Keeping informed about your children's school progress and activities is an important part of being a responsible parent.   Many schools send  newsletters, activity schedules, progress reports and report cards to the parents on record with the school. Some schools also publish parent directories to make it easier for students to stay in touch with their friends.

Click here for an report on fathers' involvement in their children's schools. 

When parents don't live together, it is not uncommon that the primary placement parent does not go out of his or her way to keep the other parent informed about the child's progress in school.  This makes it harder for the other parent to keep informed about the child’s school activities and progress.  

The attached letter  was drafted to make it easier for your school to keep you informed about your child's school and his or her progress.  You can copy this text to your word processing software, modify it as you feel is appropriate and send it each September to the principal of your child's school.

Date

Principal    

School name 

School address

Regarding: Student name

Dear Principal       

I am the father/mother of                    who is enrolled in your school for the coming school year. Their mother/father and I are divorced but both of us continue to be actively involved in the raising of our children. We have joint legal custody and both of us spend time independently caring for the children.

The purpose of this letter is to ask you to request your teachers and staff to make sure both of us receive separate copies of any important information regarding our children, and any newsletters, progress reports, report cards, or other communications normally sent to parents. I also ask that both of us be listed in any parent directories, on all school records involving the children and both be listed as contacts for any emergency.

I  am hopeful that this will prevent communication problems between their mother/father and I and should reduce stress on our child.

Here is detailed information on how you can contact us.

Dad's 

name

full address

city, state, zip

home telephone#

Work telephone #

Mom's

name

full address

city, state, zip

home telephone#

Work telephone #

For your information,          is in my care every             after school and                 .  The balance of the time during the school week they are cared for by their mother/father.

Thank you for your assistance with this matter.

Very Truly Yours