effective ways to communicate with parents about reading

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Effective Ways to Communicate with Parents about Reading Author(s): Nicholas P. Criscuolo Source: The Reading Teacher, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Nov., 1980), pp. 164-166 Published by: Wiley on behalf of the International Reading Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20195200 . Accessed: 25/06/2014 19:40 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. . Wiley and International Reading Association are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Reading Teacher. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 195.78.108.151 on Wed, 25 Jun 2014 19:40:58 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

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Page 1: Effective Ways to Communicate with Parents about Reading

Effective Ways to Communicate with Parents about ReadingAuthor(s): Nicholas P. CriscuoloSource: The Reading Teacher, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Nov., 1980), pp. 164-166Published by: Wiley on behalf of the International Reading AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20195200 .

Accessed: 25/06/2014 19:40

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range ofcontent in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new formsof scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

.

Wiley and International Reading Association are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extendaccess to The Reading Teacher.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 195.78.108.151 on Wed, 25 Jun 2014 19:40:58 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

Page 2: Effective Ways to Communicate with Parents about Reading

Effective ways to communicate

with parents about reading

Effective communication builds

parent support for a reading pro gram. Here are some practical sug

gestions for how to do it.

Nicholas P. Criscuolo Ask parents about the reading pro gram their children are participating in at school or what methods or

processes are being used to teach

reading to their children and too often they will respond that they do not know.

Don't blame parents for this situa tion. Don't blame the schools entirely either. It's a matter of communi

cation. The schools are doing an effective job of teaching children to read yet some parents are not aware

of this fact.

They need to know. Parents can do a great deal to reinforce the school's

reading program. Informed parents can also react critically when they read articles saying there is only one

method to teach reading or that the

schools are failing to teach their children how to read.

How can the schools communicate

with parents about reading? The New

Haven, Connecticut, public school

system has made this a top priority. Here are seven approaches used

successfully in New Haven to achieve this worthwhile goal.

Kindergarten registration. Parents must learn early in their youngsters' school careers that they have a strong role as reinforcers of the school's

reading program. In New Haven, when parents register their children for kindergarten they receive an

award-winning booklet, Read to

Succeed, full of suggestions for

fostering readiness skills. It is written in a crisp, succinct style without any educational jargon. It contains games and informal activities for developing prereading skills. Young children

find the activities appealing. One

game from the booklet is the following.

164

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Page 3: Effective Ways to Communicate with Parents about Reading

The cut-and-paste game: The child

can cut, from old magazines, pictures of things that start with the same sound?a car, a coat, a cake, for

example. To get him/ her started, paste a picture of a car, for example, on a

brown paper bag. Then say to the

child, "Find all the pictures you can of

things that start like car. Cut them out

and paste them on the bag." You can

print the starting letter on the bag. This may help the child see that this letter makes that sound. If your child

can't handle cutting and pasting yet, work along with him or her.

Reading progress letters. As a

supplement to the basal reading program, New Haven sends progress letters to parents explaining that their youngsters have successfully completed a particular level. Attached to the letter are a few short, original stories which reinforce the vocabulary at that level and a few questions to

check comprehension for each story. The progress letter encourages parents to take a few minutes to hear their children read the stories and answer

the questions and to praise them for their efforts. Since the children have

successfully completed the level at

school, they read this material for their parents with eagerness and

pride. Many parents have responded favorably to this type of communi cation because it keeps them informed about their child's reading progress at each step of the way and allows them to share in their child's success ful reading experiences.

Parent brochure. At PTA meet

ings, workshops and informal gather

ings, parents are encouraged to ask

questions about the school's reading program or reading instruction in

general. Some questions are asked

repeatedly. The author compiled the 12 most frequently asked questions

and wrote answers for each. These were compiled into a brochure entitled "Questions Parents Ask About Reading." These brochures have been distributed to all the

schools and also placed at the city's Parents' Center.

