By Penny Reinart, Chief Impact Officer, Footsteps2Brilliance
Early literacy doesn’t begin in kindergarten — and it certainly doesn’t end when the dismissal bell rings.
As educators, we know that the foundation for reading success is built in the earliest years of life. Brain development between birth and age five is rapid and profound. Neural connections form at a rate that will never again be repeated. And the single most powerful driver of that development? Rich language interactions with caring adults.
But here’s the challenge: families often want to help — they just aren’t always sure how.
The good news is that teachers can play a pivotal role in empowering families with simple, practical strategies that make a lasting difference. When we build confidence in caregivers, we extend literacy learning far beyond the classroom walls.
Here are three powerful — and highly doable — ways teachers can help families support early readers.
1. Teach Families That Talk Is Teaching
Many families believe reading success begins when children start decoding words. In reality, reading begins with listening and speaking.
Oral language is the foundation of literacy. Before children can read words, they must understand them. Vocabulary, background knowledge, syntax, and conversational turn-taking all develop through everyday interactions.
Teachers can help by:
- Explaining the power of “serve and return” conversations
- Modeling how to ask open-ended questions during read-alouds
- Encouraging families to narrate daily routines (cooking, driving, shopping)
- Sharing sentence starters like:
- “Tell me what you notice…”
- “Why do you think that happened?”
- “What do you think will happen next?”
When families understand that talking, wondering, and storytelling build the brain, they begin to see that literacy is woven into daily life — not confined to a worksheet.
2. Model How to Read With a Child — Not Just To a Child
Interactive reading transforms a passive activity into a brain-building experience.
Research on dialogic reading shows that children gain more vocabulary and comprehension skills when adults prompt them to think and respond during reading.
Teachers can:
- Host short family literacy nights with live demonstrations
- Record a 3–5 minute video showing interactive reading strategies
- Send home tip cards with simple prompts:
- Point to and name new vocabulary
- Connect the story to the child’s life
- Encourage prediction and retelling
- Let the child turn pages and “read” the pictures
At Footsteps2Brilliance, we emphasize that repeated reading of high-quality texts builds fluency and confidence — especially when children have access at home and can revisit stories independently.
When families see what interactive reading looks like, their confidence skyrockets.
3. Provide Structure That Makes Home Literacy Easy
Families are busy. Simplicity wins.
The more structured and accessible literacy support is, the more likely families are to follow through. Teachers can remove barriers by:
- Setting a consistent weekly reading goal (e.g., 15 minutes a day)
- Sending home curated book lists or digital access to texts
- Providing clear phonological awareness practice routines
- Encouraging bedtime reading rituals
- Offering bilingual resources when possible
Technology can be a powerful bridge when it provides guided, developmentally appropriate content that children can revisit independently — while still encouraging family engagement.
The key is clarity: families should know exactly what to do, how long to do it, and why it matters.
The Bigger Picture: Partnership Over Perfection
Families don’t need to be literacy experts. They need encouragement, modeling, and practical tools. Footsteps2Brilliance provides easy to use, engaging digital content and off-line activities that help support families.
When teachers position families as partners — not passive supporters — children thrive. We move from “school readiness” to “community readiness,” creating a unified literacy ecosystem around every child.
In my work in early childhood development, I’ve seen firsthand that small shifts in adult behavior create exponential gains in children’s outcomes. A few minutes of intentional conversation. A repeated bedtime story. A shared moment of curiosity.
These moments build vocabulary.
They build comprehension.
They build confidence.
And ultimately — they build readers.
When we equip families with simple, powerful strategies, we don’t just improve literacy scores. We change trajectories.
And that impact lasts a lifetime.