Family Engagement
Promoting Equity in Education Through Family Engagement video
This 9.5 minute video is designed for school personnel and families. It offers an overview of education equity and suggests strategies for facilitating greater educational equity through meaningful family engagement practices. The video features the voices and lived experiences of students, parents and caregivers, and school leaders. Strategies are organized by key components of family engagement in multitiered systems of supports.
The video has captions available in English and Spanish.
A fact sheet accompanies the video.
The video is produced by Formed Families Forward in our role as family partner to the Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS) project.
VIDEO with English and Spanish captions
Promoting Equity through Family Engagement Video FACT SHEET
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Family Engagement with Schools: Strategies to Build Partnerships Video
Designed for family members, this 10 minute video explains the Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS) and offers concrete tips and strategies to engage with school partners more effectively. The video features family members and school staff from around Virginia, sharing their own lived experiences and suggestions for building stronger connections between families and educators to improve outcomes for all students. A fact sheet accompanies the video. Spanish and Arabic captions are available via YouTube settings.
We welcome your feedback on the video at https://tinyurl.com/yah2542o .
Family Engagement video link
Accessible video transcript
Fact Sheet to Accompany Family Engagement with Schools video
ARABIC Video fact sheet
SPANISH Video Fact Sheet, accessible Word format
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Strengthening Family Engagement in VTSS videos
This series of videos features six key elements to engage families in Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS). Designed for use by educators and families, the three videos highlight specific strategies for school teams to consider as they build momentum around family-school partnerships and strengthen skills to meaningfully engage families in multi-tiered systems.
Spanish and Arabic captions are available via YouTube settings. A fact sheet accompanies the videos.
Produced by Formed Families Forward, family partner to the VTSS project, in conjunction with Atom Stream Communications, LLC.
Link to Videos
Fact Sheet to accompany videos
Accessible Fact Sheet to accompany videos
Video 1 transcript
Video 2 transcript
Video 3 transcript
SPANISH Fact Sheet, in accessible Word format
ARABIC Fact Sheet
Fact Sheets on Supporting Students’ Social, Emotional, Behavioral, and Academic Well-Being and Success
June 01, 2023In March of 2023, the U.S. Department of Education released Guiding Principles for Creating Safe, Inclusive, Supportive, and Fair School Climates for students and school staff, featuring specific recommendations for evidence-based practices that allow students to learn, grow, and be successful. To enhance state and local implementation of these guiding principles, a collaborative of technical assistance centers serving the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Safe and Supportive Schools developed a series of four fact sheets. The series describes best practices and approaches to help support and respond to students’ social, emotional, behavioral, and academic needs, including practices designed to reduce the use of exclusionary discipline in schools.
Each fact sheet is tailored to a specific audience at the school or district level:
- school and district leaders
- student support teams
- educators and school-based staff
- families
The fact sheets also feature resources to help support stakeholders in this important work.
Fact sheets are available in English and Spanish.
Links to 4 Fact Sheets for different audiences, in English and Spanish
Family Members on Teams video & factsheet
This 9 minute Family Members on Teams video was produced by Formed Families Forward, as family partner to the Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS) project. The video features a staged meeting and interviews with family members and educators sharing practical suggestions for including family members on decision-making teams. The accompanying fact sheet overviews the strategies shared in the video.
Let us know what you think of the video HERE.
Family Members on Teams video
Family Members on Teams fact sheet
Tips for Successful Communication with Families During Online Learning
From the Family Engagement Network, convened by Virginia Department of Education. FFF participates in the Family Engagement Network.
Home/School Contract- Fillable template
This fillable Word document can be used to create and customize a written agreement between student, parent/caregiver, and school staff. Customize areas and actions and clarify recognitions and rewards.
Making Services Work for your Family tip sheet
This one pager from the Northern Virginia Family Network offers suggestions to families who collaborate with team members from agencies, schools and other organizations.
Fact Sheet
Engaging Families in Mental Health and Disability Services tip sheet
This one pager from the new Northern Virginia Family Network (NVFN) designed for professional staff who work with families and youth. It offers some brief, straightforward suggestions and reminders about effectively communicating and building partnerships with families who are in need of education, mental health, disability and other services and supports.
Members of the NVFN are found on the back of the flyer.
Virginia HEALS Systems of Care Virginia toolkit
A number of resources have been developed to support community and state-level implementation of the Virginia HEALS Model for the provision of services and referrals to children, youth, and families. The toolkit includes a family engagement guide, resource mapping, a screening tool for use with individuals who may have been victimized or have trauma impact, and a trauma informed agency assessment, among others.
