Parent/Guardian - School Counselor Collaboration

Our school counseling program offers the following activities to facilitate parent-school collaboration:

Boo-hoo breakfast the first day of school (kindergarten and new parents)
Communication/networking opportunities for parents 
Informal "chats" for each grade level 
Information table at Back-to-School Night
On-line parent-staff book club 
Family Resource Packs (available for check out)
One-on-one conferencing
Resource referral information for parents
Academic planning programs for parents and students (fifth grade)

As counselors we also attend Intervention Assistance Team meetings and Parent-Teacher Conferences.  Our district requires two P-T Conferences a year at the elementary level.  Later this week we will be doing round two.  The counselors go to the conferences if invited by either the teacher or parent.  Sometimes we go on our own if we want to hear about behavior or social emotional concerns primarily.  However, generally we have parents come to meet with us before or after their P-T Conference if a child is in small group or individual counseling.  These days are long and exhausting but we get to work directly with families and teachers to maximize student growth (and of course many referrals too).