# data[].attributes.headline
Teacher Resource: Bag of Books - Promoting Literacy at Home

# data[].attributes.subject
Teacher Resource: Bag of Books - Promoting Literacy at Home

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
ReadWriteThink couldn't publish all of this great content without literacy experts to write and review for us. If you've got lessons plans, videos, activities, or other ideas you'd like to contribute, we'd love to hear from you.

Find the latest in professional publications, learn new techniques and strategies, and find out how you can connect with other literacy professionals.

Teacher Resources by Grade

More

Home › Classroom Resources › Lesson Plans

Lesson Plan

Grades

K - 2

Lesson Plan Type

Recurring Lesson

Estimated Time

5-7 minutes per session

Lesson Author

Publisher

Featured Resources From Theory to Practice
OVERVIEW

Students take turns taking home a book bag that includes a stuffed toy, a book to read with their families, art supplies, a topic to discuss, and a journal to complete as a family. The students then return the bag the following day and share their entries with the class. After every student has taken the bag home, the journal is bound into a book for the classroom library. The teacher then selects a new topic and book to start a second rotation. The goal is to invite parents to join their children in these literacy activities.
back to top
FEATURED RESOURCES
back to top
List of Suggested Books: This booklist includes tips for choosing quality books for a take-home literacy activity, as well as several examples of appropriate books.

Listening and Speaking Rubric: Students can use this rubric to self-assess any activity that requires speaking to the class and listening as classmates speak.

FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE

In her book Radical Reflections, Mem Fox states: "I'm certain that learning to read and learning to love reading owe a great deal (much more that we ever dreamed) to the nature of the human relationships that occur around and through books. If we could sneak into the homes of avid readers, I think we'd discover very often that the comfortable relationship between an older reader and a younger reader during the shared reading of a mutually loved book might be a key factor in the child's success." (136)

Engaging families in literacy activities can help foster this love of reading. Charlene Endrizzi urges, "When family-school partnerships are perceived as opportunities for families and teachers to learn together deliberately, they transform parent-teacher interactions. Each September, as teachers... recognize the need to respect a child's years of learning beyond their classroom, they intentionally set out to build bridges and work to unite community, home, and school learning experiences." (18)

This lesson offers one way to build a bridge between the home and school learning experience, through a fun, take-home literacy activity.

Further Reading
back to top
Mem Fox. 1993. Radical Reflections: Passionate Opinions on Teaching, Learning, and Living. Harcourt Brace & Company.

Endrizzi, Charlene Klassen. 2008. Becoming Teammates: Teachers and Families as Literacy Partners. Urbana, IL: NCTE.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Have Journal...Will Travel: Promoting Family Involvement in Literacy - ReadWriteThink

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
ReadWriteThink couldn't publish all of this great content without literacy experts to write and review for us. If you've got lessons plans, videos, activities, or other ideas you'd like to contribute, we'd love to hear from you. Find the latest in professional publications, learn new techniques and strategies, and find out how you can connect with other literacy professionals.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Becoming Teammates: Teachers and Families as Literacy Partners

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Becoming Teammates: Teachers and Families as Literacy Partners

# data[].attributes.headline
                                Family Night

# data[].attributes.subject
                                Family Night

# data[].attributes.body
Family Night Example... with books!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Kids were invited to story time followed by trick-or-treating at a literacy event at Carver Early Childhood Center in Bryan on Tuesday night.

# data[].attributes.headline
                                     Book List 

# data[].attributes.subject
                                     Book List 

# data[].attributes.body
- My Family, Your Family by Lisa Bullard
-Who's in my Family? All About Our Families by Robie H. Harris
-The Family Book by Todd Park
-All Families Are Special by Norma Simon
-Me and My Family Tree - Joan Sweeney
-Do I Have a Daddy? by Jeanne Lindsay
And Much More!!!!!!!

# data[].attributes.headline
FAST - Family And Schools Together Program

# data[].attributes.subject
FAST - Family And Schools Together Program

# data[].attributes.body
Families & Schools Together, Inc., is the non-profit organization whose mission is the development and worldwide dissemination of FAST®, the internationally acclaimed parent engagement program. From our international headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin, we support the efforts of FAST Teams around the world to promote family well-being and help children thrive by building stronger, more supportive relationships at home.

We exist to ensure that every family who participates in FAST gains all the benefits that the program is designed to provide. Through our office, FAST Teams gain access to the guidance, training and program materials they need to run a successful FAST Program, whether it’s their first FAST Cycle or their fiftieth.

Families & Schools Together, Inc. was founded in 1988 by scientific researcher and Professor of Social Work Dr. Lynn McDonald. Built on evidence-based practices and rigorously tested, FAST consistently produces statistically significant improvements in children’s behavior, emotional well-being, and academic performance while increasing social capital among families, schools and communities.
~

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Our Organization | Families and Schools Together

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Families & Schools Together, Inc., is the non-profit organization whose mission is the development and worldwide dissemination of FAST®, the internationally acclaimed parent engagement program. From our international headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin, we support the efforts of FAST Teams around the world to promote family well-being and help children thrive by building stronger, more supportive relationships at home.

# data[].attributes.body
“Here is another problem: It is known that children’s preschool experiences with books and print also contribute tot heir success in learning to read once they arrive in school (...) But low-income families have far less access to books than middle class families do.” (Temple, 2010).

# data[].attributes.body
“Informational texts generate wonderful conversations and help parents to enjoy being co-learners with their children.” (Hoyt,2002).

# data[].attributes.headline
Video 2 - Summary of Family School Partnerships

# data[].attributes.subject
Video 2 - Summary of Family School Partnerships

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Assist school leaders and teachers to examine what they are doing well to engage parents in learning, and where they can improve.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Connect With Low-Literate Families: A Three-Tiered Approach - ReadWriteThink

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Parents and caregivers take a page from the teacher's book when they listen to students' take-home poems or stories and discuss the ideas within.

# data[].attributes.body
LibGuide Article

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Discover recipes, home ideas, style inspiration and other ideas to try.

# data[].attributes.headline
                                                                               Quote From Course Text

# data[].attributes.subject
                                                                               Quote From Course Text

# data[].attributes.body
"Finding time to work on establishing trustworthy home-school partnerships aimed at supporting struggling readers, especially those from diverse backgrounds through interactions like interviews and surveys, requires a deliberate teacher inquiry." - Dr. Endrizzi

Chapter 2, Bridging the Trust Gap, Charlene Endrizzi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Parents as Partners: Engaging Families in Schools