Fall Family Biliteracy Program Celebration

Fall Family Biliteracy Program Celebration

     The Mountain View School District celebrated the families that participated in the District’s fall session of the Family Biliteracy Program. The special celebration, hosted by MVSD’s Family Engagement Department, honored 56 family members from all 10 of the District’s elementary schools including Baker, Cogswell, La Primaria, Maxson, Miramonte, Monte Vista, Payne, Parkview, Twin Lakes and Voorhis Schools.  

      The goal of the six-week Family Biliteracy Program is to strengthen family connections through literature and language in Spanish and English or Mandarin and English. Throughout the program participants were involved in hands-on projects, engaging discussions and high levels of critical literacy.  Utilizing bilingual books, they learned strategies for engaging students in their primary language using dialogic reading.

     “Our parents did a great job using the techniques of dialogic reading which includes asking questions of their children and engaging them in discussions while they read books to them,” said Alicia Garcia, Family Engagement Teacher on Special Assignment.  “This type of reading is a lot of fun since it’s interactive, and it’s a wonderful way to build a child’s vocabulary and language skills.”

     According to Priscilla Figueroa, Family Engagement Coordinator, parents learned strategies for helping their children understand new vocabulary as well as questioning techniques to increase their child’s comprehension.

   “The Family Biliteracy Program provided parents a venue to highlight the assets of their primary language and share the richness of their culture with their children,” said Figueroa. “Our parents really enjoyed the time they dedicated to sharing this experience with their children.”

      Included in the celebration was a stunning display of the many amazing projects completed by the families during over the course of the six weeks.  MVSD appreciates the dedication of our Family Biliteracy Program teachers, Community Liaisons and Administrators from each site, as well as our Board of Education for their vision and commitment to building family connections through literacy and primary language.

 

  • Mountain View Preschool Programs
  • Magnolia Learning Center