201 Ways to Involve Parents 3/e

Betty Boult, EdD, is currently an educational consultant. She retired from the position of assistant superintendent of School District No. 43 (Coquitlam) in British Columbia in June 2000. She has served as director of instruction (curriculum), supervisor of staff development, principal, assistant principal, teacher-librarian, and classroom teacher. Her back ground experience ranges from primary to adult education in both Canada and the United States. In addition to these full-time positions, she has served as a provincial community education consultant, a guest lecturer for the University of Lethbridge, a sectional instructor for the University of Alberta, and instructor for Nova Southeastern University. She has done part-time consulting with an international consulting company. During the past fifteen years, she has been contracted to do workshops and seminars at the district, provincial, and international levels. In addition, she has appeared on educational television and published numerous articles. Currently Betty is in her eighth year as Superintendent/ Program Consultant of a British Columbia Offshore School just outside Shanghai. The student population is 1200 students (900 of the students are in Grades ten to twelve). She also is a lead auditor for the Ministry of Education in British Columbia and continues to consult for various jurisdictions throughout the province.

Preface Publisher's Acknowledgments About the Author Introduction Part 1 - Making It Happen Starting the School Year Supporting the Whole Family Creating Safe Havens for Students Recruiting Volunteers Meeting the Needs of Volunteers Training Volunteers Developing Staff Placing and Supporting Volunteers Acknowledging Volunteers Part 2 - Creating the Climate Projecting a Positive Image Marketing the Message Using Technology to Communicate Communicating Effectively Creating the Context for Change Part 3 - Sustaining the Involvement Celebrating Diversity Using Community Resources Developing Community Relationships Promoting Learning Across the Curriculum Building Character Talking Person to Person Fundraising Part 4 - Venturing Beyond the Bake Sale Establishing Connections Cross-Fertilizing Ideas Fostering Effective Advisory Councils Developing Parent Capacity District Initiatives: Setting the Example Resources References Index

"Equal parts instructional and inspirational, this little gem has been an important part of my toolkit since I came across the first edition a decade ago. Dr. Boult's imperative to involve parents so comprehensively in their children's education makes so much sense, and the variety of strategies she offers range from the practical to the imaginative. 201 Ways to Involve Parents is a wonderful resource for both classroom teachers and school administrators." -- Lee Smith, Principal "With Betty's vast and varied experience in education, she brings a breadth of knowledge and understanding to the important subject of parents as partners." -- Judy Chapman, Educational Consultant "When I used this book with the members of the Parent Advisory Council (PAC) in my inner city elementary school, their executive immediately embraced it as a way to better understand the important role they played. Because of this, instead of using the PAC monthly meetings as a platform to complain, they used them to work with my staff and me to positively and proactively influence the direction of my school. For years afterwards, I would overhear parent conversations that began with "As Boult said in her book..." It truly did assist in changing the climate in my school!" -- DeDe DeRose, Retired Principal, Educational Consultant