Have You Considered Becoming a Room Mom?

by Heather Long | More from this Blogger

01 Sep 2006 05:14 AM

This may sound like an odd topic for Family Fun, but I think it's fun to be involved in what your kids are doing and where they are going to school. Recently, I joined the PTA and I signed up to volunteer at her school library and I'm a room mom.

What is a Room Mom?

A room mom is someone who is not only a representative for the parents in that room at the PTA, but also a volunteer opportunity to get to know and assist the teacher of your child's classroom. Your job is not to do all the work in the room with regard to the holiday parties, snack provisions for testing weeks or helping to fund raise for the kids.

No, your job as a room mom is to delegate and coordinate. You are the voice of the other parents and the lifeline to them to keep them involved. So here is a list of the specific duties and ideas for potential room moms out there:

• Get to know the teacher of your child's room
• Help as needed with classroom projects, field trips, celebrations and more
• Coordinate with the other parents in the room, keep up to date contact lists
• Keep in contact with the other parents and make sure they feel welcome to be involved
• There are designated days for bringing in pies and cookies to honor the teachers and there are silent auctions as well as an end of the year carnival

A room mom is a great opportunity for you to be involved in you child's school experience as well as to provide assistance to your child's teacher. It lets you participate in their fun, their education and their celebrations. Have you ever been a room mom for your kids?

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Learn more about Heather Long

Heather Long is 35 years old and currently lives in Wylie, Texas. She has been a freelance writer for six years. Her husband and she met while working together at America Online over ten years ago.

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mommytotwo (526) 01 Sep 2006 06:18 AM

One of the reasons I only want to go back to teaching part-time after my boys are both in school is because I want to continue being involved with them, this includes being a room mom! I can't wait!

Myra Turner (1560) 01 Sep 2006 04:50 PM

I don't want to be the room mother but I want to be the mother the room mother knows she can count on when she needs something done. The main reason is I have a tendency to over committ to things and don't want to take on more than I can handle and not be able to do a good job. I plan to go on all the field trips and help with the parties, the school plays and so on I just don't want to be in charge. Which is funny since people tell me I'm bossy! Right now I'm really busy with my writing and it can take up a lot of my time when I am doing reseach. Like today it took me about three hours of slogging through The History of Numbers, this really longggggg academic math book to get information about a concept that I have to be able to explain in 600 words to a 8-12 year olds! I literally had to walk down the block to clear my head. Sometimes that how it goes and if I have to be involved in school to the extent that I have to do a lot of planning and coordinating I don't think I will have the time.

Jaime Egan (2178) 04 Sep 2006 05:57 PM

My mom was ALWAYS a room mother when I was in elementary school. It was fun for her, plus it was fun for me because she brought my grandmother along on many occasions. And after parties and field trips, I got to hear all of my classmates tell me how cool my mom was. It's a great confidence booster for kids.