ClassTag Stories: How Leslie Reached Every Parent in Her Classroom

Leslie Aden is a teacher from Pocahontas Area Community School. She teaches reading in 5th and 6th grade. Leslie’s career in education has spanned over nearly 30 years, ranging from early childhood education, to upper elementary, as well as a computer lab.

I became a teacher mainly for my love of learning as well as the motivation to become the kind of teacher children deserve to have in their learning experiences.  I wanted to be the teacher who recognizes individual differences and allows for children to succeed.

As I progressed in my career, I’ve increasingly realized that parent engagement is a vital piece of the puzzle, contributing to student success. Since then, my goal with every new class was to open the communication gates between parent and teacher.

Susan Oehlertz is a switched-on tech integrationist, running a blog about digital literacy

Our tech integrationist, Susan Oehlertz, played a significant part in helping me find the right tool to communicate with parents. She was already familiar with ClassTag and definitely deserves a shout out for introducing me to the tool that’s a lifesaver for teachers.

I love corresponding with my parents. I’m very eager to visit with them at conferences regarding their opinions. Before using ClassTag, aside from email, we had to send letters home or call parents. The waiting for the exchange process was always a concern.

Now, if I forget to mention something in a newsletter or if we get a last minute note for parents, I can immediately take action using ClassTag. Furthermore, when our Iowa winter weather comes into play, it will be nice to contact parents regarding early outs or scheduling changes. It’s wonderful to give the parents reminders regarding band night, field trips, upcoming quizzes, early outs, etc.

Leslie believes that engaged parents play an important role in supporting students’ academic performance and achievement

My technique for reaching 100% of parents was initially inviting all parents via email invite.

 In addition, a mixture of making a phone call or two, sending home a reminder letter, and rechecking email addresses to make sure we had the most current one available also helped.  

I knew that we were going to use this system for conference setup and I wanted my ducks in a row prior to that time period – as well as an immediate opportunity to communicate with parents! I was also fortunate that every parent/caregiver of the students in my class has technology and an email to make the connection possible. 

It did take work to reach 100% of the parents. Was this effort worth it? Absolutely! Now, ClassTag has given me the tool to reach all parents simultaneously and they seem more supportive than usual. I’ve embraced technology  and it has met my expectations. The communication seems much improved and parents feel really informed. A lot of my parents like ClassTag because they can check messages right on their phone. My favorite feature or ability is to send an instantaneous message if need be.  The “Announcement” tab is awesome! I love ClassTag!! I feel that my goal of increasing communication is met. 

A happy school climate at Pocahontas Area Community School