NAME:
ADDRESS:
CITY,STATE,ZIP
PHONE:
EMAIL:
DATE:
Topic: Notice of parent’s desire to participate in child’s education
Dear ________________________,
As the parents of _______________(Student or Child) who attends ______________Grammar, Middle or High School, we thank you for your effort to provide an excellent, academic-based education for our child. We are pleased with the potential for excellence in education that _________________provides, and we thank you for all you do to contribute to our children’s education.
I would like to address the issue of our family’s ability to review classroom material via this letter. We want to exercise our rights under the law and district policy to review materials and address issues with our child concurrent with the curriculum and within the framework of our family so we may actively participate in our children’s education.
Under U.S. legislation, court decision, state education codes, and DISTRICT policies, parents have the primary responsibility for their children’s education, and students have certain rights that the school may not deny. Parents have the right to be assured that the schools do not unknowingly or knowingly impair or weaken the student’s beliefs, moral values and belief systems within his or her family unit. A student has the right to hold his or her values and moral standards without direct or indirect manipulation by the schools through curricula, textbooks, and AV material or supplementary assignments. Schools and families successfully working together as partners in education and communication of curriculum content will further strengthen the ability to provide students an excellent education in a way that strengthens individual families and our community.
Under the Federal Law (20 U.S.C. 1232h) and the Protection of Pupil Rights Act, we hereby request that our child not be involved in any school activity or material listed below unless we have first reviewed all the relevant material and given our written consent for their use:
Values clarification, use of moral dilemmas, discussion of religious or moral standards, role playing, open-ended discussions of situations involving moral issues, survival games including life/death decision exercises, contrived incidents for self-revelation, sensitivity training, group encounter sessions, talk-ins, magic circle techniques, self-evaluation, auto-criticism, strategies designed for self-disclosure including the keeping of a diary, journal or log book, sociograms, sociodramas, psychodramas, blindfolded walks, isolation techniques, death education including abortion, euthanasia, suicide, use of violence, discussions of death and dying, curricula or books and reading materials pertaining to religious beliefs (including elements of witchcraft), drugs and alcohol, nuclear war, nuclear policy, nuclear classroom games, globalism, one world government, curricula discussing anti-nationalistic views, evolution, discussion and testing on interpersonal relationship, discussions of attitudes towards parents and parenting, health education including human development, and education in human sexuality including birth control and pre-marital sex.
Psychological and psychiatric treatment or adult and peer counseling that is designed to affect behavioral, emotional or attitudinal characteristics of an individual or designated to elicit information about attitudes, habits, traits, opinions, beliefs, or feelings of an individual or group.
Under California Law (Education Code Sections 51101, 51201.5, 51240, 51500, 51501, 51513, 51530 51550, 51553, 51554, 51555, and 51820) we also request that our child not be involved in any school activity or material listed below unless we have first reviewed all the relevant material and given our written consent for their use:
Sex or family life education; AIDS or HIV education; the acquiring or use of birth control drugs or devices; abortion; infanticide; euthanasia or suicide; death education in any form; programs regarding death; homosexuality; bestiality; sadism, masochism; showing of R, NC-17, or X rated (pornographic) films; meditation, yoga, trances, guided imagery, or the conjuring of spirit guides and/or “imaginary friends;” witchcraft in any form; communism or other collectivist doctrines; any counseling, group or individual, other than behavior modification programs, except as recommended by the student’s personal physician and approved by us, or the use of questionnaires, role playing, or other strategies to question, expose, or criticize any private, religious or moral value of the above named pupil or members of his/her family; “values clarification,” “decision making,” or global education dealing with the aforementioned subjects.
We also ask you to provide us with two-week advance notice and the opportunity to review complete curriculum material for any discussion, workshop, assembly, speaker, or presentation defined by the district as controversial, including but not limited to the following:
Topics regarding religious, political, social, economic, ethical, and/or moral significance; Guest speakers presenting materials that are defined by the district as controversial or who are presenting material that is not relevant to course material; any topic about which someone might ask whether or not it is controversial.
The purpose of this letter is to protect and preserve our children’s rights defined under the pupil’s rights amendment, the Protection of Pupil Rights Act, California Education Codes, California Family Codes, and DISTRICT policy. These regulations and policies all provide procedures for filing complaints first at the local level and then with the U.S. Department of Education. If a voluntary remedy fails, federal or state funds can be withdrawn from those in violation of the law, and the individuals responsible might be held legally liable.
Our purpose and intent is to work cooperatively with the schools in congenial and positive attitudes and actions, with our child’s best interest in mind. We fully support your efforts to provide excellent, academics-based education within our community and for our child, and we are grateful for each teacher and administrator’s dedication to our child’s academic success.
Please feel free to call us with any questions at any time during the course of the year.
I request written acknowledgment of receipt and filing of this legal, written notice.
Best Regards,
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Teacher Signature:____________________________________ Date:__________________
Teacher Email:_______________________________________ Teacher P