Veteran teachers have a message for colleagues who are trying to help students reach their learning potential without enlisting the help of their parents or guardians: Good luck. You’re gonna need it.

It’s no accident that building parental involvement is a cornerstone of the AFT’s Educational Research and Dissemination (ER&D) program, explains Rosalind LaRocque of the union’s educational issues department. “The more you can provide information about classroom learning activities that make parents part of the instructional team, the better off you—and the students—will be come June,” she stresses.

And these first weeks of the school year are the perfect time to build the connection, says LaRocque, who offers these simple tips for building that vital home-school bridge:

Take the initiative
Contact parents by phone or in person; and take full advantage of open houses, meetings and conferences.

Bring parents into the loop
Build effective two-way communication between families and schools that’s targeted at helping parents assist in their children’s learning at home.

Make the connection
Build e-mail lists and use them (make sure parents can reach you by e-mail, too). Also, send home annual school calendars or notices. Distribute them in markets, clinics, places of worship or other gathering sites, or place them as inserts in newspapers.

Preview coming attractions
Highlight school activities, especially the parent-teacher organization’s guest speaker list for upcoming meetings.

Talk the talk
Focus communications on both parents and utilize languages that reflect the school population.

Pump up the volume
Create a school Web site, utilize local cable television or radio stations to disseminate information.

Lower the drawbridge
Use decorations, bulletin boards or other methods to create a welcoming atmosphere in your school. Thank your school receptionist for being polite and courteous with parents and visitors.

Use caffeine
Offer coffee to parents on certain days when they drop off their children.

Sweeten the pot
Use motivators, such as a discount booklet to local merchants, to encourage parents to join the PTA or other parent-teacher organization.