by Renée Cockrell, MAT, NBCT
This
post is intended to serve as a planning guide for Family Fun Night events at school. Such events involve guardians coming to the school with
students to participate in learning opportunities, collaborative activities,
and sharing and interaction in order to foster and strengthen meaningful
relationships between staff, students, families, and other community
stakeholders.
The Planning Committee and Process
Special attention should be paid to the composition
of the planning committee. Specifically, parents/guardians, staff member, and
student leadership representatives should be involved in the selection of
activities, planning, and communication. By including students and parents
rather than simply planning with only staff members at the table, it can be
ensured that the activities selected for the event will consider the unique
perspectives and needs of students and their families. For
instance, guardians and family members are more likely to bring up the
importance of having activities for small children or of having childcare
available during the event. Furthermore, by working collaboratively with
students and guardians on the planning committee, staff are more likely to
build meaningful relationships with those participants on the committee.
Another possible bonus of including guardians and community members in the
planning process is that they may have unique access to or availability of
resources or knowledge that can be leveraged for a more successful event.
In
planning a Family Fun Night event, the planning team should utilize the
following checklist to ensure the best possible preparation:
- Use Room Scheduler on Campus Website & Check Calendar Availability of Facilities
- Notify District Security of Evening Event on Campus
- Budget for All Expenses (Including Food, Advertising, Supplies, Staffing, etc.)
- Advertise Event to Students (Announcements During School Day, Invitations, and Posters)
- Advertise Event to Families and Community Members (Fliers, Blackboard Mass Emails, All Calls, Website Calendar, External School Sign Message) – If possible, plan ahead and advertise at Open House and Conferences.
- Solicit Volunteers and Provide Necessary Staffing for Event
Possible Family Fun Night Activities
Each of the following ten activities could possibly take place during a
Family Fun Night event. Included below is the rationale for each activity, with
a brief explanation of how it can foster learning and social interaction for
both students and families.
#1 - Orientation to
the Climbing Wall with an Introduction to Belay and Bouldering. Physical education teachers and students will
facilitate an introduction to the campus climbing wall,
complete with a demonstration of safe climbing and belay technique.
Participants will learn about different holds and bouldering moves then be supported
in trying out a few simple bouldering routes.
This
will generate interest in the variety of ways to be fit and physically active
that are afforded to our students and community. By giving a demonstration of
safe technique, students will be able to showcase their learning and interact
with parents and community members while doing so.
#2 – Resume Builder
and Interview Roleplay Workshop. School counselors and English teachers will host a
resume building workshop in the computer lab, assisting participants (both adults
and students) in creating or refining resumes and cover letters for job
applications, saving, emailing, printing, and uploading resumes. With the help
of student leaders, staff and visitors will facilitate roleplay interviews with
commonly asked interview questions, with feedback and discussion of responses.
Ideally, a representative from Human Resources or the school principal will
participate, sharing relevant experience from times they have been on interview
committees.
This
work on resumes, cover letters, and interviewing skills will benefit students
and adult stakeholders alike. It will foster meaningful social interaction and
discussion that will help improve the preparedness and success rate of families
and students who are currently or will soon be seeking jobs in the community.
If at all possible, community stakeholders who own and operate local businesses
should be invited to be part of the discussion and role play. Ideally, they
will share what they’re looking for in a potential employee and participate in
interview role play. They may even ask some of the participants to apply for
openings in their local businesses or form connections that benefit students, families, and community stakeholders in the future.
#3 – Voter
Registration and Discussion of Upcoming Ballot Issues and Amendments. Social studies and English teachers – with help from
their students – will assist with online voter registration and signing up for
mail in ballots. They will facilitate a fishbowl dialogue debate on upcoming local
and state ballot issues and amendments.
Photo by annie bolin on Unsplash
This
will serve as an opportunity for learning about how to be an engaged citizen
and voter. It will also allow students to demonstrate the debate skills
they have honed in their English and social studies classes. Teachers and
students will present arguments for and against each ballot issue and
amendment, citing evidence to support the argument. In the context of the
fishbowl dialogue, guardians, family members, community members, and other
visitors will be encouraged to discuss their knowledge and concerns related to
each ballot issue and amendment. This will support engagement with the
democratic process, be an opportunity for learning about both the process and
upcoming ballot issues, and foster meaningful interaction for staff, students,
and family members.
