Studies have shown that parents who are active in their child’s first educational experience stay active throughout their child’s years of formal education. Being active in your child's education is one of the most important factors in contributing to their success at school."
A few days a month, parents have the opportunity to volunteer in the class. On a parents duty day, they arrive 15 minutes before class starts to set out the parent-provided snack while the student gets to help set up the classroom for the day. Students get to pick the puzzles to put out, set out paint, and other special ‘helper’ jobs.
During the class, the parent volunteer helps students with the day’s creative art project, help hand out snack and water during snack time, supervise outdoor play, and tidy up the class after the students are picked up. This is a special time to bond with your child and get to know other children and parents in the school.
On the last Wednesday of the month from 7pm to 9pm we have our Parent Education meetings in the Hobby Hill basement. We have a different speaker every month come to talk to parents about a variety of topics including fire safety and an audience participation demonstration on how to use a fire extinguisher.
After the speaker finishes we have a short break and separate into classes. During this time we share fun stories from the classroom, talk about the next month’s theme, and discuss any business for the class.
Each parent at Hobby Hill Preschool selects their job at the beginning of the year during orientation. There is a large variety of jobs to suit any skill set and time availability. The executive board meets one extra time per month, on a mutually agreed date.
The president is on the executive team and is responsible for most of the day-to-day running of the preschool. They work closely with the teachers and bookkeeper, plan the agenda for the monthly executive meetings, run the meetings, and help coordinate all areas of the school.
The co-president is on the executive board, attends monthly executive board meetings, and assists the President with running the school. The president will often delegate jobs to the co-president and they are responsible for helping the President with the day-to-day running of the school.
The Secretary attends the monthly executive board meetings and takes minutes. They then type up the minutes and distribute them to the other executive members.
The Treasurer Liaison works with the bookkeeper and keeps everyone updated on the school’s finances.
The 3’s Class Rep is the voice of the 3’s class during the monthly executive meetings. They work with the parents of the class to solve any problems that may arrive, set up the schedule for ‘duty days’, and coordinate with the teacher when necessary.
The 4’s Class Rep is the voice of the 3’s class during the monthly executive meetings. They work with the parents of the class to solve any problems that may arrive, set up the schedule for ‘duty days’, and coordinate with the teacher when necessary.
Multiple parents can sign up for the fundraising committee. The fundraising committee is responsible for planning and executing fundraising events. These can be as simple as organizing the selling of the Chilliwack Coupon Books, to planning a pub night and silent auction. Fundraising is important to the school and the fundraising committee works throughout the school year organizing events. They have their own meetings as required at mutually agreed upon dates.
Multiple parents can sign up for building maintenance. Parents in charge of building maintenance meet as required to help maintain the school. This can be anything from changing a light fixture to fixing a window screen, and anything else that may be required throughout the year. The level of work varies throughout the year, depending on what needs to be done. This is an awesome job for handy parents.
Multiple parents can sign up for groundskeeping. Parents in charge of groundskeeping are in charge of the outdoor space at Hobby Hill. This includes everything from just mowing grass to weeding and keeping up the planters. This job can be done any time that school is not in session and is great for working parents or people with a green thumb.
Multiple parents can sign up for the cleaning committee. Once a month, or as needed, the cleaning committee does a thorough clean of the school. This can be done any time that class is not in session, and usually takes just a few hours per month. There is no set cleaning time, and the cleaning committee sets their own schedule. This is a great job for people who need flexible hours or just love to clean.
The Emergency parent is a backup duty parent for when the scheduled duty parent is not able to make their duty day. Sometimes it happens that a child or parent is sick the morning of their duty day, and if no other parent is available to switch days, the emergency parent does the duty day and brings the snack.
The emergency preparedness part of the job is preparing for an emergency should the school be shut down during operating hours due to a natural disaster or emergency event. Hobby Hill Preschool has emergency supplies that the emergency preparedness parent is responsible for maintaining. The emergency preparedness parent also provides a secondary close-by safe location for students and teachers during an emergency event.
The Emergency parent is a backup duty parent for when the scheduled duty parent is not able to make their duty day. Sometimes it happens that a child or parent is sick the morning of their duty day, and if no other parent is available to switch days, the emergency parent does the duty day and brings the snack.
The emergency preparedness part of the job is preparing for an emergency should the school be shut down during operating hours due to a natural disaster or emergency event. Hobby Hill Preschool has emergency supplies that the emergency preparedness parent is responsible for maintaining. The emergency preparedness parent also provides a secondary close-by safe location for students and teachers during an emergency event.
This parent handles the registration of all new families. They receive the completed registration packages, contact families to set up an interview, ensure that they have all the required documents submitted, and add them to the appropriate class list.
The goodwill parent sets up opportunities for Hobby Hill to be charitable to others in need. This includes but is not limited to an Angel Tree at Christmas, a food drive for the food bank, pajama drive for children in need, or providing Christmas gifts to a single family in need.
The Parent Education parent coordinates speakers for the monthly parent education meetings. We have a list of past speakers but the parent education parent is always welcome to find new speakers. This is a great job for someone who may have extra time in the beginning of the year to book speakers or if they want to do a small amount of work every month. Speakers can be booked in advance.
The Scholastic and Playdough parent is responsible for making new playdough every month, often with themed colours and scents, as well as organizing Scholastic flyers, and possibly orders depending on future changes due to Covid 19.
The Social Parent is responsible for updating our social media throughout the year as necessary. Often the Social Parent may coordinate social events such as a meet-and-greet or play time for current and past/future Hobby Hill families.
The supply and laundry parent shops for consumable supplies for the school such as paper towels and toilet paper. This is purchased as needed and the school reimburses the cost of the supplies. Laundry mainly refers to rags used to wash paint and kitchen towels. We have a basket that dirty clothes are placed in and the supply parent takes them home to wash as necessary. Clean clothes are then folded and returned to the school.
Every year in June, students are presented with a special keepsake photobook of their year at Hobby Hill. Throughout the year, the Photobook Parent takes pictures of all the students and/or encourages others to upload photos of the class. Near the end of the year, they put together individualized yearbooks for each child in the class, with a budget provided by Hobby Hill Preschool. The books are presented on the last day of class along with other keepsakes such as their cubby name tag and last pieces of artwork.
Every year in June, students are presented with a special keepsake photobook of their year at Hobby Hill. Throughout the year, the Photobook Parent takes pictures of all the students and/or encourages others to upload photos of the class. Near the end of the year, they put together individualized yearbooks for each child in the class, with a budget provided by Hobby Hill Preschool. The books are presented during the preschool graduation ceremony along with other keepsakes such as their cubby name tag and last pieces of artwork.