Brief
When most people think about parent-child reading activities, they likely picture a mother quietly reading to her children. Very few people would envision a reading event where fathers and children are acting like donkeys, elephants, and gorillas. That is exactly what happens, however, at a Dad and Kid Reading Night sponsored by Strong Fathers-Strong Families. Dad and Kid Reading Night encourages and teaches fathers to read to their children. The books are carefully chosen both to reflect the father child dynamic and to facilitate lively activity.
Fatherhood Summit Session
Head Start Programs have supported and strengthened parent-child relationships for more than50 years, including a specific focus on father involvement. Whether parents are cohabiting or living separately, custodial or noncustodial, Head Start appreciates the essential role that positively-engaged fathers can play in support of children, families, and their communities. Head Start grantees and practitioners are encouraged to recognize how engaged fathers contribute to children’s behavior, and to think strategically about how to solicit fathers’ input and address barriers impeding active …
Fatherhood Summit Session
Outreach to fathers is critical to improve outcomes for children. One of the most effective ways to reach fathers is through local schools and Head Start programs. This session drew upon the experience of Strong Fathers-Strong Families, LLC, which has worked with more than 220,000 fathers of children under the age of 18 in rural, suburban, and urban locations around the nation.
The presenter explored the important role fathers play in the development and education of children, and the barriers many fathers face when attempting to be involved in their children’s education. The presentation…
Brief
Parent education reduces the risk of child abuse and neglect by encouraging positive parenting practices that promote safety, well-being, and permanency for children and families. The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), as reauthorized in 2010, identifies parent education as a core prevention service. Many of the Children’s Bureau’s Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) grants fund parent education programming as part of local community prevention efforts. Successful parent education helps parents and caregivers acquire the skills needed to build healthy families and…
Brief
This brief explains the Two-Generation (Two-Gen) approach for working with families builds well-being by creating a solid and stable foundation through integrated, intensive, and high-quality services in four areas of focus: early childhood education, elementary education, economic stability, and family engagement. It discusses findings from a research study that explored how three States (Connecticut, Colorado, and Utah) are development and implementing a Two-Gen framework in practice and how support for an intentional Two-Gen approach can be translated into a coordinated implementation…
Fact Sheet, Brief
Reports the results of a longitudinal study of youth from military families and their caregivers concerning their emotional well-being and how well they are coping with servicemembers' extended deployments. (Author abstract)
Brief
This Brief aims to explore the various claims made about the commonalities and differences between the two fields of marriage and relationship education (MRE) and couples and marriage therapy (CMT), in the hope of bringing more clarity to the way these fields are represented and discussed. While acknowledging the many elements these fields have in common, fundamental philosophical and practical differences between them also need to be recognized as they have important implications for policymakers. (Author abstract modified)
Brief
Alcohol abuse affects millions of families either directly or indirectly, and the abuse of legal substances is a prominent concern for public health officials throughout the world (Corroa, et al., 2000; World Health Organization [WHO], 2004; WHO, 1997). According to the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2005), of the 3.8 million persons who received treatment in the U.S. for alcohol or drugs in the past year, more than half (2.4 million) were treated for alcohol abuse. Approximately 55 percent of adults report having had…
Brief
Getting a good education and doing well in school are widely regarded as critical preparation for most types of success in life. However, academic achievement depends on more than what takes place within school walls. Research generally indicates that characteristics outside the formal educational setting--or non-school factors--also have a lot to do with whether children and adolescents are successful in school. Therefore, it seems important to examine not only how schools can be improved but also how non-school factors can be enhanced to foster learning and educational attainment. This…
Brief
This brief spotlights how six school districts across the country have used innovative strategies to create and sustain family engagement "systems at work." Our findings point to three core components of these successful systems: creating district-wide strategies, building school capacity, and reaching out to and engaging families. Drawing from districts' diverse approaches, we highlight promising practices to ensure quality, oversight, and impact from their family engagement efforts. We also propose a set of recommendations for how federal, state, and local policies can promote district-…
