Written by Amanda Ensor. Adapted from a session Amanda and Grace McKenzie of the Prichard Committee presented at the 2026 NAFSCE conference.
“We are working on fractions. Practice at home.”
Most of us have sent a message like that, or received one. It names the topic, and it’s well meant. But read it the way a family would. Practice what? How? What if their child gets stuck? The message ends the conversation before it begins.
That gap between informing families and partnering with them is where communication either becomes a strategy for learning or stays one more task on the list.
Dolly Parton wrote “9 to 5” for the people who show up every day, keep the whole operation running, and rarely get the credit. That’s family engagement professionals in a nutshell. We work well past 5:00. We answer messages on weekends. We carry the hopes of families and the pressures of schools at the same time. And we come back the next morning ready to try again.
So I want to invite you to do what Dolly did at the start of her day: pour yourself another cup of ambition and get to work. Or, as we like to say, do it the Dolly Way. With heart, with grit, with humor, and with the unshakable belief that the work matters.
Here are five ways to make every message count.
1. Write for meaning, not volume
Here’s the paradox most of us recognize right away: schools communicate constantly, but communication volume alone doesn’t create partnership. Families today may receive more information than ever and still experience overload, fragmentation, jargon, and no clear next step. More messages don’t fix that. In fact, they often make it worse.
So ask yourself: What does your system need most right now? More communication, more coordinated communication, or more meaningful communication? I’d bet very few of us would raise a hand for “more.”
Every message a school sends quietly answers three questions families are always asking: Do you see my child? Do I have something valuable to contribute? Is there a meaningful way for me to respond?
Think of a message that made you feel seen, respected, or ready to respond. Chances are it wasn’t the most polished one. It was the most human. Families don’t just read what we write. They feel what it says about how we see them and their children.
2. Design a rhythm, not a message quota
No single message defines the relationship. The pattern does. Families experience communication over time, so ask whether yours is coherent, consistent, clear, and conversational. Balance information with connection, celebration, and listening. Coordinate who sends what, and when, so families aren’t getting five versions of the same reminder from five different people.
How TalkingPoints helps: Shared templates and unified school and district messaging help teams coordinate, so families hear one consistent voice in their preferred language.
3. Talk about learning, not just school
Shifting from communicating about school to communicating about learning is one of the most powerful moves an educator can make. But an academic update isn’t yet an academic partnership.
Of everything in this work, this is the shift I keep coming back to. Trust and a healthy rhythm open the door. Learning is where we want that door to lead.
The design question every educator can ask is: What can this family understand, contribute, or do because of this message? Go back to that fractions message. What one thing would a family need before it becomes useful? Whenever I ask educators that question, the ideas pour in: an example problem, a simple question to ask at dinner, a sense of what their child finds tricky, an invitation to share what they notice at home.
It’s worth honoring the realities of school communication, too. Families need accurate updates, deadlines, and clear explanations, and not every message needs to be a partnership invitation. A school closure notice can simply be a clear school closure notice. But partnership needs regular chances to go beyond information. A strong message makes learning visible, makes participation possible, and makes family insight matter.
How TalkingPoints helps: Message Mentor helps staff turn a quick note into a message that makes learning visible and invites a reply. Staff stay in control and can use, edit, or discard each suggestion.
4. Give families a real role, not a teaching job
We are not asking families to become substitute teachers. Academic engagement doesn’t mean handing families worksheets and expecting them to teach. A family member might be a conversation partner, an encourager, an observer, an advocate, or someone who helps a student connect learning to a future goal.
The question isn’t, “Did the family do the school’s task?” It’s, “Did we create a meaningful opportunity to support this student together?”
That role shifts across the years. In the early years, families talk, play, notice, read, and count. In elementary school, they explain, encourage, and share observations. In middle school, they discuss strategies and goals. And in high school, they support agency, planning, and future pathways.
How TalkingPoints helps: Academics at Home sends PreK-3 families short, curriculum-aligned activities by text, so families get a specific way to help without being asked to teach. Teachers need no extra prep.
5. Close the loop
The bar isn’t “we sent it.” The bar is “families received it, understood it, and were invited into the conversation.” That means communication that’s accessible in every family’s home language, truly two-way, linked to learning, strengths-based, and followed through. The Prichard Committee’s Family Friendly Schools framework sets that standard, and the final step is never just another message. It’s a better-informed next step.
How TalkingPoints helps: Two-way translation families can reply to from any phone, with no app or login, and dashboards that show which families are being reached and which aren’t yet.
In the end, it comes back to people. Tools and frameworks matter, but it’s educators who turn them into relationships. Every time a teacher turns an academic expectation into everyday language a family can use, that family gets a clearer view of their child’s learning and a real way to be part of it.
Keep Refilling That Cup
I keep coming back to Dolly. Family engagement is demanding work, and the people who do it are often running on fumes. But this work keeps reminding me why we keep showing up. A single message can help a family feel seen. A pattern of thoughtful communication can build lasting trust. And a partnership grounded in learning can change what’s possible for a child.
So here’s to everyone working 9 to 5, and long after. Keep refilling that cup. Keep building bridges. And keep doing it the Dolly Way.
Do it the Dolly Way with TalkingPoints
TalkingPoints helps schools and districts turn everyday messages into two-way partnerships with families, in their home language and on the channels they already use.
