START–Engaging Parents of Students with Disabilities
Offering programs and services that support the engagement of families to improve outcomes for students.
START-Engaging Parent of Students with Disabilities (EPSD) offers assistance and services that support the engagement of families to improve outcomes for students, including developing and supporting Special Education Parent Advisory Groups (SEPAGs) in communities and school districts.
Through workshops, trainings, and parent leadership development activities, we help parents:
- Become informed and active participants in their child’s education
- Partner with educators in improving educational programs for students with disabilities, particularly in the area of Inclusion
- Start or strengthen parent advisory groups or parent support groups in their areas
Literacy
Literacy
Increasing the capacity of schools and parent leaders to engage families in promoting literacy achievement
A Resource Collection for Families: Engaging Families in Literary Achievement
Research shows that proficiency in reading by the end of third grade enables students to shift from learning to read to reading to learn, and to master the more complex subject matter they encounter in the 4th grade curriculum and beyond. Children benefit greatly when parents and educators work together to support literacy development, promoting faster development and also ensuring that trouble spots are identified early. These resources will help facilitate parent engagement in early reading achievement.
The collection is divided into three sections:
- Supporting literacy in your child’s classroom: (a) Understanding what your child is learning; (b) Working with your child’s teacher
- Activities to promote literacy at home
- Promoting Literacy achievement in your school
Resources that are included:
- Links to websites with resource documents discussing evidence-based programs and activities to increase literacy achievement. Documents include one-page overviews, infographics, briefs, fact sheets, training materials and checklists in English and in Spanish. Many can be made available in other languages as needed.
- Videos and webinars that focus specifically on Literacy activities
Supporting Literacy Achievement in the Classroom
These resources will help you:
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- Engage with your child’s teachers to better understand grade level curriculum and what is expected in their classroom
- Recognize reading problems and when and how to approach the teacher for help
Understanding What Your Child is Learning
Reading Skills by Age | “The more you know, the better you can help your child prepare for reading success.” This online article will help you determine if your child is on track to being reading-ready!
Print Awareness | A child who has print awareness understands that print represents words that have meaning and are related to spoken language. Without print awareness, children are unable to develop other literacy skills such as reading, spelling, and handwriting.
Letter Knowledge | Letter knowledge is recognizing the letters and knowing the letter names and sounds. Young children gain an awareness of letters as they play with alphabet shapes, start to notice letters in books, and realize that their name begins with a specific letter.
Phonological Awareness | Phonological awareness is the ability to hear and identify the various sounds in spoken words.
Listening Comprehension | Listening comprehension is preparation for reading comprehension. It isn’t just hearing what is said—it is the ability to understand the words and relate to them in some way.
Motivation to Read | Also called “Print Motivation,” it is a child’s interest in and enjoyment of books. A child with print motivation enjoys being read to, plays with books, pretends to write, asks to be read to, and likes trips to the library. Motivation to read may seem like a simple thing, but if a child doesn’t have that internal desire, teaching them to read will be quite challenging.
Working with Your Child’s Teacher
Signs of a Reading Problem
Does your child have a reading problem? This info sheet goes even more in depth to help you identify some of the signs that your child may be a struggling reader. You’ll also find possible causes of reading difficulties as well as reasons this may not be a reading problem.
Talk With Your Child’s Teacher
Many teachers say that they don’t often receive information from parents about problems at home. Many parents say that they don’t know what the school expects from their children—or from them. Sharing information is essential and both teachers and parents are responsible for making it happen. This online article, available in English and Spanish, provides steps you can take to develop a strong partnership with your child’s teachers.
Activities to Promote Literacy at Home
These resources will help you:
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- Understand the importance of reading at home with your child
- Learn different ways to help your child develop the “Big Five” reading readiness skills at home
Why We all Need to Start Reading Aloud to Our Kids
In this (11+ min) video, researcher Keisha Siriboe advocates for more parent-child reading aloud to promote parent-child bonding as well as effective literacy development.
Becoming Aware of Print
This video (3:58 min) teaches the importance of building Print Awareness in early readers. (Video provides captioned translation into several languages.)
Does Your Child Struggle with Reading? Learn How Accessible Instructional Materials (AIM) May Help
This pamphlet by the PACER Center explains Accessible Instructional Materials (AIM) and provides information to determine if your child needs AIM.
Reading
This video (3:38 min) illustrates how reading to your child helps build vocabulary. Children also learn about sequence and how a book is arranged. The emphasis is on reading to children in any language and building print motivation.
Promoting Literacy in Your School/District
These resources will help you:
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- Learn what good reading instruction in school should look like
- Learn how to engage with your school to ensure that your student is receiving the best instruction
Accessible Instructional Materials: Basics for Families
This booklet will help you and other members of your child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) team decide: (1) Whether the student needs AIM, (2) What type of specialized format the student needs, (3) How to access the materials for the student, and (4) What supports the student needs to use AIM.
Materiales de Instrucción Accesibles (AIM): Información Básica para Familia
Este libreto ayudará a usted y a otros miembros del equipo del Programa de Educación Individualizada (Individualized Education Program—IEP) de su hijo(a) a decidir: (1) Si el estudiante necesita AIM, (2) Qué tipo de formato especializado se necesita, (3) Cómo tener acceso a los materiales para el estudiante, y (4) Qué clase de apoyo requiere el estudiante para usar AIM.
Conducting Universal Screening
In this video (4:23 min), an elementary school literacy coach discusses the purpose, scheduling, and administration of universal screening. She explains how the use of screening data has changed instruction at this school.
Recognition: Universal Screening & Progress Monitoring
Watch this video (2:03 min) and learn how the teachers use handheld devices to gather assessment information on children’s language and literacy skills.
START LITERACY WEBINAR
Explore our literacy webinar collection.
Let’s Read Together! Tips to make story time fun and frequent. Download the webinar handouts.