Family literacy programs are developed on the premise that the important relationships between children and adults affect literacy achievement and activity. The programs bring parents and children together in a teaching and learning environment. The critical teacher in a child's life is the parent. Family programs support and strengthen family…

Family literacy programs have been demonstrated to have significant and widespread benefits for children, parents, families, and society. Documented benefits of family literacy programs to children appear in the following areas: children's achievement in school, school attendance, oral language development, reading comprehension and vocabulary,…

Historically, when aging adults could no longer negotiate the difficulties of living alone, they faced either institutionalization or living with their children. Shared housing may be a viable third option for many aging homeowners. The University of Utah's Intermountain West Long Term Care Gerontology Center developed the Senior/Student Shared…

To assist persons with developmental disabilities in South Dakota to become more independent, productive, and integrated into the community, the South Dakota Advocacy Project, Inc. implemented the Volunteer Skills Data System (VSDS). As South Dakota is primarily rural, accessibility to services and programs is a particular concern. Community…

The field of cognitive science (as represented, for instance, by intergenerational literacy programs) offers new ways to think about increasing cognitive abilities, which is particularly important in view of the disappointing outcomes of many intervention programs that do not seem to make their participants more knowledgeable or better thinkers.…

Asserts that children may absorb negative opinions about the elderly from their culture. Notes research indicating that both young and old benefit from contact with each other. Describes an intergenerational program that provides children with opportunities to form friendships with healthy elders. Explains classroom preparation and children's…

Compared the personal/social development of preschoolers in two intergenerational and two non-intergenerational settings. Found that children in intergenerational programs scored higher on the personal/social development scale of the Learning Accomplishment Profile than did children in non-intergenerational settings. (KB)

Discusses the goals of Project Family Initiative for English Literacy (FIEL) and the rationale for the model on which it is based. Describes the curriculum and the content of the five-step lessons. Provides an example of one family's literacy growth within the project. (MG)

Indianapolis gifted students in grades five-seven created a museum exhibit to express the views of youth while giving adults an opportunity to listen. The process involved brainstorming, selecting a topic (drug and alcohol abuse), gathering information, forming committees, building a scale model, and creating the actual exhibit. (JDD)

The social service field of "Intergenerational Programming and Exchange" has emerged in response to the growing elderly population and problems of age segregation and decreased interaction among older and younger generations. This article presents a chronology of events and initiatives contributing to the growth of the field from 1963 to…

The need for reform of the national health care system is particularly evident when viewed from an intergenerational standpoint. None of the generations is currently adequately protected against catastrophic illness or the costs of long-term care. The National Health Care Campaign is sponsoring an initiative for comprehensive intergenerational…

Discusses projects to establish school playgrounds that are planned, built, and used by individuals of different generations. Such projects involve set-up, which includes determining needs, selecting a site and project leader, designing the playground, and establishing committees; construction; and follow-up, which includes playground maintenance…

Lessons worth noting from existing community-service programs include the importance of reciprocity and benefit to the volunteer; accountability to the community; youth leadership; a multigenerational approach; crossing the color line; and open mindedness. The service movement provides real possibilities for mutual advantage. (SLD)

Discusses a specific type of mentoring: matching retired, older persons with young people enduring a crisis period in their lives. Programs such as the Teaching Learning Communities (T-LC) Mentoring Program in Ann Arbor, Michigan, assign elders as mentors and tutors to junior high school students in danger of dropping out. Strong elder-youth bonds…

Today's literacy crusade still emphasizes economic rather than humanistic reasons for literacy education. However, lasting change will come only through breaking the familial cycle of illiteracy, integrating improvement of work-based, family, and generic learning skills. (SK)