by Lisa Dearen

Your kid is buried nose-deep in YouTube, MySpace and Facebook. All at the same time. Instead of worrying about what your kid is doing, try this simple step to being an in-the-know parent: volunteer.
Being an inspirational model is the cornerstone of successful parenting. Most parents already model many positive behaviors, including reading to their children, feeding their children healthy foods and exercising with their children. Yet volunteering, which can create a lifelong learning environment for children, isn’t always figured into the equation. The top excuse? “I don’t have time.”
Guess what? If you have time to wonder what your kid is doing all day, you have time to volunteer. Even the busiest working mother can contribute. You just have to take the initiative.
“If you’re a full-time working parent, ask the teacher if you can correct papers or help prep projects for the kids,” says Cathy Jaffe, a local stay-at-home mom and substitute teacher. “The schools need the parents to keep going.”

Getting Started: They Want You
You don’t need to wonder if your child’s school or teachers want you involved. They do. They need you, for everything from in-room assistance to grading papers to helping fill cups of water at weekend sports activities. But how to get started? Glad you asked.
“Every school has a PTA. Your welcome-back-to-school packet will have a form to fill out listing everything from your availability to your skill set,” says Shannon Lanzone, an attorney turned stay-at-home mom in Alamo, California. “Trust me, you’re going to get a lot more out of it than you can imagine. You just have to get past that initial fear of the unknown and go for it.”
You should also make a personal connection with the teacher. This person will be with your child day in and day out for the next school year; wouldn’t it be fabulous if she knew you by name? Ask your child’s teacher what kind of help he needs, and make suggestions. Stepping up and letting the teacher know you’re available to help with fund-raisers, field trips or office work helps him know that you really want to help. No task is too small.
According to Jaffe, a lot of people are afraid they’re going to get sucked into a bigger job than they can handle.
They’re afraid of titles or they don’t want to be chair,” she says. “But the more involved you are, the more you see it’s not a big deal. You do have the time!”
What if your kid groans every time you skip through the classroom door? (Face it, it’s going to happen eventually.) Just simply refocus your efforts on helping out elsewhere. Work in the counseling, administrative or nurse’s office, be a library docent or organize a booster committee for your child’s favorite sport or extracurricular activity.

Working Parents
Think you need not apply? Think again. If you’re a computer programmer, whip out a Website for your child’s classroom. Graphic artists can help lay out the yearbook. Retail experts can offer advice on everything from selling candy bars to raising funds. The point is, your work skills transfer easily to the scholastic environment.
You can also help out on weekends. Organize a back-to-school picnic in the park or offer to grade papers. And check with your employer. Many San Diego companies now offer time off during the work day for approved volunteer activities.

Benefits…to You
Community, social networking, emergency lifeline…volunteering? That’s right. Not only are you modeling positive behavior for your child, you yourself can reap the benefits of donating time to your child’s school.

Think of volunteering as community parenting that not only provides a positive example for your child, but that also helps you understand why your child does what she does.
“Volunteering in the classroom lends itself to community parenting because you’ve created a resource network of parents,” says Lanzone. “You can see where your child’s development is in relation to the other kids, so you know if you need to take action or if you can stop stressing. Remember, your child’s teacher doesn’t always have time to relay these things.”
Involvement also opens social doors, creating opportunities for friendships you might not have had otherwise. Between parenting, work and other family obligations, it’s not always easy to meet new people. Volunteering is a common ground that encourages social networking. From soccer sign-up times to the best pediatricians in town, active parents are knowledgeable parents.
And whether the car won’t start or the afternoon meeting ran over, chances are that if you volunteer, you will have at least 10 numbers plugged into your BlackBerry that can create a lifeline should you ever need it.
Finally, here’s a secret benefit. According to Lanzone, her involvement in the classroom led to a relationship with her child’s teacher that allowed her to select her child’s teacher for the following year.
Six million PTA volunteers can’t be wrong. Take the initiative and get involved. You’ll be glad you did.