While adolescents benefit from the involvement of caring adults who participate in their schooling experiences, their families' participation in school events decreases incrementally as they progress through their education. There is still much to be understood about how to develop supportive relationships that encourage families to contribute and…

Notes that research has demonstrated the importance of parent-child interactions in developing literacy. Claims that parent literacy programs are effective in the children's literacy development. Proposes that research on the value of extensive interventions can suggest ways to improve parents' interactions with their children during the literacy…

The Early Childhood Project is a longitudinal investigation of contexts in which children from different sociocultural groups learn to read. Data collected from 41 families showed some consistency between parental beliefs on fostering reading development (entertainment versus skills perspective) and nature of experiences made available to…

Describes a model home literacy program at the Indiana School for the Deaf. Reviews six case studies of young deaf children in order to explore and describe sign language behaviors which help deaf children grasp reading skills. Claims that sign language and finger spelling can be closely related to early reading and writing at home. (MOK)

Examined the relationship between the family environment and children's language and literacy skills, guided by the three models of: (1) Family as Educator; (2) Resilient Family; and (3) Parent-Child Care Partnership. Found that only the Family as Educator model was significantly related to child language and literacy outcomes. (Author)

Presenting an indepth examination of 12 working class families to determine what they did that either helped or hindered children in making the transition from basic literacy (the ability to decode written symbols) to advanced literacy (the ability to use writing for the acquisition of knowledge), this report focuses on 12 children, 1 from each…

Studied the interactions, goals, and purposes of four mothers as they shared two narrative and two expository texts with their preschoolers. Results suggest that there is no one path to becoming literate, nor one single "correct" model of development. Literacy learning is an activity that involves the collaboration of parents and…

Examined the reasons parents read to their children using interviews from 25 Brisbane parents. Reasons given for reading aloud to their children were categorized under the following five main headings: pleasure for the child, functionality, good start at school, closeness, and quiet time. Concludes with a discussion of the practical implications…

Explores the proposition that young children need to discover and actively participate in adults' theories of childhood. Reveals ways in which children collaborate in and sometimes contest the need to display precompetent identities, and briefly discusses the consequences, for enculturation in general and for schoolwork in particular, of failing…