Importance of Family Reading
November is not just a month of falling leaves and chilly weather; it's also a time to celebrate Family Literacy Month. This nationwide initiative aims to emphasize the importance of family literacy and the profound impact it has on a child's educational journey. At Children's Day Preschool, we believe in the power of family involvement in a child's learning experience, and Family Literacy Month provides a wonderful opportunity to highlight this commitment.
What Is Family Literacy Month About?
Family Literacy Month is more than just encouraging children to read; it encompasses activities that promote literacy skills for the entire family. It emphasizes the role parents and caregivers play as their child's first and most important teachers. For bilingual families, this month becomes an excellent occasion to celebrate language diversity and strengthen the bond between home and school. Not only can it help our students develop their reading skills more but for many of our parents, Spanish is their first language so it can help improve their reading and language development.
Activities for Preschoolers
Embarking on a journey of reading with our preschoolers during Family Literacy Month involves an array of vibrant and engaging activities. Our bilingual approach ensures that every child, regardless of their primary language, feels included and celebrated. There are a plethora of activities that we highlight both in and out of our classroom; such as storytelling sessions in both English and Spanish to create a bilingual atmosphere and encourage parents to share their favorite childhood stories to provide a rich cultural exchange.
In the classroom, one cornerstone of our celebration is the multicultural library corner. Here, children have access to a diverse collection of books in both English and Spanish, reflecting the richness of our community. Throughout the month, our teachers immerse the little ones in storytelling sessions that seamlessly weave between languages, fostering not only language development but also cultural appreciation.
Parental Involvement
To actively involve parents, we encourage Family Reading Nights, where the whole family comes together to read, explore books, and discuss them. This not only strengthens the parent-child relationship, but it also instills a love for reading from an early age.
This activity is more than just reading sessions; they're an opportunity for parents to witness firsthand the magic of storytelling and engage in discussions about fostering literacy at home. Our teachers offer personalized guidance, recommending age-appropriate books (both English and Spanish) and providing insights into creating a literacy-friendly environment within the family setting.
Teacher's Role
Our dedicated teachers play a pivotal role in Family Literacy Month. They provide parents with resources and tips for creating a literacy-rich environment at home. We recommend creating reading corners and incorporating both languages into daily activities to support our Hispanic and bilingual families
Family Literacy Month at Children's Day Preschool is not just a celebration; it's an immersive experience where language, culture, and learning connect. By infusing joy into literacy activities, we lay the foundation for a lifelong love of reading in both English and Spanish, nurturing well-rounded and culturally aware individuals.