Does your school allow in-class parent volunteers?

[Anonymous]

Our school does not allow parent volunteers in the classrooms beyond K. Is this normal? There are volunteer jobs answering phones in the office, copying for the teachers, shelving books in the library, or washing brushes in the art room but nothing inside the kids' classes. The room parents only can do parties twice a year. It seems strange since the class sizes are so big.

[Anonymous]

What do you mean by "in the classroom"? Do you mean physically in the classroom, or do you mean helping with in-class work?

(Also, how big are the "so big" class sizes?)

[Anonymous]

Classes are around 25-27 kids. In K, you could volunteer and would work with kids during reading groups or other activities. In VA, the teachers really used the parent volunteers to provide more feedback for kids and support small group learning. There were usually 2 in the class for several hours each day.

[Anonymous]

MCPS does seem to shun parent volunteers after 1st grade. My sister lives in Chantilly and she volunteers 2x a week for 2hrs at a time. She helps the kids doing work at tables, makes copies, puts things on bulletin boards, assists withlining up. This is 3rd grade.

[Anonymous]

As litigious as MoCo parents are, I can understand why top folks at MCPS would be nervous about having parent volunteers taking on academic roles in the classroom. When Johnny brings home a report card that is all Ps and he explains that he's being working with Janie's mom instead of the teacher, how will his parents react?

[Anonymous]

OUr MCPS school permits this. When I go in to do it (kid is still in K but i know those w/ older kids who do the same) I mostly just help with the small group work. I'm basically doing extra assisting and explaining that would not occur if i was not there since the teacher works with one of the groups that cycles through her table.

I wouldn't think that's a great sign unless the principal can give you a non-BS reason for this rule.

But the "only 2 parties" rule - AWESOME!! why is this bad?? they do other neat stuff during the year. They don't need constant parties that need planned and then a defacto expectation that parents come in to "help" celebrate. This is not a bad or unreasonable rule.

[Anonymous]

From friends - I have heard that Wyngate doesn't allow parents in the classroom (any grade) and that Bannockburn does. Vastly different policies.

[Anonymous]

Parents in our school gossiped too much about the kids so they stopped being allowed to volunteer with the kids in the classroom.

[Anonymous]

OUr MCPS school permits this. When I go in to do it (kid is still in K but i know those w/ older kids who do the same) I mostly just help with the small group work. I'm basically doing extra assisting and explaining that would not occur if i was not there since the teacher works with one of the groups that cycles through her table.

I wouldn't think that's a great sign unless the principal can give you a non-BS reason for this rule.

But the "only 2 parties" rule - AWESOME!! why is this bad?? they do other neat stuff during the year. They don't need constant parties that need planned and then a defacto expectation that parents come in to "help" celebrate. This is not a bad or unreasonable rule.

Not complaining about only 2 parties. This is awesome. I was just surprised that after coming from VA, room parents only do parties. Teachers and principal do not allow parent volunteers in the classroom past K. No reason given.

[Anonymous]

My MoCo school completely relies on them. Many teachers like 1 scheduled each morning and afternoon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Classes are around 25-27 kids. In K, you could volunteer and would work with kids during reading groups or other activities. In VA, the teachers really used the parent volunteers to provide more feedback for kids and support small group learning. There were usually 2 in the class for several hours each day.

I'm not pp, but just to clarify 2 parents in a classroom daily is not the norm in VA, especially for several hours per day (!) At my children's school, along with all others that I am familiar with in VA, it is more the norm to occasionally offer volunteer opportunities to parents for things like stuffing folders, setting up bulletin boards or troubleshooting computer problems once a week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parents in our school gossiped too much about the kids so they stopped being allowed to volunteer with the kids in the classroom.

+ 1,000

[Anonymous]

Our school doesn't allow parent volunteers past K too. I think its a local school decision but shunning parents is very much supported by MCPS. Just part of MCPS culture, I guess.

Our previous school in Reston had something like 2/3 participation from parents and almost all of the volunteer activities are in the classroom. It makes a big difference. The class sizes are similar to MCPS but it gives the kids so much more one on one feedback. Somehow, I don't see VA parents gossiping less than MoCo parents, this sounds like an excuse to me.

VA has the same budget problems, struggle to have enough special services, ESL student,s and teacher unions. I think the major difference is there is less competition between the schools, less obsession with test scoring, and less negative control from the central office. MCPS so far has seemed like a big PR spin machine designed to keep parents out and obscure any problems.

In VA, our principal was upfront about challenges from big classes and asked parents to help. Her updates and presentations were in her own voice. Our principal in MCPS acts as if big classes are no challenge at all, everything is perfect in the school, and just constantly quotes things directly from the central MCPS web site. It really turns people off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parents in our school gossiped too much about the kids so they stopped being allowed to volunteer with the kids in the classroom.

You must be in Potomac or Bethesda, where parents have nothing better to do than gossip about 6 year olds. How ridiculous.

I have volunteered in my MCPS kids' classrooms once a week, and have never had any issues with parents/teachers gossiping. WTF is there to gossip about 6 year olds??

Our schools definitely takes volunteers up to 3rd grade. Not sure about past that because we're not there yet!

[Anonymous]

PP again -

I'll just add that our MCPS actively asks for volunteers. Maybe it depends on the principal? Ours sends out a note in the newsletter at the beginning of every year, calling for parents to aim for at least an hour a quarter (more, if possible!). And, they obviously welcome parents on field trips.