Learning literacy skills at home: Parent teaching, expectations, and child interest

The aim of the present study was to test a narrow interpretation of a Home Literacy Model whereby individual differences in child early literacy are best explained in terms of parent teaching behaviours rather than parent expectations and child interest. In the study, parents completed home literacy questionnaires, and 5-year-old children (N = 108) were assessed on measures of interest, alphabet knowledge, and emergent word reading. The results revealed that many parents reported that they adopted a very active didactic role in their young child's early literacy. Moreover, parents tended to have high expectations about their child's acquisition of literacy skills prior to Grade 1. It is important to note that parent teaching as well as parent expectations and child interest each explained unique variance in early literacy after controlling for socioeconomic status and child nonverbal intelligence. Hence, the explanatory power of the Home Literacy Model would be increased if it included parent expectations and child interest