You are seeing this message because your web browser does not support basic web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing and what you can do to make your experience on this site better.

www.HFRP.org

The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.

Terms of Use ▼


Q & A With Rebecca Parlakian: Learn Anytime With the Let's Play App

How can you turn daily bedtime and mealtime routines into learning opportunities for young children? How can commuting, shopping, and other everyday activities offer vibrant learning moments for children? Read about the Let’s Play app to learn how!

Harvard Family Research Project (September 17, 2014) Research Report

Finding Time Together: Families, Schools, and Communities Supporting Anywhere, Anytime Learning

How do families spend time supporting their children’s informal and formal learning beyond the school day and across settings? Find out how educators and institutions are helping families promote their children’s learning experiences anytime, in school and beyond.

Christine Patton and Margaret Caspe (September 17, 2014) Research Report

Libraries Helping to Close the Opportunity Gap: Maryland Library Partnership 

Through innovative and engaging family activities, the Maryland Library Partnership is playing a crucial community role by promoting learning anywhere, anytime and reaching out to parents to help them with their children’s learning, improve literacy, and close the vocabulary gap between low-income learners and their peers.

 

Nathan Driskell (June 9, 2014) Research Report

Family Engagement in Anywhere, Anytime Learning

Explore the world of anywhere, anytime learning with us! Read how researchers and practitioners are helping to close the opportunity gap by creating innovative spaces, developing strategic collaborations to ensure children’s success, and engaging families and children as partners in meaningful learning experiences, both in and out of school.

M. Elena Lopez, Margaret Caspe (June 9, 2014) Research Report

Transforming Pittsburgh Into Kidsburgh!

Dynamic Pittsburgh! Hundreds of the city’s PreK–12 educators, artists, technologists, and families are working together to remake learning.

Gregg Behr (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Lessons From Museums and Libraries: Five Ways to Address Families’ Digital Learning Needs

Culture expert Marsha L. Semmel notes that museums and libraries are increasing their offerings for families in support of such vital 21st-century learning skills as problem solving, digital media literacy, and creativity. Learn how these institutions play important roles in addressing our children’s digital learning needs.

 

Marsha L. Semmel (April 24, 2014) Research Report

What About the Parents?

Katie Salen Tekinbaş outlines strategies and activities that New York City public school Quest to Learn has implemented to ensure that families are engaged in the digital learning life of students.

Katie Salen Tekinbaş (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Perspectives: Guiding Families on Children’s Media Use

Three experts reflect on their work in engaging families in a digital learning environment. We asked them to address the question, How can institutions offer relevant and useful guidance to parents and families about scaffolding their children’s digital media use?

Harvard Family Research Project (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Family Involvement News: April 2014

We are committed to keeping you up to date on family engagement news. The resources in this section highlight the latest tools and discussions from HFRP and review recent findings in the areas of family engagement policy, strategies, and research, along with family engagement and digital learning.

Harvard Family Research Project (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Social Media—Engaging Families in Children's Learning and Use of Digital Media 

Are you interested in using social media to find out how families can navigate digital media to enhance children’s learning? Start here—we guide you to organizations and individuals that bring the latest DML research into public focus!

Harvard Family Research Project (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Family Engagement as a Shared Responsibility in a Digital Learning Environment

HFRP director Heather B. Weiss examines how families and others involved with children and youth can ensure that children obtain the access, supports, and opportunities that they need to get the full benefits of digital media for learning.

Heather B. Weiss (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Seamless and Connected—Education in the Digital Age

Through connected learning, says Mizuko Ito, schools, museums, and libraries are employing innovative strategies, leveraging digital media to make learning more relevant and engaging to youth, and linking the crucial spheres in a learner’s life—peers, interests, and academic pursuits.

Mizuko Ito (April 24, 2014) Research Report

Research Spotlight: Families and Digital Media in Young Children's Learning

These resources look at issues related to digital media and learning in early childhood and focus on such topics as children’s media use in the 21st century, family perspectives on children’s media use, and research-based guidance for practitioners and parents.

Harvard Family Research Project (February 19, 2014) Research Report

Bridging Worlds: Family Engagement in the Transition to Kindergarten

This teaching case explores the complex issues surrounding the transition to kindergarten and the importance of family engagement in the process. Three expert commentaries and discussion questions are included. An interactive version is also available.

