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Parent communication? Try a classroom Web page
A Missouri teacher tells us how technology helps teachers and students
communicate with parents and family.
By Sharon Sumner
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 ecently I took a survey of the
29 students in my class to find out how many of their parents had access to the Internet at home or
at work. Since we live in a rural district outside St. Louis, Missouri, I was astonished to find
that there were 13 positive responses. Every day, more students tell me they are getting computers
at home soon.
With this in mind, I have created a classroom
Web page to connect school and home. Accordingly, one of the first
things I do every year is have parents and students sign an Internet
usage permission form. I also have them sign an Internet publishing
permission form. I never use last names or identifying photos. In addition,
all the children in my class have a page of their own and the opportunity
to submit items for posting. Both students and parents are thrilled
to see the students' classwork online, so having individual Web pages
is a very effective motivator for the children.
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 n addition, our class Web page has
a guestbook. This is a great medium for parent and family feedback and support. For example, one
little girl's grandfather visited our site from out of state and signed our guestbook a few months
ago. He told his granddaughter how much he enjoyed our page, especially the story she wrote. He
even mentioned the title of her story and she was thrilled! When she updated her page later, she
sent him a note. She mentioned that she was studying biomes of the world and was having some
difficulty finding information on the taiga. The grandfather wrote back and gave her a couple of
Web sites to try for her taiga research. They also exchanged online valentines.
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 ot long ago, this same little
girl brought in her dad's e-mail address. Her first e-mail letter to him included the message that
she loved him more than her heart. What awesome examples of parent and family communication! In this
case, the family is involved and supportive of the child during the school hours, even though they
may be miles or even states away!
I also communicate to parents regularly
through a service called Schoolnotes. I have linked our page to Schoolnotes.com,
a site which allows teachers to create pages that are tailor-made for
parent-teacher communication. It even has a setup that allows parents
to be notified when I update information. I have created several Schoolnotes
pages for my class: a newsletter, a weekly
spelling list, and information and updates on various units we are
working on. My last one included a link to a valentine for each of my
students. They click on their names and are rewarded with a musical
valentine, which they can view at home or at school. Imagine how their
eyes light up when they hear our class theme song "Don't Worry, Be Happy"
in their online valentines!
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"It doesn't take long to write a short, positive comment to
students and their families via e-mail, and it is truly appreciated."
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 f course the quickest way to
communicate with some families is through e-mail. When I find a new site that I think parents or
students will enjoy, I will send a class e-mail message to everyone with access. I can also individualize
messages. For example, one of my students loves to write stories. I sent him and his mother a site
that had all kinds of creative writing ideas for him to try. Another student was home with chicken
pox, so I sent him an online get well card. He and his parents replied with an e-card that had a picture
of my favorite flower: a sunflower! It doesn't take long to write a short, positive comment to
students and their families via e-mail, and it is truly appreciated.
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receive many positive
comments from parents about our page. Teachers in my district are beginning to see the value of
the Internet as a communication tool. I'm proud to say that quite a few teachers have even started
their own class Web pages. For those students without Internet access, printed copies of online
newsletters and communications can be made and sent home. Technology is a powerful educational
tool, and it can open the lines of communication between school and home. Once teachers harness
that power and use it to their advantage, the sky is the limit.
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Sharon Sumner is a teacher
from Sullivan, Missouri.
Teacher Testimony authors are
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© 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 SCR*TEC.
This page is Bobby
Approved.
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Schoolnotes.com. Developed
to help teachers create an easy Web page as a parent communication tool.
Internet Resources
for Missouri's K-12 Teachers. These sites were put together for
Missouri teachers, but are excellent resources for all. 
Mrs. Donn's Lesson Plans Across the
Curriculum. This has something for
everyone.