Good two-way communication between families and schools is necessary for students' success. Not surprisingly, research shows that the more parents and teachers share relevant information with each other about a student, the better equipped both will be to help that student achieve academically. Opportunities for two-way communication include: (1) Parent conferences; (2) Parent-teacher organizations or school community councils; (3) Weekly or monthly folders of student work sent home for parent review and comment; (4) Phone calls; and (5) E-mail or school Web site. This paper presents ideas for building parent-teacher partnerships.

Teachers strive to develop partnerships with parents to support student learning. Strong communication is fundamental to this partnership and to building a sense of community between home and school. This article provides a range of communication opportunities available to teachers, including the emergency use of technology. Barriers to communication are considered in conjunction with potential solutions.

This resource provides access to tips, tools, practice briefs, videos and courses relate to family time coaching in the field of child welfare and was compiled specifically for Northern California counties by the Northern California Training Academy. To learn more about the Academy, please visit www.humanservices.ucdavis.edu/academy

The significance of relationships between the parents and teachers of preschool and kindergarten children is well established. Teachers and schools are presumed to be responsible for lack of parent-teacher collaboration. Early childhood teacher education programs recognize this and offer support related to parents and families.

Consistent with our focus on making differences in children's lives, CYFS conducts applied research on childhood education programs, child care services, social-behavioral interventions, family relationships and family-caregiver partnerships. We position children for academic success by establishing strong connections between families and schools while striving to improve those schools by preparing and improving their teachers.

Most studies examining influences on parent involvement focus on common demographic factors, such as social class or gender, and on elementary grades. In the present study, we investigated a more malleable influence, perceptions of ability, in the context of middle school. We examined how perceptions held by parents, teachers, and students concerning students' academic abilities affected parents' involvement and teachers' facilitation of school programs for involvement.

The School Community Journal is a refereed journal that includes research and field reports related to the school as a community of teachers, students, parents, and staff.