Dianne Mierzwik, a long-time teacher and teacher trainer, has put together a book based on her own best practices of ways to motivate K-8 students and connect with their parents. Her ideas have been classroom-tested by herself and by the many teachers she's trained at in-service workshops. The book is full of ideas, strategies, and sample forms, documents, and letters that teachers can use or adapt for their own purposes. The author presents alternative ideas for adapting strategies and adopts an upbeat and enthusiastic tone to motivate teachers to use her strategies. Diane Mierzwik's strategies will improve the classroom environment, solve many classroom management problems, and keep students motivated, and most strategies require only a few minutes of a teacher's time each day. The research shows that parent involvement results in increased student achievement, so many schools are focusing on this component of school success. Includes guidance on topics critical to beginning teachers: }} back-to-school night }} parent-teacher conferences }} parent volunteers }} reaching out to uninvolved parents }} talking to parents about difficult students and other problems }} using E-mail as a communication tool time-saving tips }} motivating even the most difficult students