The 5 Keys parent education program focuses on developmental relationships in families. The goal of this program is to facilitate positive relationships within the family and provide tools for families to use to enhance their children’s relationships in all areas of their lives. 

When hosting the program, PTA leaders can invite your principal, assistant principal, school counselor, and/or school nurse as applicable. They can add information about district or campus programs and resources and help answer questions parents might have. 

Request the Program Materials

Mental Wellness: The Difference Between Stress & Anxiety (Primary)

The goal of this program is to inform parents of the important distinction between stress and anxiety, how to normalize conversations about feelings, and some great mental health resources.

When hosting the program, PTA leaders can invite your principal, assistant principal, school counselor, and/or school nurse as applicable. They can add information about district or campus programs and resources and help answer questions parents might have. 

Request the Program Materials

Cyberbullying: Know Your Rights and Responsibilities

The Cyberbullying parent education program focuses on David's Law. The goal of this program is to inform parents on the important aspects of this legislation that can help them navigate online bullying situations.

When hosting the program, PTA leaders can invite your principal, assistant principal, school counselor, and/or school nurse as applicable. They can add information about district or campus programs and resources and help answer questions parents might have. 

Request the Program Materials 

(New! Available entirely in English AND Spanish.)

Mental Wellness: Don't Flip Your Lid (Secondary)

This program explores coping with stress, anxiety, and learning to self-regulate our responses. 

Michael Garcia is a Licensed Professional Counselor with Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from Tarleton State University, specializing in treatment of trauma in children, adolescents, and their families. He is a Trauma Specialist for Fort Worth ISD and is a Trust-Based Relational Practitioner (TBRI).  He has over 15 years of experience working in the juvenile justice system, education system, in-patient treatment, crisis response, and with victims of crime.   

Remington Pohlmeyer is a Licensed Master Social Worker and works as a Trauma Specialist for FWISD. He received his BA in Sociology from UNT in 2007 and worked in and volunteered for social service non-profits before going on to receive his master’s in social work from UT at Arlington in 2016. He is also a TBRI practitioner, trained in TF-CBT, and specializes in trauma-informed care and interventions for children and families, adolescents and adults. 

When hosting the program, PTA leaders can invite your principal, assistant principal, school counselor, and/or school nurse as applicable. They can add information about district or campus programs and resources and help answer questions parents might have. 

Request the Program Materials

Cybersecurity: Tips for protecting your online life

Amanda Crawford is the Executive Director of the Texas Department of Information Resources, and the Chief Information Officer for the State of Texas. She oversees the state agency in charge of setting Texas’ technology strategy and protecting the state’s infrastructure from cyberthreats. She is also the mom of three teenagers so she knows about the need for cybersafety education. In this video she discusses keeping your devices safe, using public Wi-Fi networks, protecting your home network, and how to talk to your kids about cybersecurity.

When hosting the program, PTA leaders can invite your principal, assistant principal, school counselor, and/or school nurse as applicable. They can add information about district or campus programs and resources and help answer questions parents might have. 

Request the Program Materials

Social-Emotional Learning Curriculum Grant

About 3GStrong

Texas PTA is proud to be partnering with 3GStrong on a new grant opportunity OPEN NOW!

3GStrong offers a Social and Emotional E-learning Curriculum designed for schools, after-school programs, and home that includes professionally voiced-over books, interactive activities and so much more! The 3GStrong program helps create a school-wide culture by giving students and teachers researched-based success strategies categorized under the 3Gs; GRIT, GROWTH-MINDSET and GRACE. Create a school-wide culture of 3GStrong, where all students have the same monthly success focus by engaging with stories and activities targeted for each individual age group, K-5.

About The Grant

Texas PTA is partnering with 3GStrong to give three, one-year 3GStrong Social and Emotional E-Learning Curriculum subscriptions to K-5 PTA schools. 

Each 3GStrong recipient school receives one school-year subscription of 3GStrong’s E-learning SEL Curriculum which allows all teachers to have a unique login for 3GStrong.com to gain access to the following:

• 180 class Check-Ins to build classroom community

• A series of 27-grade level stories with the main characters that grow with students; Grit, Grace and Theo

• 243 social-emotional lessons and activities designed by administrators, counselors, and teachers, focused on SEL standards 

• Daily animated breathing videos to calm minds so they are ready to learn

• Training with 3GStrong, customized to fit the needs of your campus

To be considered to win this Texas PTA grant award, applicants must:

• Be a PTA or school leader at a campus with a PTA in Good Standing

• Be a campus that serves any grades K-5

• Submit a complete grant application by March 8

• Submit the “Principal Letter of Support” (signed by the school principal) by March 8

 The award MUST be used by July 2022.

IMPORTANT LINKS:

Grant Application

Grant Application Preview 

Principal Letter of Support

Email questions or concerns to programs@txpta.org

Cara Foos Pierce is Chief of the Human Trafficking and Transnational/Organized Crime Section, of the Texas Office of the Attorney General. Vennesa Villarreal is Defensora de Victimas in the same department. Each video addresses the definition of Human Trafficking, common myths, how traffickers target victims and signs to look for, as well as what to do if you suspect human trafficking.

When hosting the program, PTA leaders can invite your principal, assistant principal, school counselor, and/or school nurse as applicable. They can add information about district or campus programs and resources and help answer questions parents might have. 

