Partners in Learning

Phonics Plus: Parent Handout As children are learning to read, family support can be crucial to success. This handout provides information on how parents can help their children learn phonic skills in a fun and informal way at home. It describes in clear language how children also use memory, clues from text, background knowledge and word structures to figure out words. Classroom and support teachers find this handout particularly helpful as a resource to share with parents wanting to part

The ABC’s of Preventing the Summer Slide: Parent Handout Summer is a special season for families to spend quality time together having extra fun. It is also a time when many young learners forget important skills taught during the previous school year. No one wants their child to lose ground over the summer break. This eight page resource includes: • Two pages of suggestions parents can use for supporting their children over the summer break. One for every letter of the alphabet. These tw

Skills that Make a Difference for Learning: A Parent Handout Over the years parents have shared with us what has worked for them to teach their children skills that make a difference for learning. They gave us many ideas which we are passing on to you in this handout. Use the ideas to think about what would work for you and your child. The important thing is for your child to learn these life-long skills: taking pride in a job, organizing and caring for belongings, completing jobs, starti

Understanding & Learning From Reading: A Printable Parent Handout Otherwise known as reading comprehension, understanding and learning from reading is a developmental process. It begins from the time very young children notice print around them and continues as they learn to read. In fact, reading comprehension is a life-long skill and applies to: story books, information books, nursery rhyme books, magazines, electronic text, graphic literature such as comic books and cartoons, environmen

BeReading With Children As They Learn To Read: A Parent Handout When children start learning to read, they benefit from reading out loud to parents. Ten to twenty minutes a day provides amazing results when help and support is one-on-one. This handout provides tips to support children when they read out loud to parents and caregivers. It also includes steps for choosing books that are at the correct level of difficulty for children to read out loud. Educators who purchase this handout are w

Reading to Children From the Beginning: A Parent Handout Sharing the joy of reading on a daily basis helps children develop a love for books, reading and learning. Children discover that reading is an enjoyable learning experience and become readers for life! Reading out loud to children introduces new words, ideas and information. Talking with children before, during and after reading helps develop listening and speaking skills and develops new understandings. This four page handout has bee

Learning About Numbers: A Parent Handout This handout provides information on how parents can help their children learn about numbers using every day experiences. It provides information on activities that support the development of vocabulary associated with numbers, number sense, measuring and learning about patterns. Classroom and support teachers find this handout a practical and effective way to share information with parents who want to support their child’s early numeracy learning expe

How To Teach the Times Tables This Partners in Learning publication has been written as a resource to teach the times tables in a strategic and meaningful way. It is most suitable for students in late primary and early intermediate classrooms and has been designed to ensure students: • understand the concept of multiplication • are able to use mental mathematic strategies to calculate rather than guess answers to multiplication facts • have a variety of practice activities to achieve mast

Beyond the Classroom: A Resource for Parents & TutorsThis resource is an economical means for parents and tutors to access the handout portions found in our Set for Success publications written for educators. The handout titles are: Reading to Children From the Beginning Reading with Children as They Learn to Read Children Reading on Their Own and Getting Better Every Time Phonics Plus Understanding and Learning from Reading Becoming a Writer Becoming a Better Writer Learning About Numbers

Becoming a Better Writer: A Parent Handout Children grow as writers when they write often, receive lots of encouragement and have support. Two writing strategies that parents can use are: 1. help children make reading and writing connections 2. mentor children throughout the writing process. Classroom and support teachers find this handout particularly helpful as a resource to share with parents wanting to know how to use these two writing strategies and provide one-on-one support for their

How To Use Nursery Rhymes for Beginning Readers: A Printable for Teachers Nursery rhymes, pattern books, chants and poems are powerful tools to help children learn vocabulary in a fun, rhythmic manner. Children respond to these types of text as it appeals to their natural sense of rhythm, rhyme and ability to memorize. Hearing rhymes, alliteration and identifying pairs of rhyming words is basic to developing phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness is foundational for learning to use phonics to

Becoming a Writer: Parent Handout Learning to write is very much like learning to talk; both are developmental. The process of writing begins when children scribble, draw and pretend write. Next they begin to print letters and use combinations of letters or words to label and print words that are important to them. Eventually they learn to spell many words correctly and write simple sentences or even short paragraphs. This handout describes four activities parents can use to take advantage o

How To: Make Tactile Flashcards for Reading & Spelling These flashcards provide a tactile experience that is effective with many children in helping them memorize reading and spelling words, particularly those words that have to be learned by sight. These tactile flashcards appeal to children because they can “feel” the words as they practice reading and spelling them. Three senses: seeing, hearing and feeling are engaged during this learning process. The child sees the word and letters,

Children Reading On Their Own & Getting Better Every Time: A Parent Handout Children who read on their own become better readers every time they read. They develop instant recall or recognition of a growing number of words and expand their background knowledge. They become quick and accurate at using phonics or sounding out, clues from pictures and other words they have already read as well as making predictions from their own background knowledge to figure out words they don’t know. The

How To Make the Most of Parent Education addresses the following questions: • What is the topic? • Who will be presenting? • How will parents be invited and encouraged to attend? • When will the workshop be held? • Where will the workshop be held? • Will refreshments be available? • Will childminding be offered? • What resources and materials will be used? • What will the agenda look like?

This handout describes the benefits of parents working with their children at home and ideas for how to set it up for success. The results are active partnerships between children, parents and teachers and support for what children are learning at school. Life-long skills such as organization, time management, problem solving, resourcefulness, self-reliance, responsibility, perseverance, cooperation and independence are strengthened. The ideas are practical, easy for parents to implement and

The Prereferral Folder provides one way to identify at risk children as they are completing their Kindergarten year. May and June are optimal months for planning effective interventions to address issues of concern. In many cases parents and caregivers are then able to provide and maintain support over the summer months. In this way as many children as possible can begin their Grade One year set for successful learning. The Prereferral Folder helps to: • establish an assessment and evaluat

Top Ten Tips for Reading Out Loud to Young Children Reading out loud develops a love for books, reading and learning. What you read out loud to children can range from very easy picture books to books with a lot of print. It is amazing how much children can enjoy and understand what they hear long before they begin learning to read. Educators are welcome to forward this handout electronically, post it on school websites, and photocopy it for distribution to their school parent population.

This one pager is based on our publication: Supporting Your Child’s Learning at Home and is meant as a handy one page educators can use as a convenient communication to parents to help them get started with distance learning if their school has been closed due to the coronavirus.