Thank you for visiting our site. We hope that you will want to join us in our efforts to improve the lives of all children and youth.

Janice Spiegel, Council President

Council Address:
PO Box 1368
Middletown, Maryland  21769
e-mail: frederickpta@adelphia.net

Click here for Officer and Executive Board members 
for 2007-2008

Teaching Kids Responsibility

As parents, one of your many duties includes preparing your children to become responsible adults. Teaching responsibility to a child can begin at an early age. For example, children as young as two can perform simple tasks, such as putting clothes in a hamper or putting away their books. Children this age have a lot of energy and may be eager to help, which will help set them on the path toward a lifetime of responsible behavior.

When children reach an age where procrastination takes the place of enthusiasm, the solution is not to offer them money as an incentive to do their regular chores or schoolwork. Rewarding children with money will teach them to expect financial rewards every time they do what is expected of them. Parents should give children a reasonable allowance that is separate from their tasks and only provide more when their child does something extra. To promote financial responsibility, parents can encourage their children to be involved in spending and saving the money they earn.

Parents can teach children that being responsible means recognizing that everyone has to contribute, whether at home or in school. Here are some ways parents can promote responsibility:

• Clearly state expectations.
• Model the behavior you want your children to adopt.
• Assign chores and assist your children with them until they learn how to do them.
• Give children tasks that are fun; it may be helpful to let them have a voice in determining what their normal chores will be.

Dinner Versus Drugs: An Argument for Family Dinners

• Half as likely to try cigarettes.
• Half as likely to be daily cigarette smokers.
• Half as likely to try marijuana.
• One third less likely to try alcohol.
• Half as likely to get drunk monthly.
• Less likely to have friends who drink alcohol and use marijuana.
• Likelier to get better grades in school.

The national PTA organization has adopted a resolution to combat bullying. The resolution states that the national PTA and its constituent organizations

• support policies and programs that address the prevention, intervention, and elimination of bullying;
• endeavor, via educational literature, programs, and projects for parents, students, and school personnel, to bring about an atmosphere of zero tolerance for bullying behavior, and an attitude that bullying behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in homes, schools, playgrounds, buses, school activities, or any place children congregate; and
• work with the appropriate agencies and organizations in a national effort to inform the general public about the risks and cost of bullying for both the bully and the target, as well as those who witness bullying, and bring about a change in societal attitudes toward bullying.

Antibullying resources can be found at www.pta.org.

Top Ten Things Teachers Wish Parents Would Do

1. Be involved. Parent involvement helps students learn, improves schools, and helps teachers work with you to help your children succeed.
2. Provide resources at home for learning. Utilize your local library, and have books and magazines available in your home. Read with your children each day.
3. Set a good example. Show your children by your own actions that you believe reading is both enjoyable and useful. Monitor television viewing and the use of videos and game systems.
4. Encourage students to do their best in school. Show your children that you believe education is important and that you want them to do their best.
5. Value education and seek a balance between schoolwork and outside activities. Emphasize your children's progress in developing the knowledge and skills they need to be successful both in school and in life.
6. Recognize factors that take a toll on students' classroom performance:
   • Consider the possible negative effects of long hours at after-school jobs or in extracurricular activities. Work with your children to help them maintain a balance between school responsibilities and outside commitments.
   • View drinking and excessive partying as serious matters. While most parents are concerned about drug abuse, many fail to recognize that alcohol, over-the-counter drugs, and common substances used as inhalants are more frequently abused than illegal drugs.
7. Support school rules and goals. Take care not to undermine school rules, discipline, or goals.
8. Use pressure positively. Encourage children to do their best, but don't pressure them by setting goals too high or by scheduling too many activities.
9. Call teachers early if you think there's a problem while there is still time to solve it. Don't wait for teachers to call you.
10. Accept your responsibility as parents. Don't expect the school and teachers to take over your obligations as parents. Teach children self-discipline and respect for others at home -- don't rely on teachers and schools to teach these basic behaviors and attitudes.
    

