Preservice educators' attitudes and beliefs towards families can have a profound impact on family-centered practices (FCPs) and family-professional partnerships (FPPs); unfortunately, negative beliefs about families can surface during preservice early childhood preparation and can be a challenge for faculty in higher education to address. This…

Young children learn best through hands-on, authentic experiences that motivates, stimulates and supports their growth in all areas of development. This includes the skills necessary to enhance their literacy and language acquisition, physical and cognitive development in addition to their social-emotional development and approaches to learning.…

The Texas Afterschool Centers on Education (ACE) is the program administered through the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for the federally funded 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) grants. The Texas ACE Foundation Communities Cycle 9 program is composed of a compilation of activities at 3 AISD campuses that provide a comprehensive range of…

Family engagement is pivotal to student development and academic achievement, particularly for students of color with disabilities and those from historically underserved culturally and linguistically diverse communities (Delale-O'Connor et al., 2020; Fehrer & Tognozzi, 2018; Impact of Family Engagement, n.d.). Unfortunately, the…

Although research is somewhat limited, Rivera et al. (2019) provide some guidance for successful practices for young children who are culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) with significant cognitive disabilities (SCD), more specifically those who are identified as English learners. Across their literature review, common themes for…

Youth are natural scientists at birth, discovering and exploring their world and trying to make sense of it (Bers, 2008). A child's education is not limited to just the time they spend in the classroom. Children learn at home with their families, in public libraries, or through out-of-school-time (OST) experiences provided at community centers and…

Shared experiences through school-hosted events, such as family literacy events, can afford opportunities to support and extend academic learning while fostering positive home-school relationships. This article describes the importance of developing primary-grade students' literacy skills through a talent development lens and explains several ways…

Teachers are the critical component of students' success in the classroom (NRC 2001), but families are the critical component of student success at home. When families and teachers develop strong relationships and build trust with each other, students benefit (Henderson and Mapp 2002). This is especially true in communities where home culture is…

In this article Andrew Bell describes how he developed science capital at his school by involving his class in a Family Science project. He finds that the Family Science project has many impacts including: (1) substantial increase in science activity at home; (2) interest in families in sourcing their own science activities; (3) parental interests…

A Family Geography Night (FGN) kit can be used to bring families together, teach about the world, give parents the opportunity to share their beliefs, and participate in the educational system while having fun! Geography is an essential element of twenty-first-century education. More than just maps, geography is the interaction of cultures,…

Parental engagement is an area of school life that school leaders often aspire to increase, but it can be a challenge. This is especially so when trying to attract parents whose engagement is already low or absent. Science presents opportunities for engagement from which other subjects may not benefit. The collaborative nature of science and the…

In Australia, the term "numeracy" is used to describe "the competence and disposition to use mathematics to meet the general demands of life at home, in paid work, and for participation in community and civic life" (Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers 1997, p. 15). The implemented mathematics curriculum is…

This booklet provides an overview of the following important topics, which can assist parents in preparations to be made prior to their child's kindergarten entry: (1) Kansas Early Learning Standards; (2) Kindergarten Entry Information; (3) The Kindergarten Transition; (4) Additional Questions You May Have; and (5) Checklist for Entering…

There is a widespread misconception that transition planning and programming begin in high school. However, there are many opportunities for teachers to infuse transition-focused education into teaching and learning activities for their elementary-grade students. Teachers can engage students with disabilities and their families in…

Cunningham and Lachapelle (2011) found that most students have a naive understanding of the field of engineering, mistaking it for the work of technicians or artisans and neglecting to see the contributions engineers make to people's daily lives. In general, public (and teacher) understanding is not much more refined. These misconceptions about…