001and be here for one um another presentation of this program Family Academy today we have our presenter a our community partner she came from the Federation with the kids with special needs and the topic for tonight is building brids par us partner is um in education you are parents and a very important partner in education for the student to succeed so a is here and enjoy the presentation thank you so much thank you thank you hello everyone good to see you know so many famar faces and new ones there some that PR for me um for those that do know me um don't know me my name I work for Federation for children gr special needs um the Federation is a umbrella of many different programs and within them we have the Massac the mass
002family engagement program and within that we have the school finder help line that's where I work and I going to talk a little bit about that but also before that I going to talk about the important role of the parent throughout the educational journey of the student of your children okay so I going to be putting back and forth my glasses but um I hope that that doesn't distract you so we as Federation we are the pti's Statewide you know uh parent training formation center for the state recover the whole state of Massachusetts we're not a state agency we're a nonprofit organization and our services are free for parents Educators and professionals working with the families what we do uh we provide information resources trainings this is is just one of them there are many
003different ones and I invite you to go into our website which right in the bottom www fcs.org and find out more about our organization in the work that we do um one of the sorry about that the we have um training which is to train parents and professionals um a little more in depth of the special process it's more intensive it's called PTI which if you have a child with special needs or when I say special needs you know connect with the physical disability but it's not only the physical disability is also for specific learning disability sometimes children have difficulty learning sometimes in Reading sometimes in writing sometimes math sometimes it's behavioral and say is that we help you with information with all the issues that you might be going through or try to support
004as much as you can we try it so uh we do have an annual conference coming up which is March 8th uh this side of the next one is a virtual conference um that exists for 25 years and um there's over 40 presentations and including multiple language so if you are interested uh tonight because you're here and whoever is watching with us uh you can either you know sign up on the Block the morning is going to be passing on or you can email a schoolfinder at fcs.org is one of the fers that is connected with the this lights that was provid oh she's going to provide you is not in there you going to have so um let's see let's di in in today's today's session uh which is called I'm excited uh to
005talk about family engagement and the critical role parents play in education so the title of this session is building Bridge which is parent as partners and education as we begin I want to acknowledge the challenge families often face and navigating in educational system today especially if fing the system often feels complicated to understand and there are many barriers um that can get in way for some families that are real fear of attending school or interacting with system whether it's due to language barriers concerns about the child's learning needs or the confusion around education policies on top of that families for dealing with housing stability face a constant uncertainty that makes even hard to engage with the school system and with the political climate today there's a lot of mixed messaging making difficult to know what
006resources rights are available for English Learners especially those with disabilities this complexity increases for the system can often feel like it's not designed to meet the unique needs of his students but I want to reassure you that you are not alone of facing this challenge today we are here to talk about how we can navigate this barriers together and ensure that every child has access to support they need for Success so despite this challenge Z goal as a parent is incredibly important you have a right to advocate for the child's education and today we will discuss how to navigate the mop I'm try face okay thank you go to baras to ensure your child receives the support they need research shows that strong parents engagement leads to better students outcomes such as improved attending higher
007grades and healthier behaviors in childrens and adolescents so let's explore how we can build this reach together SCH schools can build positive relationship with their parents by addressing barriers to engagement like scheduling conflicts those transation language needs and ensuring a welcome environment like this one today then we should be aware of key legal protections that support students rights and access to education schools cannot ask about your or your child's immigration status family ucational rights and Privacy Act which is called FAA protect the students record from being shared with immigration authorities equal education opportunities act ensure language support for students who are not willing in English IA or individuals with disability Education Act guarantees F Education Service for children with disabilities title six of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on race color national orange
008gender or sexuality parents and Guardians have the right to request and interpred for meetings and school communication the school were designated a sensitive location meaning immigration enforcement actions are generally not allowed inside schools an ice officer cannot access a students unless the parent gives consent or if they present a warrant signed by a judge the school staff should consult legal counil to evaluate and warrant and inform the students parent Guardian if that happens the schools cannot share a students indentifiable information with outside parties including ice agents without parent consent or J warrant students direct directory information is not protected under F students record pre Privacy Law parents and Guardians make out of sharing their child's direct directory information if approach or detain you have the right to remain silent and provide the red card from