#4 – Behind the
Scenes Campus Tour & Scavenger Hunt. Building technicians and security will help out with
this activity to show students, staff, guardians, and community members some of
the interesting history behind the scenes of the school campus, including exploring the armory and former shooting range
in the basement; the sports Hall of Fame with student athlete pictures from all
graduating classes between 1959-2013, when the school was closed and repurposed
as an campus for multiple alternative programs; the automotive shop; behind the
stage in the auditorium. If your school doesn't have a similar history, there are likely still many interesting "behind the scenes" elements. Consider enlisting food services and security teams to show visitors their work areas and interesting tidbits about how they contribute to the mission of the school.
This
tour will encourage social interaction and educate attendees about the history
of the campus. Because many staff members even have not necessarily seen these
interesting parts of the campus, they will connect with students, families, and
community members in their discovery of some of the lesser known history of our
campus. It can also allow team members (food service, building technicians, security team) to showcase their contributions.
#5 – Budgeting and
Savings Plans for Working Families. Consumer mathematics students, supported by math teachers, will present strategies for saving money (from cooking more at
home and meal planning to utilizing the public library to rent DVDs instead of paying
for subscription services to depositing a set amount into a savings account
each pay period). They will share budgeting tips, using the envelopes model of
resource allocation, for young adults just starting out living on their own and
share from their own experiences about the importance of saving due to
unforeseen expenses that can arise (automotive, health care, job loss, etc.).
This
activity will promote interaction between students and families and support
struggling families by giving them strategies for planning ahead and minimizing
expenses. As students will help facilitate it, it will also highlight the
learning done by students in their consumer math courses. Moreover, it will provide a spotlight for real life application of math skills and money sense!
#6 – Affordable and
Healthy Meal Preparation and Recipe Exchange. Families will be invited to bring family favorite
recipes to share with the school community, perhaps even resulting in
collaboration on a multi-cultural school cookbook. This event will take place in
the hospitality and catering classroom kitchen. Participants will learn from
hospitality and catering students and teachers how to prepare three healthy,
affordable, easy-to-prepare meals for their families. In addition to working
together and learning to prepare three meal options, participants will be asked
to share their own favorite family recipes. Once the meals have been prepared,
catering and hospitality students will act as servers, showing off the skills
they have learned in their program, while families dine together.
The
collaboration of sharing favorite recipes as well as cooking and dining
together will foster both learning and social interaction for students and
families. Moreover, by sharing family recipes – some of which may be used for
future events – this will provide the school community with an opportunity to
celebrate and learn from our multi-cultural diversity and knowledge.
#7 – Tie Dye School Shirts Activity. School staff and representatives from student leadership will work with
parent volunteers to help attendees tie dye t-shirts to wear to future school events. They will teach several tie dye techniques and participants will be
able to experiment with the techniques while interacting, having fun, and
building school spirit. Having a special school tie dye t-shirt will increase
the likelihood that participants will attend future school events and feel a
sense of belonging. According to PTO Today (2019), gear like school t-shirts can help build pride and belonging. An added bonus is that these
shirts will allow students, staff, guardians, and community members to show off
their creativity while they celebrate their connection to the school (PTO Today,
2019).
#8 – Practice Spanish
Conversation Skills with Board Games. World languages staff, students, and
parent volunteers will facilitate a Spanish-speaking board game fiesta,
allowing those who are learning Spanish to practice their skills and make
connections with Spanish-speaking members of the school community. This activity
will honor the important role Spanish-speaking families, parents, and guardians
play in our community while celebrating learning, language, and community
interaction together. According to National PTA (2019), learning while playing
games together “shows everyone that learning can and should be fun” as well as
builds collaborative relationships and school community (n. p.).
#9 – General
Automotive Maintenance and Repair Workshop. Intended for adults and students alike, this
workshop will cover changing a tire, changing a vehicle’s oil, jump starting a
vehicle safely, and inspecting the vehicle for safety and maintenance issues.
The workshop will be taught and facilitated by automotive teachers and students. This will recognize and celebrate the skills
and knowledge our automotive pathway students have gained while empowering
parents, students, and community members to keep themselves and their families
safer and their vehicles in safe working order. The hands-on nature of the
demonstration will foster social interaction and collaboration among attendees.
#10 – Practice
English while Playing Board Games. Students and staff will collaborate with English
language learners in our school and community to
host a board game bonanza designed for parents/guardians and students who are
English language learners (ELLs) and who will benefit from inclusion and social
interaction while practicing their English conversation skills.
References
National
PTA. (2019). Host a game night at your school with ThinkFun. Retrieved from https://www.pta.org/home/programs/stem/STEM-Families-ThinkFun-Game-Nights
PTO
Today. (2019). 19 ways to use school spiritwear. Retrieved from https://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/8347-ways-to-use-school-spiritwear
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