Support your Student

Students whose parents are engaged with their education are more likely to be successful in school and beyond. The most important role a parent or caregiver can play is to make sure your children know what is expected of them and have the support they need at home and at school to be able to do their best. For parents and caregivers, this means:

• Access information about what to expect and student progress
• Keep the lines of communication open with your child, his/her teacher(s) and school
• Know what resources are available to you and to your child
  

Watch a short video: What is Parent Engagement?

Access Information about your Student

Aeries? Parent portal? Canvas? They may sound like a sci-fi series for middle schoolers, but they're systems that work together to help PUSD parents and guardians stay informed about what and how their children are doing in school.

Aeries is the database that PUSD uses to keep track of student information from enrollment to attendance, grades, parent contact information and more.

Parent Portal is how parents access their students' information in Aeries, sign up for school lunches, monitor grades, and more.

Canvas is a tool that teachers and students use to communicate about assignments and other information related to classroom instruction. Parents can use it to stay on top of what's taking place at the classroom level.

You can learn more about setting up and using parent access accounts to Canvas and Aeries Parent Portal on PUSD's "How-to Tech Assistance" page. PUSD's Innovative Technology Services (ITS) also has a Tech Support web page which includes information about the various web tools and apps, as well as links for a tech "help desk" and other resources.

Communication goes both ways!

PEN’s Parent-Teacher Conference Workshop (Oct 2024): video / slides
Taller: Conferencis de Padres y Maestros (Oct 2024): diapositivas de presentación

Who to contact at PUSD
Generally, your student’s teacher is the first person to contact if you have an issue or question, but if you want to contact someone else, here’s PEN’s Who to Contact at PUSD list and PUSD’s Problem-Solving Guide.

Resources

Resources to support your student
There are many resources to help parents support their student’s learning as well as their health and wellness.  Here are some of our favorites:

Tutoring - “Paper” is a free online resource that allows PUSD 3-12th graders to access live, qualified tutors 24/7.

PTA.org – Although most of us have heard of PTA, you might not know that their website has great information about everything from a parent toolkit for student success to resources for parents of children with special needs to developing school/parent partnerships, advocacy and more.

Caltech RISE program The Rise Program is a low-cost afterschool math and science-focused tutoring program where Caltech students support 8th-12th grade PUSD students.

Day One Community Resource Directory

Seek Common Ground Family Guides - information about what students should know and be able to do at each grade level, suggestions of activities to support learning, ideas of questions to ask when talking to teachers, and more.

Resources to support parents & caregivers

Parent University - PUSD Family Resource Center’s site lists upcoming parent workshops, recorded workshops, “how to” tech videos, family resource links, and more

Foster/Kinship Care Toolkit

Resources for Supporting PUSD Students & Families