TL;DR:
- Building relationships and community partnerships are keys to good leadership!
- We teach the students in our communities; why not connect them to the community as we teach?
- A partnership with community groups when teaching contributes to positive learning and teaching experiences.
A Key to Good Leadership: How do we build partnerships?
It’s so important to consider relationships and how they are connecting us all as individuals and community members to maintain a positive school climate and welcoming atmosphere.
Below are some ideas to build partnerships!
- Celebrate with school activities such as Art Museum, Reading Nights, Family Math
- Meet the Teacher BBQ
- Seesaw or Google Classroom – connect and provide daily pics of happenings in class
- Classroom blog
- Parent-teacher committee
- Having activities where communities come together
- Paint nights
- Communicate often
- Make positive calls
- Lead with strengths/positive
- Thank parents
- Really listen
- Share successes
- Know their names
- Know the struggles and successes
A Key to Good Leadership: Qualities to building good relationships!
What would you consider adding to this list? How would you incorporate this into your classrooms? What would be your priority when you first start to maintain and foster relationships?
Consider the following when building relationships.
- Be open to getting a yes or no
- Keep the relationship at the focus with open communication
- Maintain contact with community partnership groups
- Consider how our students can benefit from the experience
- How can we tap into the resources that we have?
- Backwards plan lesson designs to gain a better understanding of what your students may experience going through the lesson
- Respect one another
- Commitment
- Validation/Value
A Key to Good Leadership: Mastering building connected lessons.
We teach someone else’s children as an educator. It’s important to consider what they are learning as we move towards a more social justice-oriented society and a world that is so very connected.
Consider the following to build connected lessons.
- Invite professionals into classes to share and expose students to careers
- Connect with others and network to build relationships
- Build your resources
- Community involvement celebration nights
- Connect the community by bringing in cultural perspectives and other heritages
- Teach the truth
- Foster caring relationships
- Consider getting input from students and then research factual information
Collaborative blog by Ann Pharazyn and Nilmini Ratwatte-Henstridge
Ann and I have known each other as we met in a group called Leaders for Tomorrow in the Elementary Federation of Ontario many years back. We have kept in touch over the years and collaborated on this blog with our unique perspectives on the importance of building relationships and community partnerships. Working in two very unique regions in Ontario, Canada, we collaborated online to bring our unique voices into bringing you our thoughts as educators.
Ann Pharazyn – Resource Teacher, Aspiring Administrator Lambton Kent District School Board, Provincial Advocate Cystic Fibrosis Canada, Parliamentarian, Apple Teacher. Mother of four, Oma of three beautiful grandchildren! Belief in the power of relationships!
About Nilmini Ratwatte-Henstridge
Nilmini Ratwatte-Henstridge teaches in Brampton, Ontario, Canada. She was born in Sri Lanka and immigrated to Canada with her family. As an Elementary School Teacher who is passionate about Equity, Social Justice, and Human Rights in education, she enjoys teaching the younger generation to be global-minded citizens.
Discovering the world by connecting with others is an opportunity that we have today in our society today and she loves meeting new people! She is always learning while traveling to understand the inter-connectedness of this beautiful earth we live in! Nilmini LOVES cooking great meals, watching movies, and the latest fashion trends! Family and friends are close to her heart as she looks forward to balancing social media and navigating professional learning communities in education to network globally this year!