Margaret Caspe (2014) Research Report

Preparing Educators to Engage Families: Case Studies Using an Ecological Systems Framework, Third Edition

Incorporating the use of HFRP research-based teaching cases and theoretical perspectives, this revised book looks at family engagement issues from the early years through pre-adolescence.

Heather B. Weiss, M. Elena Lopez, Holly Kreider, Celina Chatman-Nelson (October 31, 2013) Research Report

Data Sharing Resources for Afterschool and Expanded Learning Programs and Systems

This resource highlights tools, publications, and reports that provide examples of promising practices for and guidance on data sharing for afterschool and expanded learning programs and systems.

Harvard Family Research Project (March 2013) Research Report

Partnerships for Learning: Community Support for Youth Success

In this paper, we draw on the experiences of national organizations and a set of community schools that have built learning partnerships, and examine seven key elements that we find to be essential in building them. Our paper serves as a guide to school districts and their partners as they consider whether and how to implement a partnerships for learning model. It also informs those who have already established these partnerships and wish to reflect on how to maximize partnership—and student—success.

Erin Harris , Shani Wilkes (January 2013) Research Report

Year-Round Learning: Continuity in Education Across Settings and Time Through Expanded Learning Opportunities

This brief provides examples of year-round learning programs along with recommendations for policymakers looking for ways to increase youth engagement in learning,

Erin Harris , Ashley Wallace (December 2012) Research Report

We Were a "Hard-to-Reach" Family

Former Head Start parent, Nikia Parker, started out as a “hard-to-reach” parent but developed a strong, positive relationship with her family’s Early Head Start home visitor, which enabled her to not only effectively support her own children, but also take on advocacy and leadership roles within the larger Head Start community.

Nikia Parker (September 20, 2012) Research Report

Creating Conditions for Effective and Ongoing Family Engagement

In this Commentary, Harvard Family Research Project’s Senior Research Analyst, Heidi Rosenberg, looks at the ways in which schools, programs, and other community institutions can help facilitate continuous family engagement to help children succeed.

Heidi Rosenberg (September 20, 2012) Research Report

Ready for Success: Creating Collaborative and Thoughtful Transitions into Kindergarten

Because early social performance and academic achievement are predictors of later school success, ensuring that children get off to a good start in kindergarten is critical. This brief, by Harvard Family Research Project's Christine Patton and Justina Wang, examines important elements of high-quality kindergarten transition strategies and profiles promising practices from six states that take an integrated and collaborative approach to helping kindergartners enter school ready for success.

Christine Patton , Justina Wang (September 20, 2012) Research Report

Joining Forces: Families and Out-of-School Programs as Partners in Supporting Children’s Learning and Development

Harvard Family Research Project’s Senior Research Analysts Heidi Rosenberg, Erin Harris, and Shani Wilkes explore how the relationship between families and afterschool is shifting from a focus on increasing afterschool program participation toward a focus on parents’ supporting children’s learning and development in afterschool settings.

Heidi Rosenberg , Erin Harris, Shani Wilkes (June 28, 2012) Research Report

Raising Expectations for Out-of-School Time

Samantha Grant, a program evaluator at the University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development, and a parent, offers guidance to families looking to make good decisions about their children’s out-of-school time activities.

Samantha Grant (June 28, 2012) Research Report

MAKESHOP: Family Engagement in Exploration, Creativity, and Innovation

Jane Werner and Lisa Brahms, from the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, discuss the Museum’s innovative MAKESHOP studio space, which invites children and families to co-create projects and transforms the traditional museum visit experience.

Jane Werner , Lisa Brahms (June 28, 2012) Research Report

Reframing Family Involvement in Education: Supporting Families to Support Educational Equity

This research review, part of the Equity Matters research initiative at the Campaign for Educational Equity at Teachers College, Columbia University, argues that family involvement in education is a powerful but neglected tool to support children’s learning and development.  Disadvantaged children are both more likely to benefit from increased family involvement and to come from families who face the greatest barriers to such involvement.  To reframe public understanding of the benefits of family involvement in children’s education, this paper lays out a research-based definition and more equitable approach to family involvement and positions it as a key cross-cutting component of broader comprehensive or complementary learning systems.

Heather B. Weiss , Suzanne M. Bouffard, Beatrice L. Bridglall, Edmund W. Gordon (December 2009) Research Report

© 2016 Presidents and Fellows of Harvard College
Published by Harvard Family Research Project