Co-Teaching Newsletter: Explaining the Model to Families
Co-teaching is one of the most widely used models for delivering special education services in inclusive settings, and one of the most commonly misunderstood by families. When families do not understand how co-teaching works, they sometimes assume their child is getting less support than they would in a separate setting, or that the special education teacher is simply an aide. Neither impression is accurate, and both are worth correcting before they take hold.
What Co-Teaching Actually Means
Co-teaching means two certified teachers, typically one general education and one special education teacher, share responsibility for instruction in a single classroom. Both teachers plan together, both deliver instruction, and both are responsible for all students in the room. The special education teacher in a co-taught class is not a support aide. They are a fully qualified teacher who brings specialized expertise in how students with disabilities learn.
Why the Model Benefits All Students
Co-teaching benefits students without identified disabilities as well as students with IEPs. Having two teachers in the room means more instructional approaches, more opportunities for small group work, faster response to students who are confused, and a classroom environment where asking for help is normalized rather than stigmatized. Research on well-implemented co-teaching consistently shows benefits for all learners when the model is implemented with real collaboration and not reduced to one teacher leading while the other circulates.
What This Means for Students With IEPs
For families of students with IEPs, the key message is that their child is receiving the specialized instruction in their plan through the co-teacher, who has daily access to the student and awareness of their goals. Accommodations are implemented in the classroom rather than requiring the student to leave. Social inclusion with general education peers is maintained. If a student's IEP requires services that the co-teaching model cannot fully address, pull-out or direct services will be scheduled in addition.
How to Communicate With Both Teachers
Tell families how to reach each teacher and which to contact first for which kind of concern. Generally, academic and classroom concerns go to both teachers, IEP-specific questions go primarily to the special education teacher, and general curriculum questions go to the general education teacher. Daystage allows both teachers to collaborate on a joint newsletter, so families receive a single coherent communication rather than two separate ones.
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Frequently asked questions
What should a co-teaching newsletter explain to families?
Explain what co-teaching is (two certified teachers sharing instruction in a general education classroom), why the model benefits all students, what the roles of each teacher are, and how families with students receiving special education services should understand the delivery of those services in a co-taught setting.
How do you explain co-teaching to parents who are used to a pull-out model?
Acknowledge the difference directly. In a pull-out model, students receive specialized services in a separate setting. In a co-taught class, those services are delivered within the general education classroom by a special education teacher who is present daily. Research on both models is worth referencing briefly because it helps families trust the approach.
What are the most common family concerns about co-teaching?
Families of students with IEPs sometimes worry that their child will get less attention in a co-taught class than in a pull-out setting. Families of general education students sometimes wonder whether the presence of students with disabilities will slow the class. Both concerns deserve direct, honest responses in your newsletter.
How should co-teaching teams communicate who is responsible for what?
Tell families how the two teachers share instruction: whether one leads and one supports, whether they rotate roles, whether there are small group configurations during the period. Families do not need the full instructional detail but do benefit from knowing that both teachers are actively involved rather than one being a classroom aide.
Can Daystage support co-teaching teams in communicating with families?
Daystage works well for a joint newsletter from both teachers, since you can present both names and perspectives in a single formatted communication sent to all families in the class.
Adi Ackerman
Author
Adi Ackerman is a former classroom teacher and curriculum writer with 8 years in K-8 schools. She writes about school communication, parent engagement, and what actually works in real classrooms.
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