Our modern, tech savvy world gives us a plethora of options when it comes to communicating. So how do you know which ones to use at the right time?
For the purpose of this post, we’ll be discussing the top three forms of communication for school parents that make getting in touch with them quick and easy.
Email Updates
Email should be the most used form of communication on our list. However, I say that with a caveat. It’s a form that should be used, but not overused.
Take a moment to think about how many emails you personally receive on a daily basis. My guess is you’re looking at between 10 and 50 emails every day.
That’s a lot of information coming your way!
Well, your parents face those same circumstances and are just as bombarded with emails as you are.
Therefore, you want to use email strategically and sparingly. Don’t send an email update about every little thing.
So now you’re probably wondering about the right occasions to send email updates.
You should be sending out emails when you need to convey information that’s important, detailed, time sensitive, and/or requires a parent to take action.
With emails, you can provide your parents with a lot more information than you could in a text message or paper announcement.
However, that’s not to say that you should overload your emails with tons of information, either. You’ll want to keep your emails as short as possible and to the point.
A good rule of thumb is to use no more than 800 words per email, and, to keep from overwhelming parents, try not to send more than 1-2 emails per week.
We’ll be discussing how to use email communication in our next lesson, so we’ll leave off on this note for now and move on to our next form of communication: text messages.
SMS Text Messages
Similar to emails, most of your parents should have the capabilities of using text messages, or SMS messages.
Text messages are a simple way to send parents updates immediately. On the flipside, they don’t leave much room for details.
Therefore, it’s best to leave text messages for those times when you need to send a quick and urgent message.
These should be reserved for school closings, rescheduled or relocated events, or to follow up with a parent who was called to pick up their sick child from school early.
The idea with text messages is to only send urgent information that parents need to know immediately. If it’s something that can wait or requires some explanation, you should stick that information in an email.
You want parents to associate text messages from school with emergencies or extremely important updates. This way they always know to pay attention to any school SMS messages that come their way.
Now, let’s talk about the least tech savvy method of communication on our list: paper announcements.
Paper Announcements
Paper announcements are usually the most costly and time-consuming form of communication that schools use. With that being said, they should be the least used method.
Another downside to paper announcements is that they have the hardest time making it home to parents. Have you ever sent a paper announcement with your students only to have confused parents complain about never getting the update?
This situation happens all the time. Make sure that you’re not sending out time sensitive updates via paper announcements that are liable to get lost or forgotten in the busy after-school shuffle.
Instead, use paper announcements to let parents know what’s upcoming.
Generally speaking, monthly calendars and upcoming event flyers are usually the best announcements to send out in paper form.
Yes, you can definitely do this much more efficiently by email, but paper communications that are reminders of what’s to come can be easily taped to the refrigerator for future reference.
As a recommendation, we suggest sticking to emails and text messages and avoiding this basic (and somewhat archaic) method of communication at all costs.
And on that note, this concludes our first lesson! Don’t forget to join us for Lesson Two which will show you How to Effectively Communicate with Parents. See you soon!
Best,