Parent engagement letter for hypothetical classroom with educational philosophy and policies

¶ … Parents

I want to welcome each of you to my class! I cannot put into words how excited I am to have been afforded this opportunity to get to know you and your child. I look forward to having a productive year and helping your child grow in his or her educational growth.

My name is and I received my undergraduate degree in secondary education with a major in history from the University of Texas and my graduate degree in Education Administration from Trinity University. This will be my tenth year of teaching and I can sincerely state that I enjoy my job today as much as I did the first time I stepped into a classroom.

My homework policy is simple. It will be assigned and I expect that it will be completed and handed in on time. Part of this policy is that every student is expected to be prepared for class each and every day. This includes having read the homework assignment and be prepared to discuss it in class. We have a lot of material to cover in this class. History changes every day and I want every student to leave this class with a better understanding of the subject. This means that they must participate. Preparation at home is part of this process. If completion of homework of participation in class becomes a problem, I will be contacting you to discuss the matter. Your cooperation in this area is greatly appreciated.

As to grades, I take a rather liberal approach and every student who displays an effort will not have to worry about his or her grade. Not every student will get an A as I believe that As should be reserved for those deserving of such praise but I also do not relish failing anyone and, as I indicated, if the effort is there, no student need worry. If assignments are completed on time and the student participates, they can expect to be rewarded accordingly.

There are few if any special classroom rules. The school administration has issued a detailed booklet outlining the various school rules and if your child follows those rules he or she should have no problem in my class. Like my grading policy, my classroom is also relaxed. The key word is respect. If everyone respects each other, there should be no problems. I have been teaching for ten years with a minimal number of problems. I have been doing so without the need to design a long list of special rules and I am hopeful that this will remain the case in the immediate future.

Studies show that parental involvement in a child's education is one of the strongest indicators of student achievement. I hope you will make it a priority this year to follow your child's progress in this class. Please do not hesitate to contact me regarding any concerns or questions that you might have. I would prefer that you contacted me during my regular office hours which are from 10:30 AM (M-F) to 11:40 AM but if there is a compelling need feel free to contact me at any time. If there is no urgency, please email me and I will get back to you within 24 hours. I value your input and encourage you to express your views: good and bad.