Pedestrian Safety Skills

Because children vary in their developmental readiness to make decisions about where and when to walk and cross a street, parents are often the best judges of when their child is ready to walk without an adult. When they are ready for this level of independence, children need to know how to choose where to walk as well as when, where and how to cross a street. As you begin to think about your school routine, here are some tips to share with your children about commuting to and from school:

• Use sidewalks or paths. If there are no sidewalks or paths, walk as far from the motor vehicles as possible on the side of the street facing traffic.
• Choose the route with the fewest streets to cross. Avoid crossing busy or high-speed streets.
• Always look for motor vehicles. Drivers are supposed to obey the rules and watch for pedestrians, but they cannot be relied upon to always do so. If you are able to see the driver, it is a good idea to make eye contact and be sure you are seen before stepping in front of or behind the motor vehicle.
• Do not cross behind or within 10 feet of the front of a bus or other large motor vehicle because the driver cannot see this area.
• Watch for parked motor vehicles that may be getting ready to back up or pull forward.

For more tips on helping your kids get to school safely, as well as creating a Safe Routes to School program in your community, please visit the National Center for Safe Routes to School.
http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/resources/education_tip-sheets.cfm

Click Here for Proposed Council Position Statements for 2007-2008

Important Updates to the Council Site for the 2007-2008 Year:

• Officers and Board of Directors
• Council Calendar
• Local Unit Awards Application

PTA: A New Way of Leading – National Standards for Family-School Partnerships

In 1997, building on the six types of parent involvement identified by Joyce L. Epstein, PhD, National PTA, in partnership with education, health, and family-serving organizations, developed the National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs. Since their inception, thousands of PTAs have used the standards to advocate for the adoption of parent involvement policies in their schools, districts and state offices of education.

In 2006, PTA determined that these standards should be strengthened to reflect current research connecting family and community engagement to student learning. In 2007, PTA, working with leading experts on parent involvement and community engagement in schools, began to update its National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs. The updated National Standards expand the focus from not only what schools and school districts should do to involve parents, but also to include what parents, schools, and communities can do together to support student success. To reflect this change, the standards have been renamed the National Standards for Family-School Partnerships.

As state leaders, you are uniquely positioned to use the standards to inform key stakeholders about the importance of family involvement in education and to influence policies and practices that will ensure and strengthen that involvement.

PTA’s Building Successful Partnership promotes a four-step process for planning programs and events that demonstrate why PTA continues to be a powerful voice for all children. Using the National Standards for Family-School Partnerships can:

1. EDUCATE key stakeholders (e.g. superintendents, governor, mayors, legislators, etc.) about the critical connection between parent and community involvement with schools and student success.
2. CREATE a process for assessing and strengthening current policies and practices for family and community involvement.
3. EVALUATE progress towards increased parent and community involvement with schools throughout your state and its impact on student learning.
4. CELEBRATE your successes and keep on going!

For more information on the National Standards and how state leaders can be involved contact the national PTA programs office.

PTA’s National Standards for Family-School Partnerships

Standard 1: Welcoming all families into the school community—Families are active participants in the life of the school, and feel welcomed, valued, and connected to each other, to school staff, and to what students are learning and doing in class.

Standard 2: Communicating effectively—Families and school staff engage in regular, two-way, meaningful communication about student learning.

Standard 3: Supporting student success—Families and school staff continuously collaborate to support students’ learning and healthy development both at home and at school, and have regular opportunities to strengthen their knowledge and skills to do so effectively.

Standard 4: Speaking up for every child—Families are empowered to be advocates for their own and other children, to ensure that students are treated fairly and have access to learning opportunities that will support their success.

Standard 5: Sharing power—Families and school staff are equal partners in decisions that affect children and families and together inform, influence, and create policies, practices, and programs.

Standard 6: Collaborating with community—Families and school staff collaborate with community members to connect students, families, and staff to expanded learning opportunities, community services, and civic participation.

Do You Know Your School?:

A Back-to-School Checklist

for Family Involvement

Back-to-School time is prime time for families to get to know the place and the people who will be interacting with their children from the next nine months. Here are some things to keep in mind when taking your children to school for the first year or for another year:

• Visit the school and, if possible, your child’s classroom, and find the best route there from your home or workplace in case of emergency.
• Meet the principal, school staff, and your child’s teacher.
• Let the teacher and school staff know about your child’s personality and any special needs or issues he or she might have, such as asthma or hearing problems.
• Keep the school calendar handy, and make a note to attend scheduled parent-teacher conferences and other important events.
• Sign up to volunteer at school. Opportunities are expanding for working adults.
• Sign up to serve on a school or district advisory committee.
• Get to know your children’s friends and their families at the school’s open house or at other Back-to-School events.

