The importance of recognizing and supporting family members as their child’s first teachers is not new information. However, doing so on top of many other responsibilities can be daunting. Even so, it is critical to engage families in home literacy practices so that children have additional authentic opportunities to learn and practice their skills. Here are some research-based strategies you can try:
- Provide families with information on shared reading and literacy practices.
- Encourage families to have fun with language and literacy.
- Create roles for children’s caregivers in the school that support literacy.
- Learn from families about children’s culture, skills, and interests, and use that information to create literacy lessons and assignments.
- Provide families with books and other literacy resources: Home Language Reading and Literacy Growth
- Assist families in understanding their children’s language and literacy progress.
- Provide special supports for non-native English speaking families.
- Have high, positive expectations of families’ desires and abilities to contribute to their children’s language and literacy development, and view differences as assets.
For more information about these strategies, please visit their source:
Boone, B.J., Wellman, M.E., & Schenker, V.
(2017). Partnering with Families for Early Language and Literacy
Development: Research-based Strategies for Early Childhood Teachers.
Retrieved from: https://u.osu.edu/familyschoolpartnerships/earlyliteracy/
Lynne Hall is a research associate at the Indiana Institute on Disability & Community’s Early Childhood Center. She holds a Master of Science in Education and an Indiana instructional teaching license (Early Childhood Education and Services; Elementary/Primary Generalist; Elementary/Intermediate Generalist), and formerly taught preschool in a variety of settings for over 15 years. Her expertise includes early literacy instruction and inclusive preschool classroom practices. Email her at hallma@iu.edu
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