When it comes to early literacy learning, the quality and quantity of home and school interactions are crucial. Effective home literacy experiences improve outcomes related to reading and listening comprehension and vocabulary (Sénéchal & LeFevre, 2002), as does access to quality early childhood (Barnett, 2008) and elementary educational programs.
Literacy practices at school and home have a synergistic and complementary relationship—teachers have specialized knowledge of curricula, cognition and learning, and instructional techniques; parents have intimate knowledge of their children's interests, background knowledge, and (typically) more opportunities to practice literacy skills one on one. When the two work harmoniously, children reap the most benefits. However, forging these relationships can be difficult, particularly when parents are intimidated or overwhelmed by the idea of "teaching" at home (Green, Walker, Hoover-Dempsey, & Sandler, 2007).
Many parents are eager to work with their children at home but are unsure of how to best do so (Drummond & Stipek, 2004). Although many teachers simply ask parents to work on school tasks (i.e., homework) at home, we suggest highlighting opportunities and providing tips for literacy learning within everyday family interactions. This can foster authentic learning experiences and position parents as partners in their children's literacy learning and success.
Below we give examples of ways in which parents can infuse literacy into three common family activities, each of which aligns with the Common Core State Standards for English language arts and builds skills central to reading success (National Early Literacy Panel, 2008; National Reading Panel, 2002).
Kindergarten and First Grade: Shopping for Groceries
Grocery shopping with young children can be trying on the best of days. However, soliciting children's help can both entertain them and help them build phonological awareness and letter-sound knowledge. Parents can build phonological awareness while grocery shopping in many ways. Here are a few examples:
- Make a rhyming game out of finding items on the list by giving clues (e.g., "The next thing we need rhymes with zed, bed, and led, and we use it to make sandwiches.").
- For children ready for a bit more of a challenge, parents can give clues that require children to blend sounds (e.g., use the phonological pronunciations to say "Next we need /b/- /r/- /e/- /d/.")
Parents can also support letter-sound knowledge by asking children to
- Go on a letter hunt in which they try to find one example of each letter of the alphabet somewhere in the store (e.g., on labels, signs, and circulars).
- Help write the shopping list using invented spelling and then look for items on the list to check off as you put them into the cart.
These activities help familiarize children with letters and letter sounds, require no additional preparation, and can make shopping more pleasant for everyone involved.
Second and Third Grades: Cooking a Meal
Cooking meals together is a common family activity in many households and a natural source of vocabulary learning and word consciousness (recognizing when one doesn't know a word's meaning). Families can help build vocabulary while cooking by
- Following a written recipe and drawing attention to the meaning of words and phrases. For example, a direction such as "stir in the sauce after the meat is tender" provides the opportunity to talk about words that signal temporal relationships (after, in this case).
- Using a recipe as an opportunity to demonstrate word consciousness. Parents can wonder aloud what a word means (e.g., "Hmm. What do you think they mean by tender?") and model the strategies they use to figure it out (e.g., Googling it, calling a friend, thinking of things previously described as "tender").
Taking advantage of these opportunities can facilitate extended conversations about word choice and language—and get dinner on the table!
Fourth and Fifth Grades: Planning for a Family Gathering
Family gatherings—from a quick afternoon visit from grandma to a birthday party—provide perfect opportunities for older children to flex their writing muscles, particularly those related to communicating via technology. Parents can try ideas like the following:
- For informal events like an impromptu cook out, parents can solicit their children's help in sending out quick invitations through text or e-mail. Both formats use the QWERTY keyboard layout, which will build familiarity and stamina for typing. Also, there are authentic reasons to consider audience in this kind of writing—Great Aunt Sue might enjoy a note signed "Love you" but be thoroughly confused by a text reading "LY"!
- For an event with more planning time, parents can work with their children to create formal invitations using websites or word processing programs. These invitations might consist mostly of text (another great keyboarding experience), but they could also include images or other types of media that can convey meaning (a skill explicitly called for in the CCSS-ELA in relation to writing explanatory/informative texts).
Family events tend to generate a lot of excitement, so children are often quite willing to help make one happen. Finding authentic ways for them to contribute that naturally require the use of literacy skills is a great way to help children experience the value of those skills.
On Common Ground
As educators, we often ask parents to work with their children at home without giving enough guidance (e.g., "Read with your child."), or we suggest things that either don't fit naturally into the flow of family life (e.g., spending hours creating a science fair display) or can be intimidatingly school-like (e.g., supervising and checking homework). These approaches, although well-intentioned, often fail to meet quantity standards when families simply don't engage in them and quality standards when they don't participate in the ways we have envisioned. Instead, get to know your students' families, learn about the things they already do together, and highlight the possibilities for integrating literacy learning that relates to classroom learning and standards into these activities. In this way, you can build on the "funds of knowledge" (Moll & Gonzalez, 1994) that families already have and guide them in getting involved in their children's learning in more culturally relevant and sustainable ways.