TIPS stands for Teachers Involving Parents in Schoolwork. These are assignments created by a teacher that will include a component that requires a parent or guardian to contribute to the work. In some TIPS assignments the student is merely prompted to discuss the assignment with a parent or guardian. In other more involved TIPS assignments both the students and parents work on a task together. TIPS assignments are a way for students to demonstrate what they have learned in your class and for parents and guardians to become more involved in their child's schoolwork. Parents and guardians are not the ones who teach the new material, but rather the student is the one who takes the lead on the assignment. Each TIPS assignment contains a communication section that allows parents and guardians to ask questions or leave comments for the teacher. These assignments are a great nontraditional way to increase communcation between teachers and parents. How often should you use a TIPS assignment is completely up to the classroom teacher. Sometimes it is rewarding to choose topics with known misconceptions to stimulate productive discussions between students and parents.
Make your assignment interactive.
Match it to a specific unit/goal/content/skill/objective.
Link the assignment to a real-work example to make it an authentic assessment.
Match it to your current curriculum so it does not feel like you are creating a new assignment just for the sake of trying something new.
Give parents enough time to help their child complete the assignment.
Make it long enough to have value but not so long it becomes burdensome.
Allow your students to show what they have learned to their parents.
Offer a parent/guardian communication/feedback section.
Assess your TIPS assignment like any other assignment.
Be sure to offer feedback.
Revise your TIPS assignments as necessary based on the feedback you receive.
Open response discussion questions.
Videos about your current topics.
KWL’s or KL’s
Include common misconceptions to stimulate productive discussions at home and in class.
Links to websites and other resources needed to complete the TIPS assignment.
"Really interesting project for both of us. I sincerely appreciate asking to be involved. very informative and eye opening!"
"This was very insightful!"
"This assignment helped me truly understand and put into perspective how much money we are spending on different appliances."
"This assignment helped me truly understand and put into perspective how much money we are spending on different appliances."
"My dad really liked this assignment. “Nice job Mr. Wall.” "
"My dad wanted to say, “it was nice for my son to be interested in some life tips on how the world works for once so he doesn’t end up living on the streets when he’s older”."
"I liked doing this science activity with my kid, it was really helpful."
"This assignment was helpful for me personally. By calculating and comparing the wattage of small kitchen appliances versus the large, built-in appliances, My son and I saw the big difference in operating costs. This will help us to make more energy efficient choices in the future."
"It was a good assignment."
"Thanks for the real world application of what our kids are learning!"
"My son has understood how to manage electricity and how it affects us due to this assignment. It is real world experience! "