A short course in how school works, and how to work with it.
The Family Academy gives parents and caregivers the practical knowledge that schools assume everyone already has. It is built to be understood the first time, in plain language, by families with full lives.
Six things every family benefits from knowing.
How your school is actually organized
Who does what, who to go to first, and what happens after you ask.
The words nobody defines
The terms that appear in letters, meetings and forms, explained in plain language.
Supporting learning at home
Small routines that work in a real evening, for reading, organization and confidence.
Conferences and difficult conversations
What to prepare, what to ask, what to write down, and how to follow up.
Advocating for your child
Raising a concern clearly, keeping it moving, and knowing what a reasonable response looks like.
Becoming part of the school community
Ways to contribute that match your skills, your language and the time you have.
Shaped around the community it serves.
Single Session
One focused workshop on the topic a school or organization most needs right now.
Series
Several sessions across a term, so families build on what they learned last time.
Partner Delivery
Run alongside a school, district, library or community organization already trusted by the families you want to reach.
Built for families who are usually last to hear.
Sessions are planned with language, timing, childcare, transport and prior experience of school in mind, because a session nobody can attend teaches nobody anything.
We plan for
- Interpretation and plain language materials
- Timing that fits shift work
- Families new to this country's school system
- Families who have had difficult experiences with school before
- Questions people are reluctant to ask in a large room
Interested in hosting a Family Academy?
Tell us who your families are and what you want them to walk away able to do.