In thinking about the conversation about using rhymes and other types  
of language patterns in a family's first language and transitioning  
to English, I started to think about adults we work with in adult and  
family literacy, and their understanding about "reading" and  
"language." Most adults would be hard-pressed to explain what reading  
is, so it's pretty easy to understand why parents - even highly  
literate ones - might be reluctant to talk to a teacher about their  
child's learning to read. If knowledge leads to power, as the saying  
goes (I think), it would be helpful to introduce parents,  
particularly those in family literacy or adult literacy programs, to  
the vocabulary of reading - to demystify it, build their knowledge  
about it, and make them more comfortable with the whole concept of  
READING as it applies to their children and to them as adults.

Equipped for the Future (research and framework developed by the  
National Institute for Literacy and now housed at University of  
Tennessee-Knoxville <http://eff.cls.utk.edu/>) found that adults are  
interested in becoming literate to:
1) gain access to information and resources that help them orient  
themselves in the world (e.g., help child with schooling, get a job,  
understand systems and cultures)
2) voice their ideas and opinions with confidence that they will be  
heard and taken into account
3) solve problems and make decisions on their own, acting  
independently, as parents, citizens, and workers, for the good of  
their communities
and 4) keep learning to keep up with rapidly changing world.
I've always thought that these were pretty powerful reasons for  
becoming literate.

If you are interested in providing parents with information and  
resources that help them learn "what reading is," NCSALL developed a  
4-hour seminar called Teaching Learners What Reading Is All About  
<http://www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/teach/ 
teach_learners_role.pdf> that introduces adult education  
practitioners to Understanding What Reading Is All About: Teaching  
Materials and Lessons for Adult Basic Education Learners <http:// 
www.ncsall.net/fileadmin/resources/teach/uwriaa.pdf>, a set of 13  
lessons designed to help learners understand the components of  
reading. So, you get a short professional development resource AND 13  
lessons that can be used immediately in the classroom.

The seminar is an approved (i.e., externally reviewed) resource in  
the LINCS Basic Skills Collection <http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/ 
resourcecollections/RC_skills.html> under the Reading Collection.

Has anyone subscribed used either of these resources or Equipped for  
the Future? If so, I'd be interested in learning what you thought  
about them.

Barb
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