The Importance of Parent Engagement in Early Education

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Parent Engagement

Did you know that research has shown that when families are involved in their children’s early education service and work together with educators, there are significant benefits for children?

In our Sydney Early Education Centres, we actively encourage many different opportunities for family collaboration and participation in our curriculum, programs, and special events. We believe in the significance of relationships and the value of active participation and interconnectedness of our community. Community is not about a place, building or organisation; it is about the people and the relationships that are built between each other. It develops in each individual a sense of belonging as well as a feeling of trust, safety and care. The more that educators and families work closely together, the better children are able to learn and thrive.

What are the benefits of parent engagement for children? 

There can be significant benefits for children when their parents are engaged in their early education service. These include:

  • They develop a sense of belonging 
  • They have stronger relationships with other children, as well as educators
  • They are more likely to enjoy learning and be motivated to do well
  • They have greater confidence and social skills
  • Their positive well-being is increased.

Practical suggestions for families for parent engagment

What to look for in a quality early education centre:

Welcoming environment

You should feel welcomed upon arrival at the centre. This could be a warm feeling when you walk in; educators greeting you with a smile or a simple hello; or a tidy entryway. Does the centre make you want to be a part of the community?

Children being engaged and cared for by the educators

Are the children playing and engaging with educators in experiences or are children playing and the educators are standing around watching? Are children being attended to if they are upset or are they being left alone?

Inviting experiences

Are there inviting and engaging experiences set up or offered to the children? Are there any documentation to show the learning that children are being engaged in?

Children’s work on display

Are there children’s artwork, thoughts or photos being displayed within the environment that show their learning and development?

What you can do at home:

Continuing or repeating learning experiences

The more that the learning experiences are being continued at home, the more their love of learning continues to grow. This also allows the children to consolidate their knowledge that they learnt in the experience.

Connecting with other families

Attending events from the centre, going to birthday parties, and general chatting during drop off and pick ups allows families to make connections with other families. This will help encourage your child to build friendships with other children.

What we do at SEEC: 

How can you become more involved at SEEC?

Open communication with the educators

We really enjoy having conversations with our families during drop-off and pick-up. This is a great opportunity for us to communicate how your child’s day has been, any concerns or issues can be brought to our attention, following up on experiences that the children want to extend on during the day or week, etc. We often use conversations and community announcements on Story Park to engage with families as well.

Coming in and sharing an experience with the children

We would love to get to know you as an individual. We encourage families to come in and share with the children. This could be reading stories either in English or home language; sharing about a cultural event; discussing with children about medical or behavioural topics that might help them understand why your child prefers different learning; sharing about your job and showing photos or objects; talking about any volunteer work or charities that you help with, etc. If you would like to come in to share, please reach out to the educators to organise a day and time that works best. We recognise that families come with a wealth of knowledge and skills that provide educators with opportunities to continue learning from different professionals.

Planning and programming (individual and community)

Individual and community plans are shared with families for them to comment on their child/ren’s learning and development. We believe that the more families share with our educators about their children, the better we are able to plan and implement experiences that are catered to their strengths and interests as well as challenge their emerging abilities. We also have parent and educators’ meetings during the year to discuss children’s learning and development, in addition to creating some goals to be worked on in the upcoming months.

Attending our events throughout the year

These events are a great way to further connect with our educators, as well as get to know other families within your children’s learning community. Some events that occur during the year include: a welcome picnic towards the beginning of the year; Harmony Day lunch; Easter week celebrations; Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Grandparents’ morning/afternoon tea; Christmas lunch; and many more.

Being involved in our rhythm and routines

We encourage families to stay for breakfast or come in during lunch and share a meal with the children. The opportunity to share a meal with the children allows families to participate in part of the children’s daily rhythm.

Be a part of our Action groups

We believe in continuously researching, learning and improving our practices. One of the ways we do this is through our Action groups, which include: Reconciliation Action, Child Safety, Out-the-Gate and Sustainability. These groups usually meet once every 3-4 months, either in person or through Team’s depending on what works best for you. If you are interested or want to know more about the action groups, please talk to the Director or Educational Leader of your centre. All of these things help to strengthen parent engagement.

References:

We hope that this article has helped your connections and further your parent engagement in your child’s early education. If you would like to find out more about our service you can book a tour or send us a message.

Written By

Winnie Tam, CEEC’s Tallowwood Place Campus Leader

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