Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Do parents volunteer too much at kids' schools?

I also have big concerns about privacy and gossipy parents. However, it was a huge advantage as a parent when I was mildly venting to another parent about DD's kindergarten experience. The teacher wasn't responding to DD's learning rate of learning, as she was moving through DRA reading levels at a rate of 2-3 a week. This mom had worked with my DD in class, and clued me in that DD's learning was far from the norm and that I'd have to involve myself closely if DD's needs were going to be met. This was actually my first clue that DD's needs were not average, and therefore I needed to step in and advocate. This was not information I would have gotten from the school, but was something another parent had noted.

My kids have benefited nicely by my PTO volunteering. I identified a big problem (traffic safety for kids walking) and got another mom on board to address the problem with me. Together, we've cut the traffic around the school in half and have leveraged money to encourage walking and police enforcement to deal with red light runners. We have the approval of the principal for everything we've done, and we've been both quite careful to not complain, but instead to note problems, offer suggestions that we'll do with his approval, and rally the troops as necessary.

Most of this is done in a 1-2 hour meeting monthly, and about 10 minutes of volunteering before school starts weekly. The other woman was a stay at home mom, who was able to do a lot of the detail & follow up work in about 2-3 hours a week. All in all, it's been a positive and effective partnership.

As a result, the principal views me as someone who can get things done, who has a very positive attitude towards public schooling, and understands rules and regs. So when I go into an IEP meeting, I'm viewed as a partner in the school, not an outside complainer.