CURRICULUM OF THE HOME

RESEARCH FINDING:

Parents are their children's first and most influential teachers.
What parents do to help their children learn is more important to
academic success than how well-off the family is.

COMMENT:

Parents can do many things at home to help their children succeed
in  school.   Unfortunately,  recent evidence indicates that many
parents are doing much less than they might.   For example, Ameri-
can  mothers on average spend less than half an hour a day  talk-
ing,  explaining,  or reading with their children.  Fathers spend
less than 15 minutes.

They  can  create a "curriculum of the home" that  teaches  their
children what matters.   They do this through their daily conver-
sations,  household routines,  attention to school  matters,  and
affectionate concern for their children's progress.

Conversation is important.   Children learn to read,  reason, and
understand things better when their parents:

   .  read, talk, and listen to them,
   .  tell them stories, play games, share hobbies, and
   .  discuss news, TV programs, and special events.

In order to enrich the "curriculum of the home," some parents:

	provide books,  supplies,  and a special place for study-
ing,  observe routine for meals, bedtime, and homework, and moni-
tor  the amount of time spent watching TV and doing  after-school
jobs.

Parents stay aware of their children's lives at school when they:

	discuss school events,  help children meet deadlines, and
talk with their children about school problems and successes.
Research  on  both gifted and disadvantaged children  shows  that
home efforts can greatly improve student achievement.   For exam-
ple, when parents of disadvantaged children take the steps listed
above, their children can do as well at school as the children of
more affluent families.


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