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Key Idea

Parents can help children improve reading skills when they learn and apply research-based strategies. 

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Strategies for parents

  1. Listen to your child read.

  2. Paired reading

  3. Read aloud to your child.

Research findings

  • Parent involvement in a child’s reading is the most important determinant of language and emergent literacy.

  • Involvement with reading activities at home has significant positive influences on students’ interest in reading, attitudes toward reading, and attentiveness in the classroom.

Strategies for SEAs

  • Provide sample parent workshop schedules and suggested content to give schools and districts a starting point.

  • Share the strategies discussed in this podcast with school and district staff.

  • Provide networking opportunities for district staff to exchange ideas, successes, and challenges.

Resources

All Your Parents - Part 4: Provide Information and Strategies from the National Center for Family Literacy

All Your Parents - Part 5: Engage in Learning from the National Center for Family Literacy

Parent Involvement: When Mom and Dad Go to School from the National Center for Family Literacy

Brown, P. (1989). Involving parents in the education of their children. Urbana, IL: ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education. (ERIC ED308988). Retrieved February 25, 2008, from www.ericdigests.org/pre-9212/parents.htm

Literacy Network (Producer). (2008). Helping your child build fluency: What is fluency? Podcast retrieved June 9, 2008, from http://literacynetwork.verizon.org/fileadmin/technology/What_Is_Fluency.mp3

National Center for Family Literacy. (n.d.) Learning at home: Ways to support your school-age child learning to read [Brochure]. Charleston, WV: West Virginia Parent Connections at Edvantia.

National Literacy Trust. (n.d.) The importance of parental involvement in their children’s literacy practices. Retrieved April 22, 2008, from www.literacytrust.org.uk/familyreading/ParentalInvolvement.doc

Download the listener's guide in Microsoft Word or a transcript of this podcast in PDF.

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