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Reading Champions is also a great way for schools to build relationships with dads. Research shows that when fathers engage with their child’s education, they significantly boost their child’s confidence and achievement.
Dads and male carers who actively get involved with their sons’ reading can also be nominated by schools as Reading Champions. They will be awarded an adult Reading Champions certificate and badge. It’s not just dads either - involving other family members such as granddads, older brothers or uncles can also work really well. Nominate a dad or male carer or other family member.
When working with dads it might help to follow a three step plan; first communicating, secondly engaging and thirdly involving dads in your Reading Champions project.
Resources
When involving dads in your project you may find these resources useful.
Case studies Look at examples of how other schools have successfully involved dads.
Adult role models are essential for delivering the reading for pleasure and purpose message to boys. If boys don't see the men in their lives reading or hear them talking about their favourite reads, then they're not receiving any messages about reading being relevant to their lives.
Practitioners find fathers even more difficult to engage than their sons and some dads won't go near school unless absolutely necessary. Furthermore, there are the challenges of absent fathers and the lack of other male role models in the school environment, particularly at primary level. However, according to a report published in 2005, when fathers do engage with their children's education, they significantly boost their children's educational performance (Fathers' involvement in their children's education, Goldman,R).
The Fatherhood Institute (FI), in an ICM survey they carried out in The difference a dad makes (December 2007), found that two thirds (66%) of dads regret not having more time to spend with their children, and almost seven out of 10 (67%) agree that dads should be encouraged to spend time in school reading with their child. The FI also found that half of dads of children under age three read to them daily.
Guidance from the Department for Children, Schools and Families says that positive father involvement in children's learning is associated with better exam results, better school attendance, less criminality, better quality interpersonal relationships and good mental health.
More research and evidence about father involvement and literacy.
Click here to download Getting the blokes on board (NLT magazine)
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