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 ▼

• Permission to Use Materials: In consideration for your agreement to the terms and conditions contained here, the President and Fellows of Harvard College, c/o the Harvard Graduate School of Education, grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use Harvard Family Research Project publications hosted on the Global Family Research Project Site.
• User may download material from the Site only for User's own personal, non-commercial use. User may not otherwise copy, reproduce, retransmit, distribute, publish, commercially exploit or otherwise transfer any material. The burden of determining that use of any information, software or any other content on the Site is permissible rests with User.
• User will seek permission or licensing for any commercial use requests from the Harvard Graduate School of Education Office of Sponsored Projects.

• Home
• Research Areas
  • Complementary Learning
  • Family Involvement
  • Out-of-School Time
  • Early Childhood Education
  • Evaluation
  • Other Research Areas
• Publications & Resources
  • Search Publications
  • Browse Our Publications
  • Publications Series
  • Copyright and Reprint Permissions
• HFRP News
  • News & Announcements
  • Blog: New Directions in Family Engagement
  • In the Media

• Publications & Resources
  • Search Publications
  • Browse Our Publications
  • Publications Series
  • Copyright and Reprint Permissions

• Large text size
• Normal text size
• Small text size
• Print this page

December 11, 2014 How Organizations Provide Learning Opportunities for Children and Families Margaret Caspe and M. Elena Lopez Download a PDF of this publication (852 kb)

Today we know much more about how children learn than ever before, including the types of motivation and support they need to thrive, the ways that digital media and technology enhance their creativity, and the ways that families and educators, both within and outside of school settings, can share responsibility to facilitate new knowledge and skills for children’s learning. With these exciting developments comes a new challenge, however: Families and educators are no longer faced with just thinking about what children should learn; they also must grapple with where they will learn it.

In this commentary (PDF), Margaret Caspe and M. Elena Lopez consider where learning takes place by exploring how organizations―from schools, to early childhood programs, to museums and libraries―can engage families in different spaces to support children’s learning and promote family well-being. Caspe and Lopez highlight how organizations offer learning opportunities for both children and families by providing them with access to resources, building their social and organizational connections, and creating a climate conducive to learning.

This resource is part of the December FINE Newsletter. The FINE Newsletter shares the newest and best family engagement research and resources from Harvard Family Research Project and other field leaders. To access the archives of past issues, please visit www.hfrp.org/FINENewsletter.