Prepare children for success in the classroom, in life

By Jeff Poole
Review Managing Editor
Published: August 14, 2008

School starts at home. Always has, always will.
When nearly 5,000 county children head back to school Wednesday, they face another year of promise, another year of learning and another year of preparation for life.
We send our children off to school, where we trust our county’s educators to teach and prepare them to be contributing members of our society.
But school still starts at home.
Too often, parents today send their children to school not only to be taught, but also to be raised. Parents today rely on teachers to educate and rear their children, then wonder why our school system is not as successful as it might be.
Parents need to prepare children before they ever set foot in a classroom. With the requisite qualities of discipline and respect, children will be better students and teachers can do more for them. Ultimately, they’ll learn more and become better citizens.
Disruptive, unruly children hinder the school system because teachers are forced to baby-sit rather than teach. Then, all children suffer and parents blame school teachers and administrators for their children’s struggles.
Many parents adequately and appropriately prepare their children for school. They teach them respect, proper manners and discipline to help them succeed. Additionally, they take an active role in the ongoing education of their children, making sure they know what their children are doing in school and helping them do it.
Parents who value education will have children who value education. Parents who don’t care will raise children who don’t care.
Teachers are only one agent in the child’s education and they aren’t even the primary instructor. Parents are. That’s a challenge, but that’s part of being a parent.
As our children head back to school and our teachers prepare to meet their challenges, parents should be ready to face theirs by preparing their children to be successful learners—before they ever set foot in a classroom.