Parents send their kids off to school each day, supporting the educational journey for their kids to acquire an education for a better life. But with the changing demographics in today’s America, how can Spanish-speaking parents realistically give their kids the gift of reading?

The Hispanic population is the fastest growing population in the United States and sometimes schools are left wondering how to bring Spanish-speaking parents into the mainstream educational process and foster the love of reading. This issue may be too complex for teachers to figure out on their own.

What if parents do not have high educational attainment themselves? Or what if parents don’t understand how to read a book from cover to cover? How can a parent help their child if the child has surpassed the parent’s educational attainment? How can teachers help parents to support their child with academic success and give the gift of reading?

The Latino Family Literacy Project are experts in training school staff to work with Spanish-speaking parents for schools success and has some suggestions for teachers to review with Hispanic parents at their next school meeting:

At school:
Get to know their child’s teacher and principal.
Volunteer to help the teacher in the classroom.
Help the teacher by assisting children with special needs.
Help with special events or projects.
Plan and accompany classes on field trips.
Assist coaches at sporting events or the drama teacher with school plays.
Volunteer to help with parent workshops.
Visit your child’s class for parent career day to describe your special gifts.
Assist in the library and help with story time or tours with other parents.
Plan to meet with your child’s teacher regularly to discuss reading level.

At home:
Share as many stories as you can in your first language!
Read to your child – reading aloud is the most important activity that parents can do to increase their child’s chance of reading success.
Discuss the books, stories and characters you read to your child.
Share your own family stories.
Tell your own childhood stories to your children. Describe what your childhood was like and what you enjoyed doing most as a child.
Provide structure for each day, where possible.
Limit television viewing on school nights or after school work is finished.
Talk to your child regularly about what’s going on in school.
Help with homework and check homework every night.

Teachers can attend our workshops to learn more ways to help the Spanish-speaking parents at their schools so that their children can benefit from home reading routines and other activities.

Watch some testimonial videos for some easy suggestions for working with Spanish-speaking parents.