Is this guide for you?

This guide is for anyone who is involved or interested in family literacy. Family literacy practitioners and managers, and community partners may use this guide to improve upon their family literacy programs. Family literacy practitioners may include: librarians, early literacy specialists, teachers, family resource program workers, adult literacy instructors, home visitors, public health workers and anyone else who is involved in providing programming and direct support to families.

Family service agencies, who are thinking of starting up a family literacy program, or getting involved as a partner in family literacy work, will fi nd this guide a very useful place to start. It will help direct their thinking and avoid some pitfalls.

Anyone wanting to know about family literacy in Ontario, including funders, policymakers, and prospective volunteers, will find something of interest in this guide.

How can you use this guide?

• Use it to guide your program planning and development.
• Skip straight to specific parts of it for quick reference.
• Use the statements as benchmarks for program evaluation.
• Photocopy and use the Action plan worksheet for agencies found in Appendix B, section i. Go through each section of the guide with staff and program partners to see how current practices and working partnerships could be improved. Encourage critical refl ection and discussion. Make this an annual program evaluation activity.
• Look to the recommended resources located at the end of each section and the appendices for more information on specific topics and issues.
• Read it cover to cover to get an overview of family literacy programming and gain perspective on where your own work fits into the big picture.
• Use it to help write compelling family literacy funding proposals.
• Use it to help recruit well-qualified staff and volunteers.
• Share the statements in presentations with community stakeholders to raise awareness about family literacy and to develop partnerships and networks.