Family literacy programmes
Josie Pearse
02-April-03

Family programmes
Family literacy and numeracy programmes have proved to be effective in achieving learning gains for parents and children. I have run a number of family programmes helping parents develop their literacy skills.

The school environment
Such programmes are often funded by the Basic Skills Agency (BSA) and are normally run in Primary, rather than Secondary schools. A programme usually runs for about a term and has about ten parents, or carers, with children.

The parents and children will be taught separately, but there will be some lessons where you bring everyone together. A teacher from the school will take the children's class.

Many of the parents who attend the programmes feel safer in a school environment; they wouldn't go to a college. A safe, local class at their kids' school can change their lives. The school is an outreach centre, a community that we build on.

So what's it like working in a school? I like it. Schools run these programmes because they want to involve the parents, but don't forget they are busy places with rules. If you're used to working in an adult education college it can take some adjustment! Once I made myself unpopular by using the teachers' tea caddy. They had bought the stocks out of their hard-earned cash - no one told me!

People who teach children are awesome but they don't work in the same way as adult tutors. One teacher said 'It was such a shock when a student in your class just got up and went out to the toilet. I couldn't believe it!' But I've never met a teacher who didn't eventually love working with the parents.

We are advocates for students who may suffer from low self-esteem. Though they will be learning in a primary school, be aware of their needs which may differ from the children. For example, do you know where the lavatories are? They'll also need adult sized tables and chairs, and access to tea or coffee.

Commitment of staff
The commitment of the Headteacher to the project is essential. They need to spend time at the beginning of the project persuading parents to attend. Sometimes the SENCO (Special Needs Co-ordinator) is involved.

When planning the joint sessions you'll work with the teacher taking the children's class. Sometimes a school's full-time class-teacher is seconded, but they can find the extra workload too much. A programme works better when a part-time teacher is given the hours. You also need to be given the hours to plan the programme with them. You will need to meet several times before the course. Then, weekly, while the course is running, to co-ordinate your aims and lesson plans.

Getting the right students
I've found that leafleting and letters home don't work very well! Encourage the school to arrange informal sessions where you can meet parents. Teachers can identify children who need help and invite their parents into the school. With the children's teacher, set up school activities that are fun for children and adults to do together - such as bookbags, puppets or alphabet jigsaws. It's a great opportunity to get to know the parents informally and tell them about the family programme.

You need to make it absolutely clear to the school that parents with a level C or above English GCSE should not be in the class. Ideally you interview students just like you would for college classes. If they are overqualified make sure you have to hand literature with information about local colleges.

As your students will be chosen on the basis of their child's skills, some will not appear to have basic skills needs. Their issues might be homework or communication related.

Planning ideas
Like any other course, the students' work will be based around their individual learning needs. However you'll need to include work which will also help them help their children. Read my Family reading lesson plan (http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/tutors/lessonplans/reading/) on how we learn to read. It can bring up opportunities for parents to discuss communication in general.

Keep parents well informed of what is expected of them during the course. They may be frustrated, feeling they can't support their child. Give simple examples of how they can help their child, from making wooden spoon puppets to cooking alphabet spaghetti! Once parents understand the value of play activities and realise they can help, you're opening up a new world.

If you have an outing near the beginning of the course with parents and children, it helps bond the group. Everyday literacy topics flow naturally from the planning of a trip. From maps to the 'I Spy' game, you and the teacher can make lots of material for parent and child to do together. A local zoo or museum will send you advance copies of their publicity. You can build adult teaching materials out of these.

The joint sessions
These are rewarding and fun. But what does the adult tutor do? We are there to support the parents. Most of our work has been preparing them before hand. We've created a safe environment where they know they can ask questions and try out new skills. The children's teacher leads the joint work. On a BSA programmes a basic skills tutor is never asked to work alone with families. We always team-teach. Most of us do not have training to work with kids.

Tackling parenting
Should we be tackling 'parenting'? In my experience, family classes are discussion-heavy. I am not qualified to teach parenting. But there are some good materials that tackle communication between parent and child. There's a recommended book list at the end of this article.

Providing a space where students can share concerns is important. Peer learning and teaching works very well. In one discussion in class bullying came to light. The group supported the parent, who reported the bullying to a teacher in the school. All my feedback forms from one programme had 'communicating with children' rated as the most important aspect of the course.

Progression
This kind of outreach is a long-term investment. My experience tells me that the real outcome of family learning is progression rather than accreditation. About two-thirds of the way through the course, I invite an education guidance worker to class so students know their learning options.

A few months ago a woman stopped me in the market. 'If it wasn't for that course you ran, I wouldn't have started my training to become a nurse.' she said. Words like that make the world go round.
 

Further information
Read my Family reading lesson plan which can be used as part of a literacy programme.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/tutors/lessonplans/reading/

BBC Schools contains useful articles for parents of children at school. For example there's a Guide to reading and a Parents Guide to Mathematics.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/parents/

The Basic Skills Agency has a website dedicated to Family Programmes.
http://www.familyprogrammes.org/index.asp

Please note the BBC is not responsible for the content of other websites.

Book list:
'Bilingual children: a guide for parents and carers' by Foufou Savitzky
'Helping children with spelling' by Cynthia Klein and Helen Sunderland
'Helping my child with reading and writing' by Shan Rees and Foufou Savitsky
'Involving parents, carers and the community in schools' by Foufou Savitksy