009me I know they they were here last month so if you need more cards there's more to provide if you question about immigration status keep emergency contact forms updated with the school so the school who knows who to contact in case of emergency included an emergency contact outside your household talk with your child about increase immigration enforcement and create a plan including a caregiver up if needed so you're going to see on the slides that I that I provided a link which helps you to create that plan with a child and there is another another one that actually provide some keywords or a way to communicate with a child to prepare um to discuss the increased um number of reinforcement that we are facing this time the benefits of school Family Partnership we heard that
010a um research shows that when families are actively engaged in their childhood ation is students them to earn higher grades have better attendance and complete homework more consistently in fact paramal involvement is one of the strongest predictor of Student Success regardless of a family social economic background family engagement plays a significant role in the child's social emotional development the students were the strongest School family connections often exi higher self-confidence greater motivation and more resilience the students also tend to have fewer behavioral problems and better social skills making them more successful in the classroom and Beyond Beyond academics and social emotional growth family engagement also directly in inuences the students participation and the School attendance the students are more likely to participate in school activities and stay on track to graduate regular communication between schools and
011families reduce aism and reinforces the students sense of belonging further supporting their academic and emotional development I just want to check with the purp am I too fast I'm try to face myself I promise students are designated as sensitive locations oh that was the next one is a critical element of successful School Family Partnership is the trust and relationship built between parents and Educators a school that actively work to create positive relationship with families Foster an environment where both Educators and parents feel value this trust leads to a more supportive and productive learning environment for students engaging diverse families provides the schools with a better understanding of students background is strengths and needs culturally responsive family engagement promotes equity and education and it ensures that all students have resources and support they need to succeed
012the school with the strong Family Partnership experience higher teacher satis section and lower burn burnout family involvement creates a positive School climate improves collaboration within community and leads to more effective educational relationship when teachers feel supported through strong family school relationships they are can dedicate more energy to Student Learning fostering a positive and prod productive classroom environment a stronger partnership between families and school plays a crucial role in the Student Success you got that right as parents you are a child your child first teacher and best advocate so we know that when parents and teachers collaborate the students benefit academically socially and emotionally so far open communication creates important opportunity for team teenagers to develop key skills that help them navigate adolesent research shows that students with engaged parents tend to have higher grad attend
013the school more regularly and take higher level courses this partnership also Foster motivation reducing Dropout rates and increase the likelihood of a opportunities parents can be involved in various ways attending events such as this one is staying in touch with the teachers and guiding their child to homework and extracurricular activities but family school partnership go beyond academics when parents and teachers work together the students develop confidence selfawareness decision making skills this relationship help young people build resilience preparing them to adapt and try in their communities when parents engage in their child's education they'll help create the foundation for lifelong success by staying formed involved and proactive every parent can contribute to a stronger education experience for their child I know that not all schools have the same resource which can be a barrier to family
014involvement The Mending working work schedules that need parents ability to attend school events cultural or language barriers that make communication difficult Transportation issues that prent and families for engaging in person even when schools and parents face some challenges involv parents play a crucial role in maximizing available support and opportunities for students for example instead of attending events in person like today you might start by attending virally like others that might be watching this the other way is encourage your reading and help with the homework at home you might say yeah but I don't know the content and we're going to talk a little bit about that request translation and interpretation Services ah had of time to be able to fully participate in your child's education if you need help understand forms or school documents you
015have the right to request interpreters and translations contact the school or district office to access the services uh participate at the parents groups in your District such as PTA the parent Teachers Association elac English learner parent advisory Council or cacs ucation P advisory Council stay connect by check the school website for updates events and resources cultural differ are real right can you testify to that I I don't know I have few stories of myself so I'm trying to just keep myself on the SCP right here today but I have quite a few stories does anyone want to share one okay all right so one thing that I would bring it up as an example um there was a part of our state the word I which is the individualized education program for children with special
