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Photograph by Chad Pilster
A unique literacy program teaches parents and children to read and play together
Literacy for Families
Parents at Even Start learn English so they can help teach their children to read
By Sarah Gaffney
In a tiny portable classroom at Rosemary School on West Hamilton Avenue, a group of students sits quietly, hoping that this roving reporter won't call on them to speak in front of the class. With a little prodding from their teacher, the brave begin to volunteer, speaking in hesitant but perfect English. The class, composed of adults studying English as a second language, is part of the Campbell Even Start Family Literacy program, a federally funded infant/toddler preschool that teaches literacy to high-risk, low-income children and their parents.
Beatriz Flores, who has two children in the program, is among the first to describe to the class and this reporter what the program means to her.
"I like this program because I need to speak with my son's teachers at school. I'm more comfortable talking with the teachers," says Flores. "I read the books from the parenting class, which are very important because they explain what is my role as a mother. ... My kids like that I speak English because I'm not depending on my son to talk with other people."
Martha Montes, who sits in the front row with her husband, Salvador, speaks of her desire to learn English for her two young daughters. "It's very important for me; for my family, my husband and my daughters," Montes says. "I've been studying for five months and I've learned very much." In Spanish, she adds, "Yo quiero aprender por mis hijas, para ayudarlas." (I want to learn for my daughters, so I'll be able to help them.)
The Even Start program, now in its third year of operation at Rosemary School, is composed of adult English classes, an infant/toddler preschool, parenting classes and parent and child together time (PACT). Parents whose children are enrolled in the program are required to attend the English and parenting classes and to assist in the preschool class once or twice a month.
Photograph by Chad Pilster
Work in Progress: Enedina Martinez and her son Joel, 2, draw water, trees and a landscape together at the Even Start Family Literacy program.
Gina Phi, program coordinator, describes the Even Start philosophy.
"We want all children to read by third grade, but what's happening is, many of the families that we're working with, their children would never have gone to preschool or infant/toddler school," says Phi, a passionate early childhood education advocate. "There's not a lot of literacy in the home, and there's so many steps the parents need to take in order to be involved. ... What we're trying to do is bridge that gap, so that when these young children enter kindergarten, they're going to be ready."
A lot of what both the parents and children are learning is how to play. For the families--of Spanish, Vietnamese and Bosnian descent--who have attended the program, play is just as foreign as the English language.
"We believe children learn through play and experiential hands-on," Phi says. "For many of the parents, they didn't get to paint or color [as children]. So this is definitely a new experience for many of them. There's a lot of adult-ed programs and early childhood programs, but what makes us unique is that we try to have parent-child together time where we try to help support the parent, model for the parent, and coach them to interact with their child."
The preschool is held three mornings each week in the former Rosemary cafeteria. While their parents attend the ESL class, the program's 27 children, who range in age from 8 months to 5 years, are attended to by a staff of seven. During the school's final hour, the parents participate in activities with their children which include child-led play and, most importantly, reading together.
"A lot of people coming up from Mexico haven't had much of an education," says Janine Paulsen, a public health nurse who visits the preschool twice a week to assess the children's developmental progress. "They don't understand some of the basic needs, such as reading to their child. The people here, and even I, will model that, and they'll understand that they have to talk and talk to their child to help them with their language skills early."
Besides participating in the preschool and ESL class during the day, Even Start parents are also required to attend parenting classes one night a week.
Photograph by Chad Pilster
That's What It's All About: The parents and kids at Even Start dance the Hokey Pokey to both English and Spanish lyrics.
Tami McGie, the program's ESL teacher, applauds the dedication of her Even Start students.
"They work hard. They have the parenting class and the English class, and they all take turns working in here [the preschool]--and some of them have jobs, they have other children at home," says the teacher. "Many of them have been here several years, but now that their children are in school, they want to learn English. That's the key motivation for them. ... It just makes them better community members all the way around."
Although the parents are committed to the program, Phi says families often leave the program because the time commitment prevents them from working and meeting basic needs such as rent. Phi is working toward making the school a distribution site for Second Harvest Food Bank, a service which would help the Even Start families and perhaps curtail dropouts.
"The rent is such a hard thing for a lot of the families to come up with," says Phi. "If we can help a little bit in the food area, they'll have a little bit more to cover the rent. There's nothing more frustrating than to work with a family, begin to see some progress and then they're gone because they couldn't pay the rent."
Yet those parents who attend the program are proud to practice their English and describe how it has changed their lives. Back in the tiny portable classroom, Rosario Ruiz tells the class of parents how learning English has improved her relationship with her 4-year-old son.
"He's very different now. He helps me in the house," says Ruiz, who also has a 6-month-old son who will soon enter the program. "He likes the books. ... Everyday in the afternoon, I read to my kids now--in English and in Spanish, but my son likes it more in English."
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Campbell, California
