Teaching in two languages can provide Hispanic parents with the peace of mind that they need to successfully engage in the education of their children. Family literacy programs that include parents in the curricula help to stymie the fears and lack of confidence that Hispanic parents often feel when it comes to reading to their children. They may not feel comfortable reading out loud due to their own limited literacy skills and inability to fully comprehend the English language. These barriers can severely restrict children who are English Language Learners from having the opportunity to practice the use of English at home. So it’s important for teachers to incorporate the native language into these programs as well.

Many Hispanic parents don’t wish to use English in the home for a number of reasons beyond an unfamiliarity with it. Some parents are afraid that doing so would mean a rejection of their parents’ own language, traditions, and heritage. If their children learn English and use it more than Spanish, that could also threaten their ability to communicate and connect with grandparents and other members of the family who only speak Spanish. There’s no denying that bilingualism plays an important role in developing the literacy skills of ELLs, and parents must be part of the equation. So while children advance their English proficiency at school, they can foster their literacy progress at home through reading with family members in Spanish. They are, in essence, being taught in two languages with one common goal toward a complete education. Literacy programs that include parents must take steps to provide a comfortable and welcoming routine for engagement. Teachers can work with children on their English, yet communicate with the parents in Spanish. Educators must devise ways to foster effective communication in order to keep the parents motivated and assuage any fears or lack of confidence that they might exhibit. Sending correspondence and progress updates to the home in Spanish and inviting parents to come to the school or engage through the use of interpreters and bilingual staffers are all great ways to achieve this goal. Teachers may even be bilingual themselves, and this can open the door to complete and thorough discourse to make parents feel at ease. Educators should never seek to extinguish the use of Spanish entirely, and programs that foster the use of both English and Spanish in equal measure when appropriate will go a long way towards meeting positive academic outcomes for students.

Lectura Books provides award-winning bilingual books. The books are written in both English and Spanish to allow the reader to learn in dual language. This is a great tool for English Language Learner students and their parents. All of the books contain multicultural stories. This allows students and parents of different backgrounds to be able to relate to the story and be more inclined to read and retain the information. Visit Lectura Books YouTube page to see some of their most popular book titles.