Parent activity sheets. The New Haven public school system has

developed a set of performance objectives for kindergarten through grade six in reading, language arts

and math. A committee of parents, teachers and administrators wrote 414 parent activities to correspond with each numbered performance objective. They were written for

parents to use with children who need reinforcement on a specific performance objective. For example, a teacher has taught the performance objective "Can distinguish between fact and opinion" (Level 3, #28) and observes that certain children are

experiencing difficulty with this task. The teacher simply takes out the

parent activity for this objective and sends it home. Example:

Performance objective: Can distin

guish between fact and opinion. Materials: None.

Procedure: Give sentences such as

those below and ask your child if each states a fact or opinion.

1. Dad is in the kitchen, (fact) 2. I feel that it is cold, (opinion) 3. It is cold, (fact) 4. Ted has a red ball, (fact) 5. I think that her hat is pretty,

(opinion) Discuss that think and feel words give an opinion. A fact is something that

can be or has been proven.

Parent conferences on test results.

Parents are interested in the academic

progress their children are making in

reading. It has been the practice of some school systems to publish standardized test scores by school in the local newspaper. This had led to

misconceptions and erroneous con

clusions. Fortunately, some pub

lishers of standardized tests now

prepare parent reports which accom

pany the test scores of individual children and explain in clear and

Effective ways to communicate with parents about reading 165

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Page 4: Effective Ways to Communicate with Parents about Reading

precise language the strengths and weaknesses exhibited on the test. New Haven recently instituted a

citywide testing program that includes

parent reports. It proved to be a wise decision. These reports were not

mailed to the parents; rather, released time was provided for teachers to schedule conferences with parents to

discuss the parent report fully as well as offer additional suggestions for

improving children's progress.

Reading and shopping lists. Sev eral members of the New Haven

Reading Department have visited local stores, noting the games and

toys sold there, and compiled a list which parents can use when buying gifts. This list notes the name of the

toy or game, where it can be pur chased locally and a brief comment about its learning potential.

In addition to this type of list, a summer reading list has also been

compiled which is distributed to

elementary children in June. This list was compiled with help from the

public libraries' staff so as to make sure the books are available when children visit the public libraries. Summer is an excellent time for children to do some pleasure reading and this list offers some guidance in

selecting books.

Newspaper program. In 1979 New Haven received an $89,030 Right to Read grant which was used for the

primary grades of four low-achieving schools. As part of this program, the children received the local newspaper one or two days a week, depending on grade level. All the children received the issue which contains the "Mini Page," a one-page supplement especially designed for children. This

page contains puzzles, riddles, articles and activities and other material which appeals to children. Addition

ally, all fifth and seventh grade children received the newspaper one

day per week. They were allowed to

keep it and bring it home, fostering pride of ownership.

Parents often ask teachers how

they can help their children at home and what materials to use. Our answer?use the newspaper. As part of our program, a flyer entitled "Tips for Parents" has been prepared

which offers ten activities parents can do with their children. Here are two

examples.

Picture clippers: Around holidays, have your young children clip pictures of Easter bunnies, shamrocks, Christ

mas trees, turkeys, pumpkins and other symbols of the holidays. Let them color them and paste them in

scrapbooks according to their be

ginning letters or sounds.

Family night: When the family decides to eat out, have your children check the restaurant ads for "special bargain

nights" for savings on the cost of meals.

These flyers have been sent home and provide a good basis for home school communication using a valu able resource?the newspaper.

Concluding remarks Parents who are unaware of what the

schools are doing to provide effective

reading instruction tend to believe the articles they read which say that the schools are doing a poor job. Informed and knowledgeable parents can reject the distortions and inaccu racies that often crop up. To counter these distortions and scare tactics? communicate.

There are effective ways, some of

which are described briefly in this

article, to communicate with parents about reading. Communication lets

parents know what's really going on, engenders a good feeling about the

reading program and helps parents become supportive of it as well. C

Criscuolo is supervisor of reading for the New Haven Public Schools, New

Haven, Connecticut.

166 The Reading Teacher November 1980

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