ASSIGNMENT: Parent Newsletter
Imagine that you are the occupational therapist in a school-based setting working with children. You have decided to develop and distribute a monthly, 2-page newsletter. You want to communicate broadly with the parents as a whole but also with them individually. As an occupational therapist, remember that you want to facilitate all children’s participation in everyday activities, including school / academic competency, and promote their overall health and well-being! You must use reliable references to support some of the content in your newsletter.
Questions
1. Identify the classroom level(s) for your newsletter. Clearly state this at the top of your newsletter. Identify yourself and your title as the occupational therapist.
2. Select a theme (can be occupational therapy-related or holiday / season themed) around which you will plan and develop your newsletter. Explain occupational therapy to the parents, you must go beyond just explaining the basics about occupational therapy.
3. Develop a creative but professional title for the newsletter.
4. Format your newsletter in columns/rows such as those found in a typical newspaper. You can do this using a template or develop your own formatting, or what you learned from our guest speaker, Katie.
5. Sections: You can include sections that are monthly features as well as areas specific to this themed newsletter (e.g., letter to the editor, FAQ, Upcoming Events, activity of the month, Tips for XXX, What’s New!).
On a separate slide (slide 3) connect each section to Occupational therapy practice framework 4th edition (see framework from attachment).
Use references for factual information and the statements of what each section is meant to “enhance” for the parents and children. Be sure to state this in the newsletter itself; do not use Occupational Therapy jargon…remember to “write to the audience!” Write this in your own words and do not use direct quotes. Provide a list of references on a separate slide.
