What is Family Literacy?

By Janet Shively

Family literacy is an old and very simple idea, and those who embrace it do so for a very simple reason: “It just makes so much sense!” As with any idea whose time has come around, it seems that everybody’s either talking about it or doing it or wanting to do it, yet everybody seems to have a different definition of what “it” is.

Perhaps that is because by their very nature, definitions reflect the values and suit the purposes of the person/group doing the defining. Perhaps it’s because both words that form the phrase family literacy are so value-laden, culture-specific, and open to interpretation themselves; or perhaps it’s because there are so many sectors that have staked a claim in the family literacy turf, inevitably imposing their own perspective. Perhaps for all of these reasons there is still considerable discussion about what, exactly, we mean by family literacy.

The term “family literacy” was first coined by Denny Taylor in her 1983 study which explored the social context of the home as a key factor in the literacy development of children. Neither in the initiatives and studies that predate Taylor’s work, nor in the broad range of family literacy activities that have taken place since, is there a single, commonly accepted definition of what the term means.(1)

Family literacy refers to the many ways parents, children and extended family members use literacy skills to accomplish every day tasks in the home and community.

Whatever the definition(s) we work with, it is important to keep in mind that in any discussion about the term or the field, “family” is always interpreted in the most inclusive sense of the term, encompassing significant others and extended family/community members whenever relevant.

The International Reading Association (1994) declared that Family literacy encompasses the ways parents, children, and extended family members use literacy at home and in their community. It occurs naturally during the routines of daily living and helps adults and children ‘get things done.’

This broad definition includes all forms of literacy that families engage in together – from lullabies to shopping lists, from stories to the passing on of skills and traditions. Parents have always been their children’s first and most important teachers. Family literacy projects or programs build upon this natural learning bond, recognizing and supporting the influence of the family on the literacy development of its members.