Going Paperless - Emailing parents

[lynned55]

I usually write CHECK YOUR EMAILS on our notice board.

Still gets ignored by at least 1/3 of our parents.

[Mouseketeer]

Also another good way to get info to parents (some parents at least!) is via Tapestry.

 

We use Tapestry and have found that many parents (more than in the past methods) have engaged with it.. due to their ability to view learning journals and contribute. Many just like to have a quick look, whilst we have found many have contributed.

 

So with this new found engagement and interest in their child's learning.. we can simply update all parents with a post at once.. and this can include a picture and text.. links whatever.

 

The many other benefits of using an online journal such as Tapestry make this feature a bonus!

I send everything out via Tapestry now also, I ask them to add seen to newsletters, all those replying have their child entered into a raffle..nothing much but it seems to work, if I want a response from them to something I go to browser version and split the ob so replies are confidential, have just sent out a question asking for their view on an area we want to change, giving them an option to vote a, b, c or put forward another idea...amazed at the responses, I will print and add to a folder to show we involve our parents.....ofsted tick :-)

[JJA]

As a parent of a child in a school that sends everything in PDF format....OPENING ANOTHER DOCUMENT IS A PAIN IN THE PATOOTIE!! It would be much easier if the information was in the cover email, and good details in the subject line. H

 

I, like everyone else here, moans like mad about parents ignoring information. HOWEVER I am also a parent and am guilty of missing messages and information from my own children's schools (although have got much more organised in recent years!)

 

Reading HoneyPancakes has given me an idea - I like my pretty PDF newsletter and know that the vast majority of my parents enjoy it too; so I will keep on sending this but in the cover email I will put a quick précis of what is in the newsletter so that if they choose not to open it they have still had the very very basics...Thanks Honey!!

[tinkerbell1403]

interesting to read that some of you are using tapestry to engage with parents. Can I just ask how you go about this? Do you add your message as an obs or as a report? Just trying to figure out if this is something we could adapt for our setting. Thanks x

[Mouseketeer]

Hi, I add them as observations, copying and pasting word docs, (would be great to just add a link though), i use the browser to to add the first one, the edit in app to add all other chn :-)