Family Partnerships

Family partnerships are one approach to develop family involvement in a child’s education. Family partnerships focus on creating close working relationships between a teacher or other program staff member and a child’s parents (or other primary caregivers, such as grandparents.). The partnership approach to family involvement is valued because such relationships among family members and teachers rely on adults working toward common goals for children, require communication and collaboration, and imply that while partners may bring different contributions, all partners are accountable for maintaining the relationship. In early childhood settings, partners work together primarily to support the optimal development of children.

The broader concept of family involvement and the more recently discussed concept of family engagement have long been identified as an important influence on children’s ...