Family involvement in a child’s education is a complex system that extends beyond the presence of partnershipsbetween families, schools, and the community (Epstein, 2011). By measuring families’ feelings of connectedness andmembership to the school community, this study explores families’ motivations for participating in their child’slearning and development at school. Results suggest that a family’s sense of connectedness to their child’s schoolcommunity may be related to their level of participation. Findings are discussed in terms of implications foreducational communities emphasizing the power of families’ community connectedness within the schools andexpanding on the ways to enhance family involvement and participation.

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In the past, Latino families were often regarded as being uninvolved in their child's education, particularly within the parent involvement literature. More recently, authors are encouraging educational professionals to look at a family's ''funds of knowledge'' to encourage their involvement. This expression takes into account the knowledge a teacher can gain from a family and child, including awareness of culture, familial background, and other contributions the family can add to the child's education. This article reviews findings from the analyses of focus groups conducted with Latino family members who have a child(ren) enrolled at a Head Start Center. Findings indicate that Latino families openly communicated strengths, interests, aspirations and learning opportunities for their child and family yet often faced barriers in conveying these to teachers and other staff in their child's life. Implications for using inquiry-based approaches to bridge this gap in family-school communication are discussed.

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With the increasing frequency of young children with disabilities being included in early childhood classrooms, there is a critical need for early childhood educators and professionals to take an analytical look at the standards guiding early childhood education. By completing a qualitative document analysis of the developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) position statement of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the author explored what the statement articulates regarding children with disabilities included in early childhood classrooms. This discussion explicates what teachers may take away from DAP regarding disabilities and the gaps it leaves for individual interpretation in classrooms. Findings indicate that while DAP and inclusive practices have much in common, the position statement lacks the specificity necessary to assist general early childhood teachers in implementing individualized approaches.