Request the Program Materials

Orange, gold, green or blue? How do these colors relate to your life, habits, values, and feelings? Experience an exciting, interactive adventure into your personality while learning how to enhance relationships and bring out the best in each other!

• Improve relationships at home, school and work

• Discover why you act, communicate and feel the way you do.

• Learn how different personalities can work together and why this is important to your PTA’s success!

The material in this workshop promotes responsibility, respect and building on each other’s strengths. It can be applied to all aspects of your personal and professional life, allowing you to improve your communication skills and live and work with others in a more harmonious, productive environment.

Educators: An extended Professional Development session allows teachers and support staff to consider the impact of personality on student learning preferences, as well as their own teaching styles. Please allow additional time for this option.

Suggested Audience: 

At this time, True Colors and Compass programs are designed for a group of 40-250 people. Please only request this program for a guaranteed audience of that size.

Duration:

90 minutes

Request True Colors

Have you ever wondered what it might be like to live with autism, dyslexia, or ADHD? Kids First is a turn-key program that gives students and families insight into the daily lives of someone who lives with one of these unique abilities. This program contains several hands-on stations to help build a culture of understanding and acceptance on campus.

The current Kids First program offers the following stations:

• Autism

• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

• Dyslexia

• Speech/Language Impairment

• Visual Impairment

All materials are available in digital format, and once your request for this program has been processed, a zipped folder will be emailed to you. It will contain a checklist and materials overview to help guide you through hosting the program on your campus. Other materials include:

• Instruction booklet for each station

• Brochure and PowerPoint presentation to introduce the stations

• Station passport for attendees

• Evaluation form to gather ideas for future programming

• Promotional flyer

The program is completely customizable to fit the needs of your school and PTA. Determine whether it is a student program during the school day, a family engagement event in the evening, or both! Limited on time and space? Choose to offer just one or two of the stations. This program would also be a perfect addition to a school’s professional development day, or consider holding this program in conjunction with Inclusive Schools Week or Special Needs Awareness month (December).

By building a culture of understanding and acceptance on campus, we are fostering a truly inclusive and diverse learning environment for our students. The Kids First program is provided as a free benefit of PTA. Simply click on the link below to request the materials and you will be on your way to planning a great event!

Request Kids First for Your Campus

Kids First Brochure

In the News

Exercises to understand disabilities aim to include all students at Cedar Park school via KVUE News (12/5/18)

Resources and Programs

• Kids First is a turn-key program that gives students and families insight into the daily lives of those with unique abilities, such as autism, dyslexia and ADHD.

• National PTA provides a wealth of resources and activities for both Family Engagement Events such as School Safety and Parent Guides to Student Success, as well as School Programs like Healthy Lifestyles or STEM + Families.

• Online Safety:

  • Netsmartz
    
    

    • They offer age appropriate internet safety and cyberbullying student and adult presentations that you download and present on your own.

  • Smart Talk
    
    

    • Smart Talk includes a great toolkit for coaching parents and students on online safety and citizenship.

• Carolyn Brown’s Hey Dude, Nice Shoes. The Where, What, Why, How and Who of Bullying. Carolyn is a PTA Mom from Round Rock ISD. She has presented at LAUNCH several years and specializes in online safety, bullying, and spreading kindness. Carolyn can be reached by email at carolyn@carolynelaine.com.

• Maestro en Casa - In partnership with the MATT Foundation, Texas PTA offers this basic English course for student’s families. During a six month course, participants take classes in their children's schools to learn not only the language but how to face common situations and the vocabulary to master in the topics of the six sections of Home Teacher: Housing, Health, Finance, Labor, Education and Citizenship.
  
  

  • Classes are free and taught by a parent support specialists or volunteer teachers. At the end of the program, parents participate in a graduation ceremony and receive their diploma from the superintendent, with the satisfaction of having better communication tools and, many of them, with the motivation to continue their studies.

  • Please contact Texas PTA if you are interested in bringing Maestro en Casa to your school or district.

Tips For Hosting a Successful Program

Outlining a promotion plan is the first step to success!

Ways to promote your event:

• Share calendar event invite with anticipated guest list and/or add to school calendar

• Generate fliers

• List on your school and/or PTA website

• Social media; Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google Plus, chats/blogs, etc.

• Bulletin board announcement

• Promote at local meetings or events leading up to your presentation date

• Parent pick-up line announcement board

• Sidewalk chalk messages

• Email blasts (every two weeks beginning 6 weeks out)

• PTA/school Newsletter

• Get sponsors or other schools to cross promote and create win-win incentives; i.e. meal with presentation, prize give-a-way, etc.

• School Marquee announcement

• Contact local newspaper/radio/tv for press release and list as a community service announcement

• Word of mouth and phone canvasing

Remember when creating content about your event, your goal is to persuade and generate a response!

• Make it special

  • Use terms like “only” (example: This presentation will only be offered once this year!)

• Stress the benefits and associate value to attending

  • Continuing education credit for teachers!

  • Improve communication with students/kids/peers

  • Keep current on trends

• Repetition and frequence
  
  

  • Social media can be used more frequently than email promotion

• Quality matters

  • Color selections

• Minimize overly wordy announcements