Most important, join your school’s PTA or PTSA – the experts in family involvement at school.

My Biggest Fear

I am the child who tries each day,
to learn, and grow, and find my way.
And I know the message I send is clear,
"I'm okay, I can take it from here"
Well, that bravado I share, it's all an act.
A clever ruse to hide the fact that,
what I need it you right here,
to help me face my biggest fear.
Now lean in close and listen well,
'cause my friends don't think that I should tell.
My worry of worries, my biggest fear is,
what would happen if you weren't here?
So stay with me at home and school.
Ignore the fact that it's not cool.
And try as I might to hold you at bay.
It's at that very moment,
I need you to stay.

Written by  Dr. Steven M. Constantino,
President and Founder
Family Friendly Schools

Dr. Steven M. Constantino Speaking with Debbie Ritchie, MD PTA President-Elect at the November 2006 Fall Convention

Teamwork, Connecting, Focus Remain Formula for New National President

Reaching goals for any group or organization requires teamwork, connecting and focus. I ask every one of you to join me and the PTA staff in doing just that by combining all of our experience, expertise, and passion.

State leaders bring commitment and passion from experience that can only be gained from being connected to the grass roots level. The institutional knowledge that leaders provide keeps our organization focused on relevant issues and goals. We must work together, inspired by our values, receptive to new ideas, and committed to our goal... the success of all children.

Children need to remain our focus. To affect as many children as possible, we have to reach as many parents as possible. We must remain steadfast in our formula for success... teamwork and focus. We can not let irrelevant issues derail our initiatives or dissolve our unity.

Collaboration, communication, and commitment are what have kept PTA successful for more than one hundred years. The same ingredients will help turn our whisper into a mighty shout throughout the nation.

Together, an enlightened leadership and an empowered staff produce proactive efforts and innovative solutions, which, in turn, become the keys to reaching our goals … benefiting all children, all parents, and increasing membership. There are millions of children and parents in every state across the country. Are they all benefiting from PTA?

Let’s work together to ensure they are.

Jan Harp Domene
PTA National President

Resources

• Maryland Business Personal Property Form
• Search to Find out if Your PTA is Incorporated and Forms Are Current
• Maryland Secretary of State - Charitable Organizations Division
• Comptroller of MD - Sales and Use Tax
• Council Cash Advance/Reimbursement Form

Are You Clueless About Your Teen? Knowing Your Teen's World

Between the fast-paced world of teen culture and the negative influences that bombard your teen, parenting is a challenging and unpredictable task. How tuned in are you? PTA is proud to partner with the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign in an effort to immerse parents in teen culture and help reduce risky behaviors. Can you answer these questions...?

• According to urban legend, what do teens think niacin (vitamin B) can be used for?
• If your teen were to "ROTFL," what would she be doing?
• If a teen is "leaning," what might he be doing?
• What are the most popular inhalants among teens?

For the answers, visit the Parent Chronicles.

http://www.theantidrug.com/advice/chronicles-home.aspx

This site also features a video clip of four families with teens addressing this new kind of generation gap. There are also action items for you to try on your own and then discuss with other parents in an online forum.

Links

• National PTA
• Maryland Congress of PTA's
• Maryland State Department of Education
• Frederick County Public Schools
• Frederick County Public Library
• US Department of Education
• No Child Left Behind
• Internal Revenue Service
• Maryland Secretary of State
• Maryland Department of Assessment and Taxation

National PTA President,

PTA Council of Frederick County President,

Maryland State PTA President 

Contacts

• Maryland PTA
• Board of Education
• County Commissioners
• Frederick County State Delegation

Things to Do In Your Family

Get your child excited about going back to school! Together, establish goals, schedules, and daily routines. Review after-school procedures, rules for riding the school bus, car safety, walking routes to school, and emergency contacts. Post all this information in a visible place. This can be helpful in keeping everyone safe and organized for another school year.

Pack a letter of encouragement for your child in his or her backpack to help with the transition from home to school. Do this throughout the year to show your support and your commitment to your child’s success.