Ideas and Tools for Working with Parents and Families

Packet describing benefits and strategies for school-family partnerships in developing social and emotional skills; includes handouts for families and overviews of SEL programs that incorporate activities for families.

TAGS reading lists - parents SEL partnerships toolkit community relations family and community engagement

Families as Partners Manual

Families as Partners (FAP) is an Austin ISD initiative funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation with the goal of creating sustainable and effective school-family partnerships for academic success. The initiative is grounded in the principle that authentic engagement flourishes when families and faculty build trusting relationships and see each other as equal partners.

TAGS family partnerships parent leadership

Leading with SEL Advocacy Tools

This site provides resources for SEL advocates, including toolkits for parents and school board members. There is guidance for conversations, communications, engaging media outlets, and reaching out to policymakers.

TAGS parenting family partnerships reading lists - parents parent leadership building buy-in for SEL family and community engagement

Examples of Community Collaboration for SEL Implementation

Austin's 1 pager describing 3 SEL-focused partnerships with community organizations and programs.

TAGS arts SEL partnerships community relations out of school family and community engagement

Guiding Questions for Building Strong Partnerships between School Day and Out-of-School Time Educators

This tool from CASEL's Guide to Schoolwide SEL provides questions to help the SEL team think intentionally about how to fully partner with OST providers to promote SEL.

TAGS community partnerships SEL partnerships community relations out of school SEL leadership family and community engagement

SEL Partnership between Denver Public Schools and the Denver After-school Alliance

2 page flyer summarizing the plan for infusing evidence-based SEL throughout all grade levels in schools, afterschool, and in summer programs throughout Denver.

TAGS community partnerships SEL partnerships SEL overview out of school family and community engagement

Relationships First: Creating Connections that Help Young People Thrive

Young people deeply benefit from developmental relationships with a variety of people including program leaders from community organizations, mentors, parents, teachers, and friends. This resource lays out a framework for building strong relationships with young people, and concludes with 55 concrete ideas.

TAGS family partnerships community partnerships relationship skills advisory/homeroom

Early Lessons from Schools and Out-of-School Time Programs Implementing Social and Emotional Learning

This report details the study of partnerships between schools and out of school time partners working together to implement SEL in a coordinated way, organizing lessons learned into 4 main categories: system-level launch activities, developing partnerships, developing adults' capacity to promote SEL, and improving climate and delivering SEL instruction.

TAGS community partnerships implementation evaluation out of school

Strengthening Students’ Social and Emotional Skills: Lessons from Six Case Studies of Schools and Their Out-of-School-Time Program Partners

This report outlines lessons from six communities that have focused on SEL partnerships between schools and out-of-school time community partner organizations. Detailed case examples feature collaborative projects on a variety of SEL topics in Boston, Dallas, Denver, Palm Beach County, Tacoma, and Tulsa.

TAGS community partnerships SEL partnerships out of school

School Strengths Inventory

This strengths inventory will help a school-based SEL team determine which strategies are being used at all levels of schoolwide SEL: SEL curriculum & instruction, schoolwide practice & policies, and family & community-level partnerships.

TAGS needs and resources assessment conducting local SEL research continuous improvement PK-12 implementation monitoring implementation evaluation instructional practices classroom level culture and climate MTSS out of school student discipline youth voice