Parental engagement is a crucial aspect of academic success – even more so with English Learners (ELs) where there are two languages spoken at home.

 As a way to address federal and state goals, various laws have been put in place that provide funds to help school districts with high poverty levels, which tend to have high numbers of EL students.  See the laws below:

 Title I provides funds to school districts with high concentrations of low-income students.  These funds are to be used to meet federal and state educational goals of students.

 Title II funds are allocated to low-income school districts, so that they can recruit, train, and provide development opportunities to teachers, administrators, and staff.

 Title III is part of the ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act).  Title III funds are put in place to ensure that ELs attain proficiency in the English language.

 In order to complement federal and state goals, The Latino Family Literacy Project offers a program that aims to improve the literacy and language skills of ELs and their families.  School districts and teachers find that the literacy programs from The Latino Family Literacy Project help support their educational goals.  The Project’s programs provide an effective reading component that helps both EL students and their parents become better English-language readers and develop a strong English-language vocabulary.

 Teachers and staff complete a half-day training either in-person or online via a webinar.  Trained teachers and staff are equipped to hold a series of workshops at their schools, which assist EL parents in establishing a reading routine utilizing bilingual books and other ESL skills.  The Project understands the importance of family reading to improve literacy skills as well as build a strong vocabulary.

 For more information on The Latino Family Literacy Project or to participate in one of their in-person workshops or online webinars, visit http://www.latinoliteracy.com.  In addition to professional development options, the Project offers an array of free resources for EL family engagement and literacy.