Before the school year begins, find out as much as you can about the school your child will attend. Even schools in the same district can differ greatly. Don't rely only on information about a school from other parents. Their child might have different needs and expectations from a school than yours.

Ask the school principal for a school handbook. This will answer many questions that will arise over the year. If your school doesn't have a handbook, ask the principal and teachers questions such as the following:

What teaching methods and materials are used? Are the methods used to teach reading and math based on scientific evidence about what works best? Are science and social studies materials up to date?

How much time is spent on each subject such as reading, math, science and history?

How does the school measure student progress? What tests does it use?

Does the school meet state standards and guidelines?

Are teachers highly qualified? Do they meet state certification requirements?

For children beginning kindergarten, ask: What areas are emphasized in the kindergarten program? How focused is it on academic instruction?

If you have not seen it, ask to look at the school's report card. These report cards show how your school compares to others in the district and indicate how well it is succeeding.

Find out if the school has a website and, if so, get the address. School websites can provide you with ready access to all kinds of information, schedules of events, names of people to contact, rules and regulations, and so forth.

Talk with your child about school. Let her know that you think school and learning are important.

Although teachers' expectations vary, here are some social skills and behaviors generally expected of children entering kindergarten:

Children should be able to follow school and classroom rules.

Children should be able to listen attentively to and follow instructions.

Children should be able to concentrate on and finish a task.

Children should show self-control.

Children should respect the property of others, share and take turns.

Children should do as much for themselves as possible, such as taking care of their personal belongings, going to the toilet, washing their hands and taking care of and putting away materials.

The academic skills and knowledge expected of beginning kindergarten children will depend on the kind of curriculum offered by the school and on the standards that students are expected to meet by the end of the school year. Here are some achievements that are commonly expected of beginning kindergarten students:

Children can recognize and name alphabet letters.

Children can recognize print they often see such as their own name, various logos and signs.

Children understand that words in books convey meaning, are able to recognize the parts of books, and know that words run from left to right across the page and from top to bottom.

Children notice and can work with the sounds of spoken language, for example through rhyming, and can recognize when a series of words begin with the same sound.

Children use spoken language to express their thoughts and ideas, tell a story about an experience and learn about themselves and their environment.

Children produce circles, lines, scribbles and letters as part of their early writing.

Children are able to recognize numbers and understand that numbers tell us about quantity, order and measurement.

Children can recognize, name and manipulate basic shapes and understand that shapes can be transformed into other shapes.

Children know how to hold and look at a book and are beginning to learn to read.

�Create a home environment that encourages learning and schoolwork. Establish a daily family routine of mealtimes with time for homework, chores and bedtime as well as time for family activities.

Show your child that the skills he is learning in school are an important part of the things he will do as an adult. Let him see you reading books, newspapers and computer screens; writing reports, letters, emails and lists; using math to figure change or to measure for new carpeting and doing things that require thought and effort.

Make sure that your home has lots of reading materials that are appropriate for your child. Keep books, magazines and newspapers in the house. You can find many good books and magazines for your child at yard or library sales. Books make good gifts.

Encourage your child to use the library. Ask the librarian to tell your child about special programs that she might participate in, such as summer reading programs and book clubs and about services such as homework help.

Limit TV viewing to no more than one hour on a school night. Be aware of the shows your child likes to watch and discuss his choices with him. The same goes for video games.

Help your child learn to use the Internet properly and effectively.

Encourage your child to be responsible and to work independently. Taking responsibility and working independently are important qualities for school success.

Show an interest in what your child does in school. Support her special interests by attending school plays, musical events, science fairs or sporting events.

Offer praise and encouragement for achievement and improvement.

Ask your child to show you his schoolwork, and note the grades and any comments made by the teacher.

Check report cards carefully for subject grades, attendance and conduct. Ask the teacher or school counselor for other kinds of information about your child's performance, such as test scores and teacher observations.

In the course of the school year, your child may take a variety of standardized tests, including tests for state standards. Your child's scores and other information may be sent home with her or mailed directly to you. Check with your child's teacher about when these tests are given and when to expect results.

Find out if your child's teacher uses e-mail to communicate with parents. Using e-mail will allow you to send and receive messages at times that are most convenient for you.

Ask teachers to show you examples of successful work and compare it to your child's work. Listen to the teacher's comments about your child's work and what she needs to do to improve. Plan with the teacher how you can work together to help your child do better work.

Use homework hotlines, school websites, and other dial-in services to get information about school activities or to ask teachers and school personnel questions.

Attend parent-teacher conferences that are scheduled during the year.

Set up a conference early in the school year. Let the teacher know that you are interested in your child's education and that you want to be kept informed of his progress. If English is your second language, you may need to make special arrangements, such as including in the conference someone who is bilingual.

If possible, also arrange to observe the teaching in your child's classroom. Afterward, talk with the teacher about what you saw and how it fits with your hopes for your child and your child's needs.

Before a conference, write out questions you want to ask and jot down what you want to tell the teacher. Be prepared to take notes during the conference and ask for an explanation if you don't understand something.

Talk with the teacher about your child's talents, hobbies, study habits and any special sensitivities he might have, such as concerns about weight or speech difficulties.

