Read me a Story Parental involvement in literacy learning at home. By Andre Guenette

Contents Home and school partnerships Where to now for parents? Possible strategies for a home based literacy programme. Resources

Home and school partnerships Developing a parent-teacher partnership is essential to a child's learning. Schools are increasingly encouraging parents to play a more active role in their child’s literacy programme.

Where to now for parents? Possible strategies: Creating a print rich home. Exploring books. Encourage writing at home. Tell stories together.

Creating a print rich home Include both books and writing materials. Include newspapers and child-oriented versions of popular magazines.

Creating a print rich home Set aside a special reading area in your home and make sure everyone uses it. Find out who are your child's favourite authors and genres and go with them to the library in search of interesting books.

Exploring books Let your child see you reading for pleasure. Choose genres (styles) that your child prefers. Read aloud with and to your child every day (experts recommend 30 minutes a day). When reading books with your child ask questions about the story. Point out new vocabulary and ideas. Explore the characters motivations and relate them to your families life.

Encourage writing at home Provide lots of writing materials and papers. Encourage your child to draw and write on their own. Encourage your child to write thank you notes to grandparents, make to do lists. Let your child see you writing in the home setting.

Tell stories together Talk about your day. Talk together about your family history and perhaps, do a genealogy chart. Look at holiday photos and discuss your memories of the trip.

Resources Van Kleeck. A., Stahl. S., Bauer. E On reading books to children. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Mahwah, USA. Swanson. B How Can I Improve My Child's Reading? Bainbridge, J., Heydon, Rachel and Malicky, Grace. (2009). Constructing Meaning – Balancing Elementary Language Arts. Toronto, ON: Nelson Education Ltd.