Implementation
How can we involve parents and carers?
A crucial part of SEAL is to encourage pupils to apply their learning in a range of situations both inside and outside school, including home. This means that parents and carers have a particularly valuable role to play in SEAL. It is essential that parents and carers know what skills are being taught and how they can support the learning.
Partnerships with parents and carers are important, as they are a key influence on a young person’s social and emotional development. They are usually the experts on their own child, and their knowledge about their child’s developing skills can provide valuable information about what is working and what is needed, providing important insights into the impact of SEAL on the behaviour of the pupils.
In all of this it is essential to be aware of the diversity in the parent/carer group, and choose approaches which reach out to all parents/carers, including those for whom English may be an additional language, those whose experiences of education have not been positive and those who appear to espouse different values from those of the school. It is necessary to challenge assumptions that some groups will not be interested in what the school has to offer. There may be a need for extra encouragement or support to enable them to be actively involved. Demystifying education and explaining how parents/carers can support their children in developing social and emotional skills might help them to overcome fears and other hidden barriers.
3.6.1 Reading