DAILY CUSTODY TIP: Do you have any idea what they’re really teaching your kids at school?

You should familiarize yourself with the curriculum at your child’s school if you want to gain an edge in your child custody dispute. Of course, this is good parenting advice in general. But learning what your kids are learning in the classroom can bolster your chances of success in the Family Court too....as long as you put this knowledge to work.

For example, does your child’s teacher use a "Word Wall" as a device to teach reading skills. A Word Wall helps primary students to learn sight words, sounds, rhymes, word patterns and spelling skills. Try building a Word Wall at home to extend the experience at school. What about mathematics? Does your school use the traditional skills-and-drills method of teaching math, or are the teachers more creative? For example, some teachers ask students to take measurements of objects in the classroom, or to measure the length of a hallway (in yards, then in feet, inches and centimeters). This is another skill set that can be carried into the household after the school day ends.

Older students may be learning about certain cultural themes such as "prejudice" or "the environment." They may be studying historical periods such as "the Middle Ages" or "Colonial Times." Often, textbooks, films and other media are incorporated into thematic classroom discussions as part of a semester-long course on American History or Western Culture. These topical areas can be exploited and examined in greater detail at home as parents and children carry on discussions at the dinner table, or while watching a television relevant program together.

By engaging your children in relevant exercises, activities and discussions at home, that are tied to the educational activities at school, you’re not only improving your child’s chance of success at school, but you’re building a strong case for your role as a caring, devoted parent. In a child custody case, the court will be happy to see a parent who took the time to understand the child’s classroom curriculum and to extend the learning process into the home environment.

DAILY CUSTODY TIP: My school’s better than your school! Why this might matter in your custody case.

Mom lives in a great school district. The children enjoy top-notch teachers, health-conscious lunch menus and a full array of inter-scholastic sports and clubs. The school "resource center" has a team of highly trained after-school tutors to help children with computer skills and test preparation. The school band, the choir, and the cheerleader squad are among the best in the country.

Dad lives in a decent school district too, but the state allocates far fewer dollars per student to his district than to Mom’s district. In fact, many of the textbooks in Dad’s district are outdated, and many of the teachers – while loyal and dedicated – lack advanced teaching degrees and specialty certifications that are common in Mom’s district.

Does this matter? It might. Judges do not decide who wins a child custody case based only on who lives in the better school district. But the quality of a district, and its particular offerings to particular students may have a genuine impact on the outcome of a case. For example, a district which provides extensive support services and trained personnel to assist disabled students (and which goes beyond the legal requirements), may be the preferred choice for a wheelchair-bound child, especially if that child has made extraordinary progress within that district. A district that provides advanced math courses for an exceptionally gifted math student may prevail over a district that offers only a standard fare of geometry, algebra, and trigonometry courses. A district which provides one-on-one training for a piano prodigy who performs in school concerts could be the preferred choice as well.

In preparing for a custody trial or a contested motion hearing, parents and their lawyers should always consider the schools. Compare the schools where the custodial parent lives to the schools where the non-custodial parent lives. Consider the impact of certain school programs on the particular children in question. How does the curriculum rank? How do the teachers compare? What about specialized services, extra-curricular activities, state funding per-student? How safe are the physical facilities? What’s the dropout rate? The college acceptance rate? The average SAT score? The number of Merit Scholars? How is the school classified in terms of interscholastic sports? Does the district offer Advanced Placement courses, and if so, in what areas? How well-established is the school district’s guidance counseling department? Its vocational training program? Its special education program? Does the district have up-to-date textbooks and technology? All of these questions, and many more, can paint a picture for a judge that helps the court make the appropriate child custody ruling.