Family Literacy

Family Literacy Overview Staff Induction Module – The Family Literacy Overview module is one in a series of modules for new agency staff members as part of a customizable onboarding process. The module introduces participants to the four components of family literacy programming and shares resources and strategies for integration. This staff induction module is a pre-requisite for Family Literacy Foundations.

Family Literacy Foundations – The course Family Literacy Foundations is for staff new to family literacy programming or experienced staff who wish to refresh their skills. The course provides an explanation of the components of a family literacy program, including the purpose of each and how it relates to an integrated family literacy program. The course focuses on the importance of and strategies for integrating the four components. The course also introduces participants to key resources and planning tools.

Introduction to eData v2 for Family Literacy – This course provides a basic introduction to the specifics of family literacy data entry in the eData system. If you are new to eData and need to learn data entry into the system, please register for the Introduction for eData for Adult Education in addition to this course.

Using and Scoring the ACIRI – This asynchronous course is for family literacy program staff who administer, score, and use the results of the ACIRI for assessing the effectiveness of parenting education and interactive literacy activities.

Early Learning Accomplishment Profile (E-LAP) and Learning Accomplishment Profile, 3rd Edition (LAP-3) Assessment Implementation – This course is for family literacy staff who will be using the Early Learning Accomplishment Profile (E-LAP) and/or the Learning Accomplishment Profile, 3rd Edition (LAP-3) for child assessment. The course reviews the logistics of implementing the assessments in a variety of settings and provides participants with opportunities to practice calculating chronological age, basal score, ceiling score, and developmental age.

View the PA Adult Education Resources PD Portal catalog and enroll in courses.

General Websites

• National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) provides literacy strategies, programming, and resources.
• First Book Marketplace provides discounted books for organizations that serve children in need of access to books.
• The Goodling Institute offers resources for the professional development of family literacy educators. A broad range of resources is available on the searchable database.

Websites for Early Childhood Education

• Fred Rogers Center features videos, ebooks, games, music, and other interactive tools to support early literacy
• PNC Grow Up Great features free, high-quality resources to engage young learners.
• Zero to Three provides extensive resources and tools focused on the development of infants and toddlers.

Websites for Interactive Literacy Activities

• ReadWriteThink contains a variety of literary resources for parents and teachers. There are games, tools, activities, projects, and podcasts.
• Wide Open School offers free, high-quality resources for teachers and learners. There are three sections: Student Activities, Family and Teacher Center, and Recursos en Espanol. There are focal areas for children in preschool through grade 12, and you can filter content accordingly.
• Wonder Ground from Wonderopolis is a platform where parents and educators can find ready-to-use lesson plans and resources created for a virtual classroom. There are numerous topics and subjects in the bank of resources.
• The Math Learning Center offers an array of resources including strategies for learning math at home. The resources are provided in both English and Spanish and are targeted to grades K- 5.
• Mixing in Math’s Games Galore (PDF) provides math activities and games for parents and children using every day, household items.

eBooks and Printables

• Story Mentors includes downloadable books and printables for mentors and parents. Geared to school-aged children, the books include pictures, key vocabulary words, and activities that can be completed at home.
• Unite for Literacy includes a variety of children’s books at varying levels and in 40 languages. This resource can support parent education and ILA that require a children’s book.
• Storyline Online provides videos of individuals reading a book aloud. Note, in some cases the video does not show the pages of the book, so the participant would need a copy.

Websites for Parenting Education and Interactive Literacy Activities

• The University of Pittsburgh Office of Child Development offers You and Your Child, a series of parenting guides on various topics, including Behavior, Development, and Health Nutrition. Each guide is based on current parenting literature and has been reviewed by a panel of child development experts and practitioners. Several of the guides align to the NCFL Parent Education and ILA lessons.
• Be a Learning Hero partners with trusted experts to provide the best resources to help children succeed in school.
• The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) created a blog where educators can discuss online learning opportunities, including how to use digital resources in an effective manner.
• The Parent Toolkit App is to designed to help parents navigate their child’s growth and development from Pre-K through 12th grade in the classroom and beyond.
• PBS Kids has resources and multimedia activities for parents and children focusing on school readiness.
• Reach Out & Read includes ebooks that you can use for parent education and ILA.
• Reading Rockets has a wealth of research-based reading strategies, lessons, and activities designed to help children from birth to age eight learn to read and improve their reading. The site includes resources for parents, teachers, and after-school professionals.
  

Websites for Adult Education

• ReadWorks creates content, teacher guidance, and integrated tools that improve teacher effectiveness and student achievement. With free accounts, teachers can select from fiction and nonfiction passages by grade level and topic.
• National Geographic includes articles based on current events, science, history, and more. The tools can supplement adult and parent education.
• Newsela allows teachers to select authentic text from over 100 sources. Materials are available at five different reading levels, and 10 new texts are published daily.
• Explore resources from your peers at the PA Adult Ed Resources Lesson Bank.

Equity and Inclusion

• When Bad Things are Happening provides resources for conversations with children during times of disaster or violence.
• Sesame Street in Communities includes resources that help kids (and parents!) with what matters most in young lives: health and wellness, social-emotional skills, and school readiness.
• NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children) Living the Statement provides resources drawn from NAEYC partners as well as from their own publications. While some provide recommendations and implications for policy makers and administrators, this collection is primarily focused on elevating resources that support educators in teaching for equity.