How can schools encourage family involvement? One of the best ways that schools can engage with families is by supporting essential at-home reading. In addition to boosting family engagement in schools, at-home reading has huge benefits for students of all ages. Overcome pitfalls and help families read at home with these five strategies and a printable guide to engage and empower parents.
The Benefits of At-Home Reading
There are many benefits of reading at home. Reading as a family is an invaluable experience that promotes family bonding, increases children’s vocabulary, and teaches young readers about the world and the human experience. Through reading, children increase their content knowledge but also learn important lessons—about kindness, overcoming challenges, and how to be a good friend. Reading at home promotes academic skills, social-emotional well-being, and executive functioning.
In the early years, regular reading at home sets children up for success in school. As children begin to read on their own, they continue to reap the benefits while exploring increasingly complex texts that appeal to their interests. Providing children with a nurturing environment in which they can enjoy and process text about high-interest topics is a valuable activity that serves as a bridge from school to home.
The At-Home Reading Challenges Families Face
One of the best ways schools can boost family engagement is to promote reading at home. Making reading at home a part of a family's daily routine is critical, but the truth is, it’s not always easy. As both a reading specialist and a mom, I know this firsthand. An important consideration of family engagement is understanding and reflecting on the challenges faced by many families today.
Schools need to understand that families—especially of young children—are incredibly busy, often have two working parents, and can sometimes feel like they are at max capacity.
Even for a reading specialist parent, it can still be hard to read at home. Prior to having children myself, I assumed that because I loved reading, that reading at home would just be blissfully effortless. If I decorated my nursery with characters from cherished literature, then through osmosis, my children would love reading. Fast forward eight years, and I can tell you it does not always work this way. Instead, I had to, and continue to, work hard. But after years of consistent routines, modeling, and making reading a positive experience, my own two elementary-aged boys do love reading . . . most of the time.
5 Strategies to Engage with Families and Promote At-Home Reading
So what does this mean for school engagement? If schools want to encourage families to read at home, they must make it accessible, positive, and supportive. The following strategies can make it easier for schools to engage with families to promote reading at home.
Strategy #1: Be Proactive
Recently I decided to be proactive and created a document that contained links to chapter books that were friendly for striving readers. I realized that every year, parents of first through third graders want suggestions for finding accessible chapter books. Instead of constantly scrambling to put ideas together, I now have a list that I share and add to frequently. As a parent, it is helpful to have specific links rather than general messages. As a teacher, it’s a time-saving endeavor!
Classroom teachers and specialists who have taught for more than a year at a particular grade level tend to know what parents will request to support their child with reading throughout the year. Make a list of those items (or confer with a veteran teacher) and make them accessible. This way, you won’t have to search for resources when a parent asks. Here are a few examples:
Share Tips
Create a parent tip sheet to distribute at the beginning of the year. It may include information about how parents can engage their children with reading throughout the year or expectations you may have (read for 20 minutes, homework, reading logs, and so on). It may also include suggestions and ideas to set the tone for the year.
Organize
Create a folder or system that organizes specific needs that recur each year. For example, compile lists of high-frequency words, phonetic decoding lists, decodable readers, required texts, and spelling patterns.
Provide Easy Access
Create a website or “teacher page” that has easy access to all the tips and resources you compile. Show parents how to navigate to this page during Open House or Curriculum Night.

Strategy #2: Make At-Home Reading Enjoyable
As a parent, I know that the after-school hours can be taxing. My kids need to unwind. They need to run, rest, snack, doodle, debrief, and so on. It’s not always realistic for kids to begin “homework” or assigned reading right when they get home. Many students go to after-school care, and aren’t even home until dinnertime. Teachers and parents must remember that at-home reading must feel enjoyable for it to be sustainable. In my house, reading before bed is a nightly ritual. Sometimes we can work in additional reading; sometimes it’s not in the cards. I know forcing it removes the fun.
At the end of the school day, kids are often exhausted, and parents are busier than ever. Most parents would agree that the after-school hours can be tough. Encourage parents to make nightly reading both an expectation and a cherished routine.
Strategy #3: Communicate
I sometimes feel that while parents are receiving more information than ever, there’s limited communication. Direct contact between teachers and parents helps overcome information overload. As a teacher, I have found that parents truly respond when you reach out to them directly, even with a quick suggestion or inquiry about reading at home. As a parent, I respond quickly to direct messages, but even I can be guilty of breezing past curriculum updates.
Check in with families. See how at-home reading is going and be prepared to offer advice if it is something they are struggling with. As overwhelmed as families can be, it goes a long way to check-in.
Strategy #4: Partner with Families
Many of my students' parents grew up in the era of whole language and balanced literacy. We are now in a new era which is based on science, and we as teachers can share this knowledge with parents to support their children in developing lifelong literacy skills. Parents do not need to know all the details that educators do, but helping them to understand concepts (for example “decodable,” “heart word,” or “finding a just-right book”) would go a long way. When I have held literacy workshops for parents, they are appreciative. As a parent, I know firsthand that partnering with the school instills a sense of community and increases my motivation to work towards our common goal.
Consider hosting a family reading night or parent workshop. Explain to parents what reading looks like for the different ages at your school, and how they can guide their children at these different stages. Some examples of topics by grade level are included below.
Kindergarten
Read to students nightly, high-frequency word lists, games with CVC words, and copies of decodable readers to practice at home
Elementary
Continue reading to children, high-frequency words/phrases, games with decodable word lists, finding the just right book, making the jump to chapter books
Intermediate/Middle/High
Help children choose just the right books, high-interest books, and offer incentives to finish books if needed
If you want families to read at home, you need to partner with them. Empower them with the knowledge they need to be successful!
Strategy #5: Prioritize Specific Needs
Teachers and parents tend to feel like they need to do it all. In my experience, on both fronts, I have learned that I cannot do it all. I have to set goals based on the present set of circumstances. Finding an entry point is an important step in getting families involved. In doing so, you are meeting them where they are, and addressing a concrete step.
Every district, and even schools within a district, can vary greatly when it comes to needs or available resources. Consider the following priorities:
- Access to books—If access is the priority, finding programs to help get books in the hands of students is essential.
- Parent Availability—If parents are unable to volunteer due to work circumstances or limitations, the priority is to create equitable opportunities to involve them. This means a mix of school events during the day and evening.
- Enrichment—If the priority is to instill a love of reading and for students to spend more time reading, then the goal is to spread awareness, create incentives, and build a culture of readers.
As parents, we need to meet our kids where they are outside of school. We cannot force our children to love reading or to choose it as a preferred activity. We have to carefully craft an environment where they learn that reading IS enjoyable and worthwhile. Of course we can set parameters, time limits, and consequences, but our approach has to be more than that for it to sustain.
Teachers and parents know that balancing careers, chores, and parenting is not an easy task. At-home reading is a simple and essential activity that parents can do to support their child. Encouraging it is a critical way that schools can engage with families and support students. When schools meet families where they are and empower them with concrete ideas and resources, everyone wins! Try these strategies to boost family engagement and at-home reading, in support of our shared goals.