School is for parents too: How CBSE’s new calendar aims to go beyond standard PTA meetings
The Parenting Calendar 2026-27 focuses on ‘parent support groups’, age-specific workshops among a host of activities suggested to schools
The CBSE's 2026-27 Parenting Calendar introduces support groups and age-specific workshops to transform schools into learning hubs for caregivers. (Image generated using AI) The “new parent”, the “school-going child parent”, “adolescent parent”, the “letting-go parent”: The Parenting Calendar 2026-27 recently rolled out by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) treats parents as growing learners in a move “to reduce the stress and isolation of parenting”.
The CBSE has suggested several ideas to schools that go beyond conventional parent-teacher meetings. From parent support groups and peer mentoring to stage-specific workshops, the calendar asks schools to build structured spaces where caregivers can share experiences, discuss common concerns and feel “less alone”.
It has also proposed activities such as role-reversal days, student-led skill swaps, global lunch experience fairs and parent-teen financial literacy challenges to make school-family engagement more active and continuous.
Age-specific mentoring
Age-specific parental mentoring is also in focus. The CBSE has said, “What a parent needs to know about screens at age 5 [when their kids are 5] is entirely different from what they need at age 15.”
The board has recognised that parent workshops at times need to revisit same themes at every stage, but with “different depth, language and urgency”.
Delhi school principals Anuradha Joshi of Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, Minakshi Kushwaha of Birla Vidya Niketan, Richa Agnihotri of Sanskriti School and Dr Annie Koshy of St Mary’s School were among the members of the committee associated with the calendar.
The calendar has also recommended regular parent-teacher interactions and need-based meetings, especially when students show signs of academic difficulty, behavioural concerns, attendance issues or sudden changes in performance.
It said such interactions should not be limited to marks, but should also cover emotional well-being, social development and the child’s overall growth.
Workshops on neurodivergence
The calendar has suggested activities such as the “odd sock campaign” to celebrate differences and “inclusion tree” exercises to build empathy among students. Parent workshops on neurodivergence, diverse learning styles, special learning needs, timely assessment and early intervention are also suggested.
In early classes, the calendar suggests using familiar cartoon characters as a gentle way to introduce children to the idea of neurodivergence. For older students, parent sessions on POCSO awareness, consent, safety, substance awareness, peer pressure and mental health have been recommended.
What schools must do
For the implementation of the calendar, schools have been asked to make parent engagement a planned part of the academic year. Apart from orientations, schools have been advised to conduct at least two grade-wise parenting workshops and two parent-child bonding activities during the session.
Schools have also been asked to assign coordinators such as class teachers, counsellors or activity heads, inform parents about events in advance, train staff in empathetic communication and use feedback to improve parent-school engagement.
Share