016needs with disabilities um the interpreters they replace the word IP for pay e i they reverse the order of the words because that's how it's WR and PS and because of that they never mentioned the word IP and multiple parents in that region didn't make the connection with the pay and the I which is a legal document where the schools they have to follow by state and federal law and that brought a lot of confusion for that one family specifically which is the child migrate here and with clear intellectual disability physical disability mulle disabilities I would say which would trigger the evaluation process to start right off the bat however because of that there were delays in services so one of the way one of of the reasons that I'm here today is actually to
017inform you of some of the things that you might not be aware of and to tell you that is a place that you can check different of your question or in need so let's explore some key differences between the US education system and other countries one of the most important difference is parenting volume in the US the school expect parents to be engaged in their child's education attending parents teacher conferences helping the homework and supporting school events another key difference is how students are taught in us here education emphasize developing critical thinking skills rather than focusing solely on memorization this approach helps students become independent independent thinkers and problem solvers preparing them for rapidly changing world when it comes to special education inclusive education is not as widely available in many countries as it is
018in the US here students with disability have a right to individualize theti program which I mentioned before I or a 504 depending on their needs to ensure they receive the support needed to succeed alongside their P by support is another difference many US schools provide language services for students who speak a language other than English however the level of support varies by state and district there are other educational op in state that parents can explore sh with the family's prior consent I going to share another example how um the work that we do actually was helpful for this family specifically I like to share an example that illustrate the situation which I might be able to assist you to this the students became very ill and while she was still able to work the number
019of missed from school due to doctor's appointment medical procedures recovery time and physical barriers at the school caused her to fall behind a community in this case a virtu school option proved to be the basket for her we support the family throughout this process which I'm simplifying for you today uh now she is attending school on track to graduate high school and has we started making plans to attend college you are your child first teacher and you and most important Advocate your culture language Traditions en reach their education your voice matters and your presence in the tribe's educational Journeys in valuable you're not alone schools communities organizations and educators are here to support your the way hey as a parent it's essential to understand your right regarding language Services the school and Health Care Systems
020are required to provide interpretation services and translate uh documents signature including the student handbook 504 plan and thep but also in your daily communication with school with the teacher if you're not understanding what they are communicating it's important to request your child has right to receive the support they need regardless of their language if they are English Learners leaving situation or developmental challenge the first La that I'm going to talk about is M act under the m v act even children who are on house or in stable leing situations are entitled to free public education another one is the child find Provisions ensure that children with disabilities or developmental delays are identified and supported early if your child was born with disability of early intervention services here you likely be set up for year however
021if you notice any developmental delays between bir age three you can speak with your child's petition about your concerns but also parents can also request Services directed from our if you notice delays after you try it turns three or any time during the child vation Journey whether you suspect of a disability or have diagnosis from a doctor it can request an evaluation want okay sorry about that see that's why I'm trying to follow the the notes Here uh so if you notice delays after try follow you better oh okay then you know what here we go let me speak for my heart follow you from your heart awesome so uh if you notice did you get the first part when they said about if the child was born here in the US okay so if
022your child was born here in the US and you heard from the doctor that your child was born with a disability it's very likely that you leave the hospital with the services already set up for what is called early intervention if your child wasn't born here but you came when the child is between the age of zero is and six months or you know three before 2 years and 6 month uh you can actually share with your PS your concerns about the child's development and if the doctor doesn't think the same way you do you can actually call the place and ask for service independently for this sphere of time however when the trial turns free one day before the child turn free the early Convention Services end so because of that your child might
023need extra support between the age of three and five if they going to start as kindergarten or six if they're going to start as first graders one point here important to mention is that the tribe has to have 5 years old to byy September 1st to be enrolled in kindergarten and the same thing with the six for first grader first grade so if your child is a tri that completes their birthday is September 4th usually it goes to the next year that they going to start the school the there is a lot that actually the child has to be in school by six years old so technically by five is a given and there's a information on the district's website when the opening uh for registration is um going to happen I just want to
024see that okay the special ucation programs one of the things that for students that are English Learners doesn't mean that they cognitively cannot understand what is being taught in the classroom they might be Advanced and they might have a chance to ATT classes that are more advanced as well so there are things that we can talk I just want to invite you know you guys to reach out to ask you know questions and especially the patient it's a whole process so if your child was diagnosed with a disability back in your country and came here there is something that to be shared with the school and there is a process to start if you want to learn more we have other presentations and again you can just call and we can walk you through the
