For several decades now educators have recognised with great significance the integral role that parents play in their child’s foundational language learning (Cairney & Munsie, 1992, p.1). It has also been suggested that the relationship between school and home factors contributes greatly to the variance within children’s literacy performance (Rowe, 1990; Rutter, Tizzard, & Whitmore, 1970; Thompson, 1985, as cited in Cairney & Munsie, 1995, p.1). This is really evident through Heath’s (1986) study of three communities. Considerable cultural variation was found in the acquisition of oral language and the way in which families introduced children to literacy. Focussing mainly on story reading, Heath was able to collect evidence of considerable differences in community styles of literacy socialisation. The place literacy held in each of these communities prepared children to greater and lesser extents to succeed or fail at school. For example, the children whose home literacy experiences were similar to school literacy experiences, performed well at school because school valorised and rewarded the types of literacy that they had, such as story reading and making meaning

Some topics in this essay:
Cairney Munsie, Literacy Learner, McClintock Lecklider, Whitehouse Colvin, Martin Hagen-Burke, Lazar Slostad, Luke Freebody, LANGUAGE LITERACY, Taylor Adelman, home school, literacy practices, Tizzard Whitmore, literacy experiences, cairney 2000, cairney munsie, school literacy, cairney munsie 1995, language literacy, munsie 1995, munsie 1995 p1, mccarthey 2000, 2000 p8, mccarthey 2000 p8, imposing school literacy, school literacy practices,