I send a simple daily email to help parents stay connected with what their child has been doing in school. Each afternoon I send a quick list and explanation of all the activities, stories, and notable events from that day. When asked “What did you do in school today?,” kindergartners often struggle to communicate—so these daily messages provide specific details parents can use to guide those conversations.I do the daily email instead of a weekly newsletter. Feedback from parents has been overwhelmingly positive, and I find composing a quick daily email much less stressful than assembling a newsletter once a week.

—Matt Halpern, kindergarten teacher, Windham, Maine

To keep parents up-to-date with what’s happening in the classroom I created classroom Twitter and Facebook pages. One of the jobs in my classroom is “class reporter.” Children with this job post updates about our classroom projects and activities 3–5 times a day. (As needed, the children and I helped the parents set up Twitter accounts so they could follow our experiences.) Each of my students also has an individual Twitter account which they use to share online creations and learning. Having the opportunity to share their work and get feedback from a wider audience has been incredibly empowering for them!

—Tracy Mercier, 3rd grade teacher, Broad Brook, Connecticut