025process if your child was diagnosed here by a doctor um and the child needs extra support than what is being offered by school we also can talk with you and discuss about the services and the I the program to help you understand the process but I also advocate for a child in light of increasing immigration uh enforcements it's important to approach conversation with your child with care and sensitivity so be honest and age appropriate about the situation while ensuring that you try to feel safe and support it one thing that you might want to do is actually have a conversation with your child about who could be a safe person a safe person if something happens uh with one of the parents or the parent um another thing that we we have here is links
026to the page that actually by age is divided it's kind of funky um but you guys have on your PDF as well um for early Tri card between Age 5 uh 0 and five the elementary which is the 6 years old to n can you see that one it's to small small sorry about that I'm try to keep like three of and the Middle School from between the age 10 and 13 and the high school is 14 and hour so it's important for you to have open conversation with your tribe but all so be attentive to the age appropriate and talk about um who could be the safe person to actually provide any kind of support if in case um that happens and you need um updating the emergency contact form from school like I
027mentioned before bring someone else that is outside your household it's another way to prevent some kind of if you are uh the and um make sure that the child is not going to be uh by themselves right so the other resource that you see on the right side is help your child learn to read um one of the te that exist in me is that because the child speaks a language they cannot learn another one where they are having trouble learning English because they speak another language there is research that they want that they already show that is not true that actually helps the child develop not only one language but multiple language so if your child is having trouble learning if you were told that contact us that is very likely that is more
028Che it and also you can discuss that with your child p u to discuss for the the concern that you have about their learning so some ways that the parents can actually help their child putting the at home because that's one of the things that parents ask oh I don't speak the language I don't know exactly what you're learning and how can I help so we can help by reading together every day can be just a short story um you can ask your child to be allow and create a reading which can set time just a regular time can be a bad time can be uh just a silent moment that you have throughout the night just to calm down before Lear to um B and it's okay if you try read in their own
029language it strengths their ly skills and they can transer those skills to learning English or you both can learn English together so you might identify something some words that actually is helpful for both of you but you can Max it together so by f in Reading friendly environment you're building a foundation for the future success in school and Beyond and here we going to talk a little bit more way that the parents can help their child so you can talk with your child about their day encourage your child to write every day of course if they little ones that they not actually really develop the writing skills you're going to develop you're going to help develop the fine M skills by other activities and again if you need those you can help with that you
030speak to your child in your home language so you might want to try English but if you want to keep you try it Bilal that's the way to go talk about the benefits of being Bal within your child sh special and recipes from home you're going to create an environment at home where you try not only going to carry the traditions and the history about your culture but also it's going to be build their own as they grow the here in the US so listen to your child read alloud and sign up for a free library card I don't know how many of you here know about having library card can you show my hands come on just okay Monica you're the only one okay I have two more three more but if it doesn't
031help she's professional so one thing that I want to tell you is that the library you can have the free card they have multiple books they have videos they have CTS they have multiple information for free and if it happen that you borrowed the book from Fall beaver and some something happen in have you move to another city or town you can actually return at the library in that city or town you don't have to come all the way to frer and you have access another thing is asking your child bring your child to the library to actually choose the books the topics that they want to read the that sense of um having you know them encouraged to actually be it's empowerment for them so the next one we're going to talk about encouraging
032the writing and um also offer a space so they can do their homework they can sit down and be able to prod to work that they have to provide at school so writing doesn't have to feel like a chore you can encourage your child to write about things they passionate about it could be a fun story a letter to a friend or even a Daily Journal the more fun they have the more confident they they will become you can try making share activities right together share stories and celebrate the activities expose your Tri to variety of books and stories and articles um can make very exciting part of learning like I said choose something that they have interested in already so we make the activity fun consider introducing digital books or audio books especially if