Tell the teacher if you think your child needs special help and about any special family situation or event that might affect your child's ability to learn. Mention such things as a new baby, an illness or a recent or an upcoming move. Ask family members and friends to consider giving your child books and magazine subscriptions as gifts for birthdays or other special occasions. Set aside a special place for your child to keep her own library of books.

Get help for your child if he has a reading problem. If you think that your child needs extra help, ask his teachers about special services, such as after-school or summer reading programs. Also ask teachers or your local librarian for names of community organizations and local literacy volunteer groups that offer tutoring services.

If you are uncomfortable with your reading ability, look for family or adult reading programs in your community. Your librarian can help you locate such programs. Friends and relatives also can read to your child, and volunteers are available in many communities to do the same.

The right amount of homework depends on the age and skills of the child. National organizations of parents and teachers suggest that children in kindergarten through second grade can benefit from 10 to 20 minutes of homework each school day. In third through sixth grades, children can benefit from 30 to 60 minutes a school day.

Because reading at home is especially important for children, reading assignments can increase the amount of time spent on homework beyond the suggested amounts.

Notice how long it takes your child to complete assignments. Observe how he is spending his time, working hard, daydreaming, and getting up and down? This will help you prepare for a talk with the teacher.

If you are concerned that your child has either too much or too little homework, talk with his teacher and learn about homework policies and what is expected.

�Talk with your child's teacher about homework policies. Make sure you know the purpose of the homework assignments, how long they should take, and how the teacher wants you to be involved in helping your child complete them.

Agree with your child on a set time to do homework every day.

Make sure that your child has a consistent, well-lit, fairly quiet place to study and do homework. Encourage your child to study at a desk or table rather than on the floor or in an easy chair. Discourage distractions such as TV or calls from friends.

Make sure the materials needed to do assignments (papers, books, pencils, a dictionary, encyclopedia, computer) are available. Show your child how to use reference books or computer programs and appropriate websites. Ask your child to let you know if special materials are needed and have them ready in advance.

Talk with your child about assignments to see that she understands them.

When your child asks for help, provide guidance, not answers. Doing assignments for your child won't help him understand and use information or help him become confident in his own abilities.

If you are unable to help your child with a subject, ask for help from a relative. Also, see if the school, library or a community or religious organization can provide tutoring or homework help.

Check to see that your child has done all the work assigned. Sign the homework if your child's school requires this.

Watch for signs of frustration or failure. Let your child take a short break if she is having trouble keeping her mind on an assignment.

Reward progress. If your child has been successful in completing an assignment and is working hard, celebrate with a special event, reading a favorite story or playing a game together to reinforce the positive effort.

Read the teacher's comments on assignments that are returned. If a problem comes up, arrange to meet with the teacher and work out a plan and a schedule to solve it.

Review school discipline policies with your child. Make sure that she knows what behaviors you expect of her in school. Let her know that you will support teachers in their efforts to enforce the policies.

Work with the school to develop a plan to handle safety and drug problems, such as drug education and violence prevention programs. Make sure the school has clear consequences for students who break school rules.

Get to know your child's friends and their parents. Make sure their attitude about drugs is compatible with yours. If not, encourage your child to find new friends.

Under the No Child Left Behind Act, states must identify persistently dangerous schools and provide families with an alternative to sending their children to schools that are unsafe. If your child attends such a school or if your child has been a victim of school violence, talk with school officials about your options.

Pre-read all material in the text before class. Even having some exposure to the material will make it much easier to follow along with the teacher's lesson plan.

Study past material. If your child understands what was done in previous classes will make it much easier to make connections to new material.

Have your child make a list of questions from the previous day's activities or homework. Try to get all questions resolved before moving on.

Do homework. Your child should at least try each and every problem and make notes when not understanding something. At least the teacher will know that your child made an effort. Keep track of when assignments are due.

It is important to stay organized. Keep papers in a folder or binder. If taking notes on a laptop, make sure to save the content to where it's easy to find.

Make sure your child comes to class prepared with the appropriate materials such as a textbook, notebook, laptop and something to write with.

It is important to understand what the teacher is teaching. Make sure your child pays attention to everything that's been said in class. If the teacher implies that something is important or that it will be on a test, your child needs to take note.

Participate in class discussions. Let your child know that if they have something worthwhile to add, to speak up. Listen to answers the other students give to the questions since this may open your child up to new ways of thinking. Your child should look into study groups with other students.

Your child should listen carefully to the instructor and concentrate on what is being said. Write down any important fact in simple sentence or paragraphs and highlight key words.

If the teacher gives examples, write down any examples. This is information often included on the test or quizzes.

Write the info as clearly and quickly. Use standard abbreviations and symbols to shorten writing time (w/ = with; abbr = abbreviation).

Create shorthand to speed up writing. Develop abbreviations and symbols for words you use often. If taking a science class your child may want to use "g" for gas.

Skip any unnecessary words such as "the" and "a" in note taking.

Review notes after class. Make sure your child understands what they've written. They should re-write if necessary while things are still fresh in the mind.

Take notes on laptop or tablet computer. Your child might find taking notes on either device will shorten time.

Do NOT skip school. Your child will be missing out on material. It is true that they could make up the work, but it will be more and they will have missed class time. Your child will especially not want to have to make up a science lab or any sort of in-class project.

Your child should be on time. Most likely the teacher won't appreciate it. Your child might get behind or make the rest of the class behind.