What is MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD®?

• MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® is a nationally recognized and highly acclaimed literacy development program designed to train parents of young children to use selected storybooks and a variety of interactive activities to develop children’s reading, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills.

 What are some of the features of the MOTHEREAD/ FATHEREAD® program?

• Exploits the use of story as a way to teach 
• Uses multicultural children’s books as texts and personal experiences as a basis for learning 
• Is flexible enough to incorporate a variety of teaching and learning styles 
• Uses a learner-centered curriculum based on selected storybooks 
• Emphasizes such child development themes as expressing needs and feelings, understanding what families value, and sharing and cooperating; and such family empowerment themes as problem solving, nurturing, and connecting with others 
• Provides supplemental handouts which guide parents in story-sharing activities with their children 
• Trains parents to assist teachers and schools in the education of their children 
• Provides a way for parents and children to talk to each other in a non-threatening manner and to explore and share needs and feelings 
• Its effectiveness is validated by research and assessment

What are some of the expected outcomes of the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® program? 

• Improves children’s academic skills such as listening, speaking, reading, writing, comprehension, and critical thinking 
• Increases children’s interest in asking questions 
• Creates early positive experiences with books 
• Strengthens family bonds, communication, and relationships 
• Helps parents value and establish reading as a family activity 
• Enhances parents’ own reading skills 
• Increases parents’ patience with their children 
• Helps parents become reading role models for their children

Who is the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® training suited for? 

• The organized training sessions are for adults: parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts&endash;anyone who lives in an environment where they can read to children. 
• The stories and activities are designed primarily for children three years old and up, but certainly are not restricted to this group.

How can the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® program be implemented locally?

• The program can be implemented through any community-based, church-based, organization-based, company-based, private/public school-based group or organization. A volunteer trainer/trainers will work with a group of six to ten parents/adults who will in turn read to their children and engage them in a variety of literacy-promoting activities.

 What is the length of the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® training program for a particular set of adults?

• The duration of the training program for a specific set of parents/adults and the length of individual sessions are flexible, but an example is 8-10 weeks of 1-2 hour sessions each week.

 What language is to be used in the MOTHEREAD/ FATHEREAD® program?

• Current storybooks and guides for story-sharing activities are in English, but the parent-child verbal interactive activities can occur in any language.

 Who are the local trainers for the MOTHEREAD/ FATHEREAD® program?

• The local cadre of volunteer trainers for the program consists of 18 members of the Saipan community who attended a 24-hour training session conducted by MOTHEREAD/ FATHEREAD® Institute trainers held on Saipan in late October, 1998. The local trainers are retired teachers/educators, private business persons, Public School System teachers/specialists, many of whom are parents/grandparents, who will conduct training sessions for parents residing in the CNMI. These parents will in turn read to their children and engage them in various story-sharing activities.

 How is the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® program funded locally?

• To date funding for implementation of the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® program in the CNMI has been provided by the CNMI Council for the Humanities. The funding has covered training, purchase of training guides, and a limited number of storybooks. Grants, donations, and contributions are now being sought from various sources. Such funds will be used to purchase additional storybooks and a limited amount of supplies which will be necessary for fully implementing the program. Any person or organization interested in providing funding for the purchase of storybooks should contact the CNMI Council for the Humanities at 235-4785. Contributions may be eligible for CNMI tax credit.

 How can I find out more about the MOTHEREAD/ FATHEREAD® program?

• For additional information about the MOTHEREAD/FATHEREAD® program, contact the CNMI Council for the Humanities at 235-4785 or any one of the following local trainers:

Angelica C. Atalig Debbie Coats Antonio Leon Guerrero Bertha Q. Leon Guerrero Esco T. Iguel Anna Larson Elizabeth Lambert Maria Lifoifoi Linsa Lizama

Bill Michling Mary Miller Ivan Propst Juanita Propst Alexander A. Sablan Lynn Tenorio Mary Ann A. Tam Keiko Aldan Yamagata Angelina N. Yobech