It’s a well-documented fact that children whose families are involved in their school lives get better grades, are more likely to stay in school and out of trouble, and go on to be more successful in life.

As such, it is vital that schools provide every opportunity for families to learn about and be involved in what their children do in school. Children are notoriously concise when parents and other elders attempt to question them at the dinner table about what they learned that day.

However, the tables are turned when students can show visitors their desks, classrooms, teachers, friends and well-done assignments hanging on the walls. When their family visits them at school, children learn that school is important — a lesson probably better learned through a visit from a beloved family member than through the stern lectures that result from poor report cards.

That’s why it is so important that Suffolk Public Schools offers the opportunity for grandparents to visit schools during Grandparents’ Week. Last week, hundreds of grandparents flooded the schools to eat lunch with their grandkids, visit classrooms and generally spend a little bit of time with their students. Many, perhaps, drove several hours or took time off work to attend.

We applaud the efforts, both of the school system and of the family members, to participate in this event. After all, it is the family that has the first responsibility of raising and training children, and the more that is realized and put into practice by family members, the better it is for everybody involved.