Q: Our PTO is trying to raise money for different school programs. We have energetic volunteers, but we'll be lucky if we raise $10,000. I read about schools that raise really huge sums. How do they do it?

A: Parent-teacher organizations don't raise big bucks overnight. They've established strategies, routines and expectations over time. What's their secret?

First, they have a year-round program of events, such as auctions that parents and donors anticipate. Second, the volunteer cadre is large and well trained. Three, these schools cultivate and properly thank loyal donors.

When Sharon Robertson helped her kids' California public school raise money, "We made sure that parents with connections used them and that kids wrote thank-you cards."

Fourth, Robertson says, "We put people who could bring two of the three W's (wealth, work and wisdom) on the team. We asked: Can you write a check or get others to? Roll up your sleeves and pitch in? Apply your skills for marketing or project management?"

She lives in New England now, "where we raise less money, but have equally dedicated volunteers. The vibe is more focused on instructional goals: What can we do to help teachers teach and children learn?"

Tim Sullivan, founder of PTO Today, an organization that provides resources and information for parent-teacher groups, likes the sound of that.

"Money doesn't equal success," he says. "Passion and purpose define great parent groups. If your goal is to make your school an amazing place for kids, where families are truly connected to the school's goals, you can do great things with very few dollars."

Sullivan gives examples: Family Reading Night (or even Science Night, Math Night, Health Night or Game Night).

"Our new P.E.P. (Play more. Eat right. Power down.) Night Kit is popular as parents learn to foster healthy habits," says Sullivan. "What about an after-school ice cream social to welcome families new to the community? Hold it on the playground. Old pros host and answer questions for newcomers. Three tubs of ice cream, plastic bowls and some sprinkles. Fifty bucks. The impact on parent involvement? Priceless!" (For more ideas, go to ptotoday.com/events-and-programs.)

The same kind of impact can be made through a year-round teacher appreciation program that provides basic supplies.

"Faced with a classroom full of runny noses, many teachers are grateful for boxes of tissues and a supply of hand wipes," says Sullivan. (The website TeacherLists.com shows parents how to give teachers this support.)

Sixty percent of PTOs and PTAs have budgets of less than $15,000, says Sullivan, and 78 percent have budgets of less than $25,000.

"Yet these groups have great successes to be proud of," he says.

Robertson agrees. "School fundraising is changing," she says. "Not every teacher wants the PTO to buy her a whiteboard. Mrs. Sanchez wants money for a field trip. Mrs. Jones wants more picture books.

"We work with individual teachers to procure what they need. Sometimes we post their wishes on donorschoose.org. Or we ask local service organizations, foundations and individuals who want our school to succeed. Knowing who to approach is where the wisdom comes in handy!"

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: My daughter just entered a "cliquey" suburban high school, and she's having a hard time fitting in. She came from a small K-8 school where she was popular and everyone was "family." Do you have any suggestions on how she can make the adjustment to her new school?

A: Transitions often present challenges for young people -- and adults, too! Starting high school is no exception.

"The additional hurdle of tackling a completely alien environment only adds to the stress she feels," says Stephen Wallace, associate research professor and director of the Center for Adolescent Research and Education (CARE) at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pa., and author of "Reality Gap: Alcohol, Drugs and Sex -- What Parents Don't Know and Teens Aren't Telling" (Union Square Press, 2008).

He suggests these ways to offer constructive support:

-- Relax your rescue reflex. All kids this age are confronted with three difficult, but important, developmental tasks: establishing an identity all their own (Who am I?); becoming more independent from their parents (I can do this on my own!); and establishing more adultlike relationships with their peers (I have support outside of my family.).

"It's important to provide empathy and emotional support," says Wallace, "but let your daughter begin to navigate her own way down this new path."

-- Serve as a sounding board. Do more listening than talking.

"Listen to what your daughter has to say about her new environment and peer group, then ask open-ended questions," says Wallace. "In doing so, you help her clarify what types of activities and friends she is looking for and practice approaches to finding them."

-- Share your stories. Young people don't necessarily have the "institutional knowledge" that helps them see the light at the end of the tunnel. By letting your daughter know about some of your own social struggles and how you persevered, you will help her to find the confidence she'll need in this new situation.

-- Encourage her to find an adult mentor. Making a strong connection to a teacher, coach or administrator is a big plus during the high school years. A mentor can be instrumental in guiding her to specific courses and extracurricular activities and offer helpful advice when it comes to college applications.

-- Support her involvement in the school community.

"Schools are like small towns," says Wallace, "and things run more smoothly when people get involved. Young people want to make a difference in the lives of others. Encourage her to join groups or clubs that contribute to the community."

-- Stay close. In study after study, teens say their relationships with their parents make them feel good about themselves.

"While this may surprise some parents, a majority of teens say they want to spend more, not less, time with their parents. And that's a really good thing!" says Wallace. "Research shows that teens who spend time with their parents, talk with them and feel close to them are overwhelmingly less likely to drink or use other � HYPERLINK "http://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/psychopharmacology" �drugs� or become depressed than those who don't."

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: My 5-year-old is doing work in kindergarten that my 8-year-old son did in first grade. At Parents' Night, the teacher explained that the school is implementing new Common Core State Standards. When I asked how to help him succeed with this harder material, she said, "Read with him 15 minutes a night." That's all?

A: Reading at home is still important -- so much so that Gaithersburg (Md.) Elementary School abolished homework altogether, replacing it with reading at least 30 minutes a night. When the faculty analyzed assignments, a lot was going home that "didn't match what we were doing instructionally in the classroom," says principal Stephanie Brant. With the new policy, Brant thinks students are motivated to read more and standardized test scores have remained steady.

Reading with your sons nightly helps them develop a love of reading. But leading education reformers, such as Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, College Board President David Coleman and GreatSchools.org founder Bill Jackson, encourage parents to focus on developing key character traits.

"The insight from research that schools should share with parents is this: It isn't how much information we cram into kids' brains from the earliest ages that turns kids into successful learners," says Jackson. "Sure, content knowledge matters, but the character traits they develop matter as much or more.

"At GreatSchools.org, we encourage parents to think in terms of helping their kids grow as students in three domains."

-- The first is skills. "These include reading, math, science, social studies, research, communication, problem formulation and interpretation, which is what the Common Core State Standards are all about," says Jackson. "For parents, this means making sure by communicating with the school that students are on track in mastering these subjects and intervening with the school if children are falling behind."

-- The second is character. "New studies show that when children develop early on those character traits that are the foundation for success in life, they quickly reap the benefits in school," says Jackson. "There is a great impact of such traits as curiosity, self-control, kindness, grit, citizenship, optimism, gratitude and leadership on academic success.

"The results are so compelling that the KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) Charter Schools -- where the motto is 'Work hard. Be nice.' -- stress the development of these traits in their approach."

-- The third is purpose. "It's a parent's role to help kids cultivate their children's passions and sense of purpose," says Jackson. "You do that by encouraging a budding entomologist to collect and catalog specimens, taking a family field trip one Saturday a month to develop curiosity, or watching the progress of the Mars Rover with your young 'Star Wars' fan. Alert your child's teacher to his passion, so she can build on it and ask him to be the class expert on it.

"With a strong sense of purpose, young people begin to imagine how they can use their talents to benefit themselves and the world."

For more information on the Common Core Curriculum, go to achieve.org.

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)