![\"Meredith](\"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/meredith.jpg\")
<\/a>A few months ago I wrote about not spending enough time on personal reflection<\/a>. It is incredibly easy to be immersed in the many \u201cTop 10\u201d lists of education; and it’s fun spending time trying to solve tool based\u00a0problems (anyone come up with a best way to insert images on the Slides\u00a0app? Hit me up if you’ve got a solution). So I made it my goal to spend some time this week thinking about my\u00a0practice.<\/p>\nI\u2019m personally grappling with my opinions of family engagement from the\u00a0educator perspective, and family engagement from the parent perspective.<\/p>\n
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I\u2019ve been involved in many stimulating conversations over the past few\u00a0weeks centered on what an engaged learner looks like. It got me thinking,\u00a0what does an engaged parent look like? I brainstormed a list of ideas,\u00a0qualities, and actions, but realized that I was thinking from my own\u00a0educator perspective. I was listing ways that I wanted parents to\u00a0participate in student learning. I\u2019m also a parent. How do I want to engage\u00a0in my own daughter\u2019s learning? I have evolving opinions – after all, she is only three. But I am already\u00a0trying to balance between wanting to let her independently grow and develop\u00a0with other educators, pre-service teachers, and children her age, and\u00a0wanting to know about every activity, drawing, or snack.<\/p>\n Last night I started singing The Little Green Frog<\/a> \u2013 she immediately\u00a0stopped me to say, \u201cNo, Mommy, that is a school<\/strong> song.\u201d Right now I like the\u00a0clear distinction between school and home. I respect that she recognizes a\u00a0transition from one environment to another. But when I think about the\u00a0engaged learner discussions, that distinction is blurred, and often that School and learning do not end\u00a0when\u00a0it’s 4\u00a0o\u2019clock or the doors close. I envision a time \u2013 probably a few years down\u00a0the road \u2013 when we are engaged as a family in discussions around her\u00a0inquiry based projects. I\u2019m assuming that as a family we are contributing\u00a0ideas, suggestions, and possibly making plans for weekend adventures to\u00a0different communities of learning tied to her project.<\/p>\n For me, personal reflection does not necessarily yield answers – it sparks\u00a0more questions. Though what I do know is, at my daughter\u2019s request, I will\u00a0sing The Monkey and the Engineer<\/a>, and leave The Little Green Frog for\u00a0school.<\/p>\n That brings to mind thoughts about age and self-advocacy…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What’s your school song? A few months ago I wrote about not spending enough time on personal reflection. It is incredibly easy to be immersed in the many \u201cTop 10\u201d lists of education; and it’s fun spending time trying to solve tool based\u00a0problems (anyone come up with a best way to insert images on the … <\/p>\n![\"learning](\"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/meredithblogpost1-181x300.jpg\")
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\ntransition does not happen.<\/p>\n![\"learning](\"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/meredithblogpost2-181x300.jpg\")
<\/a>Then the parent perspective kicks in. I often try (unsuccessfully) to not bring work home. I love my work – but I also value time and space for\u00a0non-job related conversations. So why do I expect sustained engagement in\u00a0my daughter\u2019s schoolwork, but not necessarily my own? As adults, we often\u00a0talk about the work\/life balance. Are we spending enough time considering
\nthe school\/life balance? Or is it possible that the idea of balance is\u00a0outdated and they are all interconnected?<\/p>\n