Americans Love Their Local Schools

One major point stood out like a bright light in the dark in the 47th Annual PDK/Gallup Poll about the public’s attitudes toward public schools – Americans love their local neighborhood schools. According to the poll’s analysis, “Americans consistently give the highest grades to the schools that are closest to them and that they may have more experience with and … Read More

The Importance of School Readiness

Arriving at elementary school ready to learn is invaluable to all young children, as delays in the early years of education can be very difficult to overcome. This is especially true for children who do not hear or speak the language predominantly used at school in their own homes. It is very beneficial if the early building blocks of learning … Read More

Growing Family Trend: Grandparents Raising Children

Children who are being raised not by their own biological parents, but by grandparents who have taken them in for a wide array of heartbreaking and troubling reasons, come from households as disparate and unique as the neighborhoods and ethnic groups in which they live. It’s a trend that some experts believe will only continue to rise in light of … Read More

Instructions for Teachers Working with ELLs

Classrooms throughout the United States are reflecting an increasing collection of students from diversified backgrounds, as an estimated 11.2 million limited English proficient children are now enrolled in classes from grades K-12. With such a large segment of the school population at often widely disparate levels of English language comprehension, it has become crucial that teachers are cognizant of the … Read More

Defining Acculturation and Assimilation

Acculturation and Assimilation A March 2016 report from the Child Trends Hispanic Institute has found that students of Hispanic descent scored higher on national reading proficiency tests than their non-Hispanic peers in Miami-Dade county in Florida. Across the country, reading scores of fourth and eighth graders were consistently higher by half a grade all the way up to four grade … Read More

Early Literacy Development with Infants and Hispanic Parents

Literacy development starts very early and continues throughout an individual’s life. Even as an infant, a child can begin to communicate and to undertake what are called pre-literacy activities. Hispanic parents can play an important role in developing early literacy, and even early bilingual literacy with their infants. Some of the basic ways to develop infant literacy growth are to … Read More

Family Engagement and the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is a reauthorization of the educational standards set forth through the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in 1965. The ESSA puts into place provisions aimed at helping low-income and underprivileged children succeed in school. Chief among this legislative groundwork is a sharp focus on the role of parent and family engagement in the … Read More

Proven Best Practices for Family Literacy

Family literacy means parents and their children learning together. Developing family literacy is one of our most important educational goals. When we attain family literacy, we help ensure the academic achievement of our children. We learned so much during COVID-19 school closures about what is needed to support families at home! To start with, these three factors need to interact … Read More

What Does It Mean to be Culturally Responsive?

In today’s diverse world, being culturally responsive is a critical and necessary feature of a quality education. But what does it mean to be culturally responsive? According to the National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems (NCCREST), “cultural responsiveness is the ability to learn from and relate respectfully with people of your own culture as well as those from other … Read More

California’s New Funding Law: The Latest Information for LCAP and Family Engagement

Governor Jerry Brown’s Local Control Funding Formula Initiative (LCFF) is California’s recent funding law that puts the most comprehensive emphasis yet on the importance of family and other stakeholders in the educational progress of school children in grades K-12. Through the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), a vital component of the initiative, school districts are tasked with meeting eight specific … Read More