusion

Culture is complex, continually developing, and can be defined in many ways. It impacts what children and their families value, the way behave, and their identities. Nurturing interactions with children and their families means to as much as possible, learn about the history, beliefs, and practices of the children & families they serve. In addition to being responsive to the cultural history, beliefs, values, ways of communicating, and practices of children and families, teachers should design learning environments to include colorful resources such as pictures, displays, and books that are culturally rich and supportive of a diverse population, focusing on the cultures and languages of the children and families in their preschool. Culturally responsive environments establish a climate of respect when teachers, professionals, and specialists meet and communicate with family members.

Each member of the different groups have important information to share and can serve as valuable resources to support children in a preschool program. Everyone has a role to play and their input enrich efforts at inclusion. The primary role of an early childhood educator is to nurture and support the child’s development in a loving and caring manner. Partnerships formed with other adults who are caring for the child—the parents, health-care providers, or specialists—can complement the efforts of all concerned, especially when everyone concentrates on a particular strength.

For collaboration to be successful, the following elements are essential:

• respect for family’s knowledge and experience as the first and best resource for the child
  • should be included in all planning and implemented care
• clear and regular communication, with both informal or planned meetings
• scheduled time for collaboration, respecting the time considerations of all involved
• investment and active involvement by the child's team and their family
• collaborative efforts to provide the appropriate assessments and support services for the child

Inclusive Strategies for the Classroom

The family compositions represented in the populations served by early childhood programs are quite diverse. Sometimes problems arise for staff members because the children and families they serve have not yet acclimated to the social changes this diversity represents. For example, Katie is overheard by staff members saying to Martin, “My mommy says I can’t play with you because you have two mommies living together at your house.” It is unclear whether Katie really understands what she is saying, but the situation represents a teachable moment for the children and the staff. For some families and staff members, this may represent a complex issue in which they are caught between creating a safe and supportive environment for children who have two mommies and respecting the concerns of parents who, for religious or other reasons, promote a different view at home. In such cases, staff members may need to check with families and meet with them before circumventing what is said at home.

Staff members typically develop strategies for accommodating this diversity.

• emphasize the importance of family
• teaching families represent different ways that adults come together to take care of and love the children they have the responsibility to raise
  • adoptive families,
  • foster families
  • single-parent families
  • multigenerational families
  • families led by a grandparent
  • families with gay or lesbian parents

• books, posters, photographs of diverse families
• intentional storytimes
• persona dolls - add a grandma and grandpa to the dollhouse
• play areas with costume clothing choices from around the world
• allow kids to notice and talk about differences
• invite family members to share in class

A classroom that celebrates differences in all categories will best honor diverse families.

Sources

• Esquivel, Krischa, eta la. What Programs Can Do To Be Inclusive of All Children. Role of Equity and Diversity in Early Childood Education. LibreTexts, Social Sciences Library. Shared under a CC BY license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Krischa Esquivel, Emily Elam, Jennifer Paris, & Maricela Tafoya.
• Flavin, Brianna. 8 Ways to Honor Diverse Families in the ECE Classroom. Education Blog. Rasmussen University. 2018