Starting Small, Thinking Big: Practical Strategies For School Success

Christine Linge is a past director of the Toronto & District Parent
Co-operative Preschool Corporation and a freelance writer.

These 26 essays, intended to help parents maximize the benefits their
children derive from the school experience, are the distilled wisdom
that Chris Alexiou has gleaned from five years as an elementary-school
principal, 11 years as a teacher (all grades), and personal insights as
the parent of three young children. Beginning with basic concepts such
as modeling positive behavior, establishing rules and responsibilities
at home, setting goals, and effective communication, Alexiou also
touches on educational issues such as learning styles, question types,
and teaching children to read and to feel comfortable with number
concepts. The final chapters cover school concerns such as teacher
interviews, field trips, homework, and test preparation.

Alexiou writes with a clear and uncluttered style, and his essays
display logic and an orderly presentation of ideas. His goal is to
briefly describe the elementary conceptual foundations on which parents
will construct the large and complicated structure that supports a
successful school career. After many years of professional observation
and implementation of ideas, Alexiou has a clear notion of what singular
concepts and actions will precipitate success. In his effort to trace
every logical stepping stone, the author unfortunately includes
blindingly obvious

observations, such as “[s]ports enhance the fitness and athletic
skills ... of children” and “[b]ehavioural expectations need to be
set for all children.”

Nonetheless, many chapters present specific “practical strategies”
for success, in the form of lists of recommended actions or attitudes.
In some cases the reader may be daunted by the demands of Alexiou’s
schedule of action, such as the first suggestion to help your children
solve conflicts: “Teach your children to share.” Suggestions as
broad as this demand further reading and thought on the part of a
motivated parent in order to advance on this author’s road to success.
However, Alexiou’s expertise as an educator and administrator are
evident in his lists of recommendations, and some of the chapters, such
as the one on homework, contain many practical suggestions.