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Ethan Demme

Thoughts and Policy for Building a Better Pennsylvania

  • Education Reform
  • Parental Engagement
  • Public Policy
  • Lifelong Learning
  • Lancaster County
  • Education Reform
  • Parental Engagement
  • Public Policy
  • Lifelong Learning
  • Lancaster County
  • Education Reform
  • Parental Engagement
  • Public Policy
  • Lifelong Learning
  • Lancaster County

reading

National Literacy Trust: Study

August 24, 2018

reading books

The National Literacy Trust has an online resource entitled Words for Life that provides tips, downloadable activities, and other resources for parents to encourage them to read to their children. At the launch of the Words for Life resource, the Trust shared findings from a study. In an article about the research, the Trust shared that:

Nearly a third (29%) feel the most important influence on their children’s communication and language skills lay with someone other than themselves
15% cite teachers as having the biggest influence on these skills
One parent in seven (14%) does not spend any time on a daily basis supporting their children’s literacy development, for example by singing nursery rhymes or reading with them
Yet, the good news is that nine out of ten (91%) parents would like to spend more time helping their child develop their literacy skills.

The article also shared a testimony from Natalie Cassidy, a mother, who wrote:

Having my own daughter enjoy reading, writing and sharing her experiences with me and her dad is extremely important to me. Every night I read with her and we sing all the time! Reading has to be made fun, books are fabulous for the imagination and to help little personalities grow. Every parent should join the library, or buy just one book and share the joy of literature with their children. Happy reading!

Be sure to check out the Words for Life site. To visit the parent site for National Literary Trust, click here. To read my review of Scholastic research on the importance of reading aloud, click here.

Filed Under: Parental Engagement Tagged With: parents, reading, research

Libraries and Families

September 28, 2015

lancasterlibrary

Did you know September is National Library Card Sign-Up Month? As a lifelong fan of libraries since my parents started taking me as a child and a former board member of the Library System of Lancaster County I encourage you to get a library card and visit your local library.

The most recent email newsletter from the Harvard Family Research Project reminds us that:

Today’s library is a modern, evolving community space of education and support, a place where families can participate in learning activities with their children, access valuable information, secure passes to local museums, and connect with other families and community organizations.

Click here to read an article on how libraries can address families’ digital learning needs. To read my blog series on parental engagement and reading, click here.

More than just a place to check out books libraries also function as hubs that can connect families with the enormous benefit of reading. Check out this short video showcasing Queens Library’s Family Literacy Program

Visit your local library today and be sure to read to your kids.

Filed Under: Parental Engagement Tagged With: learning, libraries, parental engagement, parents, reading

Parental Engagement Writing Series

May 29, 2015

do-your-kids-see-you-write-featured-624x326

A little while back completed a new series of blog posts on Parental Engagement and reading. You can view the entire series over at the Demme Learning Blog.

Here are some snippets from each of the four posts:

Part 1 – What, Not Where

We need to teach our children the ‘universals’ of writing, principles that transcend the limitations and structures of each medium. If we teach our kids how to write clearly and concisely, they can successfully learn to write in any medium. In fact, the greatest thing we could ever do is teach our kids that writing is valuable and a skill worth developing. If we do that, our kids will be more likely to grow in their writing ability.

We as parents need to encourage our children to write in whatever medium they naturally gravitate towards. Once they have developed a love of writing, we can challenge them to experiment in different mediums and genres.

Part 2 – Writing to Reflect

Besides the benefits of keeping an individual journal and encouraging our kids to do the same, keeping a family journal is also a great way to preserve memories and reflect on experiences together as a family. A family journal can be as simple as recording birthdays and noting important activities (such as a family vacation to Disneyland) or as detailed as writing about every single day. Family journals can also provide a written records for future generations to learn from and enjoy. We have a tradition in my family which we call a “thanks book.” Our goal is to look back at a previous week or month and record things that we are thankful for. My parents started this tradition, and it is still going a generation later.

Part 3 – Do Your Kids See You Write?

Simply resolving to write or to just write when you think about it is not enough. We need to actively work to fit writing into our busy schedules — and the best way to do that is to develop a routine. Of course, creating a routine requires experimenting to see what will work best for you: maybe writing in the mornings as everyone is getting ready to face the day won’t work for you and your family — perhaps writing in the evenings after supper might work better. The important thing is to develop a routine … and then see how it works. Success isn’t the activity, it is the communication of value.

Part 4 – Research Says Writing Is Important 

Writing is both a ‘marker’ of high-skill, high-wage, professional work and a ‘gatekeeper’ . . . People unable to express themselves clearly in writing limit their opportunities for professional, salaried employment.

Writing also has health benefits. In the world of counseling, a newer field has emerged called “writing therapy”. Research has found that expressive writing, such as writing to reflect in a journal, has therapeutic value and can help us cope with emotional trauma or even just the normal upheavals and stressors of life.

Filed Under: Parental Engagement Tagged With: demme, ethan, facebook, parental engagement, readers digest, reading

Highlight: Kids and Family Reading Report

April 22, 2015

http://www.scholastic.com/readingreport/key-findings.htm
http://www.scholastic.com/readingreport/key-findings.htm

Scholastic recently released their Kids and Family Reading Report. You can read the key highlights of the report here. I want to highlight just one section, Reading Aloud at Home. Here are their key findings in this section:

  • More than half of children ages 0–5 (54%) are read aloud to at home 5–7 days a week. This declines to only one in three kids ages 6–8 (34%) and to one in six kids ages 9–11 (17%);
  • four in 10 children ages 6–11 who were read books aloud at home (40%) say they wished their parents had continued reading aloud to them.
  • When it comes to being read aloud to at home, more than eight in 10 children (83%) across age groups say they love(d) or like(d) it a lot—the main reason being it was a special time with parents.

Spotlight: Reading with Kids from Birth

  • Nearly three-quarters of parents with children ages 0–5 (73%) say they started reading aloud to their child before age one, yet only 30% say they began before the age of three months.
  • Six in 10 parents with children ages 0–5 (60%) have received advice that children should be read aloud to from birth; however, just under half of parents in the lowest-income households (47%) received this advice vs. 74% in the highest-income households.

There’s a lot more information in this report and it’s worth reading. Click here to access the whole report as well as to see infographics based on the data.

Filed Under: Parental Engagement Tagged With: reading

3 Tweet Highlights From NCFL-Summit

March 18, 2015

National Center for Families Learning
National Center for Families Learning

Did you know? “@NCFL: What do Diary of a Wimpy Kid & Fahrenheit 451 have in common? They’re on same reading level @donalynbooks #ncflsummit”

— Knapp Elementary (@KnappElementary) March 16, 2015

 

Avid readers view reading as a social activity… children just read more when they see others reading @donalynbooks#ncflsummit

— NCFL (@NCFL) March 16, 2015

 

“Why can’t I skip my 20 minutes of reading tonight?” @donalynbooks #ncflsummit pic.twitter.com/NZdFVRKXqS

— NCFL (@NCFL) March 16, 2015

Filed Under: Lifelong Learning Tagged With: reading

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