To help develop the communicator attribute, we encourage families to work on this at home…

  • Encourage your child to stay in touch with relatives and friends who live in other countries by writing letters, using the phone or sending an email.
  • When working on mathematics homework, encourage your child to explain his/her answer to you orally or by drawing a picture.
  • Work with your child to improve his/her listening skills. Being a good listener is an important part of communicating with others.
  • Try 5-minute daily check-ins that go beyond “How was your day.” That question leads to the typical, succinct answer of “fine.” Instead, try asking the following two questions and set expectations for details
    • What is one great thing that happened in school today?
    • What is one thing you want to share or discuss that you need help with?

This can be done as a weekly goal throughout January but can be implemented as a long-term process.