Learners from Non-Traditional FamiliesBy: Karli Dempski

Quotes

“There is no single typical American family anymore.”- Kate Rice (ABC News)

"Family is both a belief and a practice”- Alexis Walker (editor of National Council on Family Relations' Journal of Marriage and the Family)

What is a Non-Traditional Family?

Nuclear family: traditional family structure

Non-Traditional family: (“Blended Family) single parent household, a family with step parents, step parent with kids from former marriages, or same sex parents

Also other types: adopted families, grandparent/guardian families, and homeless families

Statistics on Students1 in 2- live in a single parent household at some point

1 in 3 are born to unmarried parents

1 in 8 are born to a teenage mother (The State of America's Children, 1998 Yearbook, Children's Defense Fund)

30% of kids are living with step families (The State of America's Children, 1998 Yearbook, Children's Defense Fund)

More than 40% of marriages now are 2nd or 3rd marriages (U.S. Census Bureau, 1992)

Effect of Non-Traditional Families

75% of children in chemical dependency hospitals are from single parent households (Center for Disease Control, Atlanta, GA)

1 out of 5 children have a learning, emotional, or behavioral problem due to family settings (National Center for Health Statistics)

Children of these families are 7 times more likely to suffer from depression than someone from a nuclear family

So What Changes?

Contacting home changes

Child might be distracted

How the child interacts with others

Grades

When home situation is bad, performance may be also

Divorce, the new black

Half of all people will experience it at sometime in their life

Divorce sometimes effects the kids more than the parents

Remember the students attitude toward it is a reflections of their parents attitude

Effects vary on students from preschool-middle school

Children in general, just feel abandoned

Tips for Catering to Divorced Parents

Get to know the situation

Having a “Parent Night” that helps parents that have all types of schedule conflicts

Send a note to BOTH homes

Consider conference calls

Working With Grandparents

4 million children live in a household headed by a grandparent

Introduce them to other Custodial grandparents

Offer tips on how to help students with homework

Provide support and appreciation

Homeless Families

Realize as a teacher, you may only have a short time to impact the student

Remember that school is a home to these students, provide security

Build a trusting relationship with the parents

Engage the parents in the child’s learning, and push them to learn as well

Foster Families

In NC, the foster parent is only required to have 30 hours of training

Student’s best way of learning may not be known

Help parents set realistic but hopeful expectations for their students

Support

A Lesson in Non-traditional families

When students in school are taught about family structure, need to be taught different types

Knowledge is power

Prevent bullying about home situations

Give them a reading assignment that involves a non-traditional family

Advocacy for EVERYONE

Getting to know the situation

Adjusting lesson plans

Teach focus when needed

Have them talk with a counselor when needed

Personal Ties

Parents are divorced

Remarried, grew up in a “non-traditional” family

Use it to be able to relate to students

References

http://www.childswork.com/blog/2011/11/four-ways-classroom-teachers-can-include-students-and-families-coping-with-divorce/

http://ehlt.flinders.edu.au/education/DLiT/2002/family/family.htm

http://www.rainbows.org/statistics.html

http://prezi.com/klbhx2rp4zn1/non-traditional-families/

http://www.ziemang.com/pnm_articles/0003dvrc.htm

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=118267&page=1#.UXQ0rKUgMfM

http://ohioline.osu.edu/ss-fact/0157.html

http://tvoparents.tvo.org