How We Support Our Partners

Learning Heroes partners with states, districts, schools and organizations that want to strengthen their family engagement practice. Our goal is to improve student learning and well-being, and to facilitate home-school connections as an engine for equity in schools.

Supporting States, Districts, and Schools

Family Engagement Leadership Institute A cohort-based community of practice for school and district leaders. Through a problem of practice and one-on-one coaching, participants learn to design and execute a more effective family engagement strategy. Get more information here.

Professional Learning for Educators: A customized four-part series with real-world video exemplars on how to team up with families–focused on trust building and a shared understanding of student progress and development. Get more information here. 

Customized Communications: We build and customize research-based parent- and educator-facing communications. Get more information here.

Research with Parents and Educators: Modeled after our national research, we conduct focus groups and surveys at the state and local level to gain insights on attitudes, behaviors, beliefs, and actions. We also provide communications support to ensure the findings are actionable. See all our research here.

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    Educator Resources

    Building Connections with Families

    Parent-Teacher Planning Tool (and Teacher Guide) – Designed to maximize existing touchpoints like parent-teacher conferences, this simple tool helps teachers elicit parent and student observations and share data with families to co-create a learning plan.

    A Principal’s Guide to Leading in the Time of a Pandemic – Developed in partnership with the National Association of Elementary School Principals and National PTA, and customized for the Leadership Academy, this guide has strategies and resources to help school leaders and educators form strong school-home partnerships.

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    Parent-Friendly Reporting and Accountability

    Annual State Test Report – Websites and communications that help parents understand their child’s state test score report and how to use it to better support learning at home.

    School Report Card – An ESSA-compliant school report card template, currently in use in several states.

    Parent-Facing Communications – Websites, parent guides, and portals that help parents understand where their child is academically, and actions they can take on behalf of their child.

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    Facilitator Guides and Workshops

    Developing Life Skills and How Learning Happens – Facilitator’s guide, videos, and more to unpack the connection between social, emotional, and academic learning with families.

    Summer REcharge Workshop for Parent Coordinators – An end-of-year or summer workshop to engage with families about supporting social, emotional, and academic skills.

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    Customized Family Resources

    Year-Round Tools to Support Families in Teaming up with Schools

    Anti-Racism Resource Directory – This directory helps parents and educators lead discussions about anti-racism and social justice.

    Learning Hero Roadmap – From what grade- level expectations look like to how to support life skills, this interactive Roadmap helps families find resources on a range of topics.

    Paths to Success – This interactive webpage helps parents set their child up for success in high school and beyond by providing key milestones, resources, and tips.

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    Partnering with Teachers Around a Shared Understanding of Progress and Development

    Readiness Check – An interactive tool that helps parents see how their child is progressing in foundational math and reading skills and connects them to skill-specific videos, activities, and more to support learning at home.

    The “Dear Teacher” Letter – A personalized letter to help families jumpstart the relationship by introducing their family, what makes them special, and sharing their hopes and goals for their child.

    Team Up for Success – An ongoing series of free, research-based tools and resources to help families partner with educators at key points throughout the year.