033they have access to technology the formats can engage be engaging especially for reluctant readers so if your child needs extra help in reading that's one way that you can also help having the book and have the audio book at about the same story to play together so the child can actually learn and spend time reading with your child whether it's a bedtime or during a quiet moment uh modeling reading behaviors well uh helps your child see the reading is important and enjoyable um sometimes sometimes what we perceive as behavior in teenagers especially can actually be a form of communication I invite you to shift your perspective and look beyond the surface it could be frustration lack of confidence or even a need for validation when your teenager struggles they are trying to tell you something
034so they might simply need support a different way to express themselves what might seem like defance of resistance is often a different need for expression so the ones that have teen The Next Step you notice Behavior take a moment see things through a lens and understand that your team might just be struggling to communicate their needs with your support they can unlock their full potential as a wrer so T teenagers often you know resist the writing portion of homework unusual so writing is essential skills that students are expect to master over time when they start kindergarten in first grade second grade and third grade you know when when they got to the third grade they are supposed to now generalize the skills that they learned before but if they got to the third grade and
035they have a lot of struggles reading or be able to engage in classroom they might need extra support and exra supports are available so again as a parent and observing being part of the ucation portion of your child helps you understand the needs but also help them um Express to the teachers or Express to um if you're having a meeting with the Educators um your tribe specific needs here is a portion how actually educat can support families they can create a welcoming environment for where families feel respected valued and included uh make sure they know their contribution I appreciate and their voices are heard that's the number one negative feedback that I have from parents is that they are voicing however they feel that they're not being heard so that's one of the things provide
036clear clear communication um translated materials the interpretation services this help reach the language needs but also if ensures that important communication are understood by the parents respect cultural differences so understand which family are coming from so if there is um traumatic event that a family went through or a loss you can communicate with the school with the teacher and so they will understand if your child is struggling for a period of time and ex supports might be available to support them encourage you know mly parents to participate in their child's education and listening to their ideas concerns and feedback Okay so have B staff trained by desie um bie is offering a training which is divided in three tiers and what I would invite you um is School District to actually expose the professionals working
037at the district to be trained there's different levels that they can be and where it's important to bring it up so what to do when my child I already talked a little bit about diagnosed with disabilities facing learning difficulties behavioral challenges mental health problems and school refusal you can start by communicating with the teacher communicating with the school to try to see if they can provide the resources available this is one uh that I found on the website here from the F Public Schools if you the student or families are in need is just to get in contact with them and Monica here is here to support if you need my and here I will introduce to you the I know that the FES were distribute and um if you want to be part of
038the conference there is more than just special needs or specific learning or specific disabilities it's about interpretation it's about health health system so it's important like for the Portuguese there's a session that you're going to be talking about M out specifically there's another one that is going to be talking about discipline and uh behaviors so there's over 40 presentations which I'm not going to L one of them for you right now but I I I just want to make gow and if you are interested you can just email schoolfinder fcs.org with your name last name um then your phone number and uh tell me that you are interested in and I can register you and provide you more information how to move forward from that um so how you work what we do we help
039families with the school enrollment and placement assistance also support for English Learners and multilingual families special vacation and suit Support Services advocacy and family engagement and address complex situations and social challenge like some of the examples that I gave you before um who we support All Families different of their backgrounds the language that they speak uh abilities or difficulties uh so we address students with and without disability here are some of the questions that we received um one of them is how can I communicate on my district if I don't speak English which is scho can I my child apply to and what other lines here is specifically for high school there is many options in terms of a high school placement especially schools that are uh Career and Technical focus and which they have
040a deadline where the application is open at this moment in mulle in multiple schools throughout the state if you try this looking for something that is on that field they can graduate high school with the diploma and depending on the FI with the license to start working as they graduate high school so together we can build educational system where every child feels they belong and has the opportunity to succeed thank you parents is school for your commitment involvement in your child's education and we will love to hear from you so at this point i' like to open the floor for any questions or comment in my have please feel free to share your thoughts and ask about anything you discuss today you import Val to us thank [Applause] you any specific question question I don't
041bite you have one okay than you do is that a question no okay if there is no question then I guess um I'll hand it over to Monica thank you very much everyone and all right thank you all right everyone thank you so much for coming tonight for this amazing presentation the resource still there at the table and please feel free to enjoy some PE and refresh before you go home thank you so much for coming here tonight