For almost eight hours every weekday, students spend time learning fundamental concepts in school that serve as the foundational building blocks that will help them be more successful later in life. The lessons learned in school are essential, as research from the National Center for Educational Statistics shows that not only do students who graduate high school have a higher earning potential throughout their life, but they are more likely to stay employed, less likely to be incarcerated, and less dependent on social welfare services such as Medicaid and Medicare. The benefits of education are well known, yet learning and literacy rates throughout the country are still extremely low for an industrialized nation. Only 79% of US adults are able to read, and 54% of 16 to 74-year-olds lack the ability to read proficiently. Despite the major incentives for learning, a large portion of our population appears to be falling behind.
Many educators are deeply aware of the literacy challenges facing students and are doing everything they can to help them succeed while they’re in the classroom. However, their influence is limited by factors outside of school, such as a child's home environment and early language experiences. Teachers can provide high-quality instruction and resources, but they cannot control what happens outside the classroom or before students enter school. This is why a collaborative effort among educators, families, and communities is essential to support students' literacy development both inside and outside of school.
The old saying, “It takes a village to raise a child,” isn’t just hyperbole. More and more research demonstrates the incontrovertible link between the habits and motivations parents demonstrate to their children during early childhood and long-term educational outcomes. Children begin learning from birth, with parents playing a crucial role in their early education. However, parents who did not have access to a literacy-rich environment may find it challenging to promote these important skills to their children. This can contribute to ongoing literacy challenges across generations. Addressing this issue requires community support and intervention to ensure all children have the opportunity to develop strong literacy skills. This is where Family Literacy comes into play. Through Family Literacy programs, parents and children are able to work together to improve literary outcomes to create a life-long love of learning and reading.
In this guide, the Booksource experts will cover what Family Literacy is, common activities teachers can suggest to parents, and take-home books and activities that can be sent with students to keep them practicing their reading skill outside of school too.
According to the US Department of Education, Family Literacy is defined as a set of literary programs that “integrate (1) interactive literacy activities between parent and child; (2) training in parenting activities; (3) literacy training that leads to economic self-sufficiency; (4) age appropriate education to prepare children for success in school and life experiences.” In essence, Family Literacy encourages families to take an active role in helping their child to learn and appreciate reading. As a child’s first teachers, parents have an outsize impact on how their child approaches school.
While teachers cannot normally directly influence how students are exposed to reading opportunities outside of the classroom, they can help provide both parents and teachers with necessary resources by encouraging Family Literacy activities and providing reading material.
The Home Literacy Environment, as defined by the National Center for Educational Statistics in a study on societal support and learning patterns, plays a significant role in shaping a child’s attitudes toward school, self-motivation, and academic success. Children's attitudes often mirror their parents' attitudes toward activities like reading, as they tend to observe and emulate these behaviors. The study found that children from homes with a strong literacy environment—characterized by an abundance of books, parental engagement in reading, and modeling of reading behaviors—tend to develop stronger reading skills and knowledge. Similarly, research from Kent State University’s Ohio Literacy Resource Center provides further evidence of the connection between a child’s home experiences and their school performance in reading. Children who receive strong support for reading at home generally experience greater academic improvement, attend school more regularly, have broader general knowledge, score higher on cognitive assessments, develop better social skills, enjoy better overall health, and exhibit higher levels of self-motivation.
However, some parents may benefit from additional support in creating a strong literacy environment at home. Family Literacy programs are designed to provide the skills and knowledge that help parents and children work together to achieve better academic success.
Given the significant impact of the home environment on learning outcomes, Family Literacy programs aim to address challenges that may affect reading development across generations. While many Family Literacy programs involve community support to offer parental education and strategies for enhancing student literacy, teachers can also suggest simple activities to help parents and students make progress. Below is a list of easy actions educators can encourage parents to do at home or in their local community to support Family Literacy.
At early ages, children internalize what they see around them. When a child sees their parents reading, it signals to them it’s an important activity. This helps create a desire to read in children as they watch and emulate what they do. Ideally, it should be a book or a newspaper, but it can be anything from the ingredient information on the back of a cereal box to the instructions to set up a new piece of furniture. The average home is packed with reading opportunities.
There is no greater way to encourage a lifelong interest in reading than by reading together. Parents can grab a book appropriate for their child’s reading level and read with their children for 30 minutes before bedtime. Rainy and lazy days are also perfect times for parents to sit down with their children and read a book together. Not only does this emulate an interest in reading for children, it makes reading a fun activity, and encourages children to try and read on their own.
It’s important to show how valuable of a skill reading is. Teach children that reading is everywhere by reading road signs, nutritional labels, and more together while out and about. Encourage parents to take their kids to the grocery store or on errands and take time to read labels and signs with them. This also helps children learn to be more self-sufficient as it teaches them how to navigate real-world environments with reading.
Reading stamina, or how long a child can sit and read before losing interest, is a crucial skill for both boosting reading skills and comprehension. They say variety is the spice of life, and it couldn’t be more true when trying to build reading stamina. The trick is to keep children engaged and interested. Teachers can encourage parents to vary their approaches to reading with their children. Have them spend time reading to their children, then switching to reading with their children to encourage sound recognition, and then have the parents encourage their children to read to them. By continuing to engage children and parents in reading activities, but varying the approach and skills necessary to complete them, it helps to maintain interest in reading activities throughout. This builds greater reading stamina which will help the child engage with more complex texts later.
Fostering a child’s curious nature is a great way to fan the flames of passion for reading. Have students pick out the books and materials they want to read with their parents. This allows them to follow their own topics of interest, which helps them stay engaged and encourages a love for learning.
Additionally, parents can also help their child obtain a library card. Local libraries are great places to find reading material on all sorts of topics. Have parents take children to the local library to find reading material on subjects that interest them the most.
One valuable reading opportunity that is often missed occurs in waiting rooms or during long bus or car rides. While many parents may opt to give their children a tablet or smartphone to pass the time, educators can suggest using these moments to read together instead. This not only provides continued exposure to phonics and reading concepts but also encourages children to choose reading as a way to entertain themselves.
One of the biggest hurdles children face in Home Literary Environments is access to books. If children have ready access to books, they are more likely to seek out reading on their own. It’s also important to ensure children have access to books that are appropriate to their skill level. It’s not likely a child is going to pick up and able to comprehend the collective works of Dostoevsky. But if they have books within reach that they adore, it’s much more likely that they’ll begin reading for pleasure. Here are a few recommendations from the experts at Booksource:
By Lauren Tarshis
Interest Level: 2-7
By Gaia Cornwall
Interest Level: P-3
By Siman Nuurali
Interest Level: 1-3
By Jason Chin
Interest Level: K-3
By Saadia Faruqi
Interest Level: K-2
Booksource is here to help promote Family Literacy and student learning both inside and outside of the classroom. We’ve created a hand-picked collection of take-home packs that are designed to encourage reading and growth at home. All packs contain several high-interest books and a workbook to help kids reflect on their reading and improve comprehension.
From phonics books for pre-k to third grade, all the way to sixth grade, we have packs for all reading skill levels to maintain a child’s interest in reading while promoting reading together as a family. We also offer packs specifically made to engage students from families that don’t speak English as their first language.
Shop our take-home and phonics collections today, or contact a Booksource representative to help design a custom classroom library or take-home program to meet the unique needs of your students and community.
Together, we can help promote Family Literacy by giving parents and students the tools they need to be successful.