Ann Anderson

Taking stock of family literacy: Some contemporary perspectives

The purpose of this article is to examine developments in the area of family literacy over the last decade. Acknowledging the bifurcation that has occurred in the field of family literacy, as well as changing conceptions of literacy and of families, we review naturalistic studies of literacy embedded and enacted in communities and families across different sociocultural context and also what we see as the evolving nature of family literacy programs. We conclude with an acknowledgement of some of the ongoing concerns, issues, and tensions in the field and a call for sensitivity on the part of all of us involved in family literacy research and programs.

Diversity in Parental Storybook Reading.

Reading picture storybooks to preschool age children has long been a major component of early childhood classrooms and is now commonly recommended to parents. The benefits of this practice are thought to include exposure to rich language experiences, the development of narrative, and the development of book and print‐related concepts. These views have become accepted and extended to culturally diverse segments of society, even though most of the research has been conducted with small samples of predominantly white, upper‐middle class families. The present study finds diverse storybook interactions within a static sample and questions the practice of generalizing findings about storybook reading to dissimilar populations. † Correspondence: Tel: (604) 822‐5512, (604) 822‐5513; Fax: (604) 822‐8971; email: jon.shapiro@mtsg.ubc.ca.

Mathematical Discourse in Shared Storybook Reading.

The purpose of the study reported in this article was to explore the mathematical discourse in which four dyads engaged while sharing the storybook One Snowy Night (Butterworth, 1989) while at home or in other locations (e.g., day care centers). Each dyad consisted of a mother and her four-year-old child. Various discourse patterns were evident, and while there were commonalities across dyads, each pair shared the book in unique ways. In two of the dyads, the mother initiated the mathematical discourse; in the other two, the child did. Size, subitizing, and counting were the most common mathematical concepts that emerged. One dyad attended to a single concept of size, and the other dyads attended to more than one mathematical idea. Some parents scaffolded particular problem-solving strategies; others provided more generic support. Based on our findings, we discuss insights and issues and make suggestions for further research.

Supporting Multiple Literacies: Parents' and Children's Mathematical Talk within Storybook Reading.

The purpose of this study was to explore how parents and their young children attended to mathematical concepts as they engaged in shared book reading. Thirty-nine parents and their 4-year-old children from a culturally diverse metropolitan area were videotaped as they readMr. McMouse (Lionni, 1992) andSwimmy (Lionni, 1963). Shared reading episodes were transcribed in their entirety and the data were coded according to a scheme developed by the authors (Anderson, Anderson, & Shapiro, 2004). All families except one engaged in mathematical talk although there was considerable diversity in terms of the amount of talk and the ways in which mathematical concepts were shared. The concept of size arose most frequently, next was different aspects of number, while shape occurred relatively infrequently. Results suggest that shared book reading holds considerable potential for parents to draw attention to mathematical vocabulary and concepts.

Examining the Effects of Gender and Genre on Interactions in Shared Book Reading.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate whether fathers and mothers read differently to their four‐year‐old sons and daughters and to examine the effect of genre on the interactions that occurred in parent‐child, shared book reading. Twenty‐five dyads shared two narrative texts and two non‐narrative texts. Results indicated that overall, fathers were more interactive than mothers. Fathers and mothers also differed in terms of the types of interactions and there was some gender/genre interaction effect. As well, parents engaged in more interactions in non‐narrative texts than in narrative texts. The childs gender also affected the number and types of interactions. Implications for practice, theory and future research are proposed.

Developing Mathematical Power: A Case Study.

Current reform for mathematics education calls for the development of each childs “mathematical power” (NCTM, 1989, p.5), which we contend can be developed in very young children. From an ongoing case study of Jaclyns early mathematics learning at home, we (i) share one childs early mathematical attitudes and strategies, and (ii) discuss how one mothers interactions with her daughter influence and guide “teacher‐student” interactions. Bedtime story reading and everyday game‐like activity are shown to be sources of natural mathematics, in this particular home, where the mother is aware of and acts to encourage the childs mathematical thinking. It is evident that mathematical power, problem solving, and sense making are strongly related for this preschooler. It is also evident that this parents mediation ‐‐ informed by multiple perspectives of mother, classroom teacher and mathematics researcher ‐‐ plays an important part in such development.

Extra-textual talk in shared book reading: a focus on questioning

In this study we investigated the frequency and types of questions asked when parents read with their four-year-old children, the relationship between the frequency and types of questions parents and children asked, and the relationship between these and the childrens early literacy knowledge. Forty dyads shared two narrative texts and two non-narrative texts. Overall, there were relatively few questions asked during the shared book reading. Parents asked four times as many questions as children and for the most part, questions appear to have low cognitive demand. Genre had little effect on the frequency of questions and the types of questions asked, in contrast with other research that has shown differences in interactions in shared reading of informational versus narrative texts. In terms of gender, there was very little difference in both frequency and type of questions. No significant relationships were found between the questions asked in the shared book readings and measures of childrens early literacy knowledge (Test of Early Reading Ability 2 and alphabet knowledge). The study is important in that it contributes to an emerging literature that suggests a more tenuous relationship between shared book reading and childrens early literacy knowledge than is sometimes assumed by educators.

I Don't Even Know What Blogging Is: The Role of Digital Media in a Five-Year-Old Girl's Life.

Using a qualitative lens, this study investigated the role of digital media in the life of a five-year-old girl. The study focused on determining what this five-year-old knew about technology, what digital tools was she currently using and how important were these tools in her everyday life. Data collection included semi-structured interviews which were structured around digital and print-based elicitation devices (e.g. digital cameras and books). Findings from this study showed digital media did not engulf all aspects of this childs life; rather, she enjoys and engages with many different activities, both traditional and digitally based. Further research documenting childrens introduction and engagement with digital technology is recommended, to better understand childrens emergent digital literacy skills.

Family Literacy Programs as Intersubjective Spaces: Insights from Three Decades of Working in Culturally, Linguistically and Socially Diverse Communities

In this article we draw on our three decades of work in culturally, linguistically, and socially diverse communities – an economically depressed, rural community in Eastern Canada, a culturally and linguistically diverse metropolitan area of western Canada and a First Nations community in north-western Canada – to document the development and evolution of a social-contextually responsive family literacy program. We propose that family literacy programs can build on the strengths that families bring and provide an intersubjective space where families and schools can share knowledge in a reciprocal, respectful manner.

Family literacy programmes and young children’s language and literacy development: paying attention to families’ home language

ABSTRACT In this article, we review the literature on the impact of family literacy programmes on young children’s language and literacy learning. After defining family literacy, we present a brief historical overview of family literacy programmes, including persistent questions regarding their effectiveness with respect to young children’s language and literacy learning and their propensity to promote the dominant language (e.g. English) while ignoring the benefits of bilingualism and of families’ home language maintenance. Meta-analyses reveal that family literacy programmes have a positive effect on young children’s language and learning development and studies of bilingual family literacy programmes indicate that they are effective in significantly increasing children’s early literacy knowledge in the dominant or mainstream language and in promoting home language maintenance. This finding lends empirical support for bilingual family literacy programmes and the concept of additive bilingualism. We conclude by suggesting implications for practice and for future research.