This brief explores some of the evidence supporting approaches to family engagement that are effective methods of improving academic achievement. It also includes an overview of different types of family engagement, including case study examples of promising practices and recommendations for parents, school personnel, program officials, and…

This article focuses on intergenerational communication and provides a practical approach for how teachers and administrators can implement intergenerational programs in their schools. A discussion of the social and cultural implications of intergenerational communication is offered, and a review of literature regarding intergenerational programs…

The person most critical to the success of teachers is the building principal. The person most critical to student learning is the teacher. Too often, though, principals and teachers lack the time, resources, and sometimes the skills and abilities to focus on student learning. Principals and teachers in school with limited financial and human…

Few people are willing to admit that senior adults and young children share many common characteristics, including: (1) changes in development; (2) need for companionship; and (3) the desire to be understood. These two groups are connected mostly through direct interaction with middle-aged adults. One very practical way to build a greater sense of…

A suburban Cook County (Illinois) school district has tapped an invaluable community resource--senior citizens--for two generations' mutual enrichment. Senior Exchange gives residents over 54 a chance to help schools while earning money to pay the portion of their property tax bill supporting schools. Other intergenerational exchanges include…

Describes the programs and activities of Generations Together, an agency that promotes mutually beneficial interactions between young and old. Lists six program elements and discusses outcomes. (CH)

Older volunteers are helping urban students in developing the confidence and skills to succeed. Older adults, with their life experience and strong commitment to social service, can make a special contribution in underfunded and understaffed urban schools.

What happens when you combine senior citizens, pre-service art teachers, and elementary students? Cross-generational connections based on sharing memories, ideas, skills, laughter, tears, and creativity. The authors describe the cross-generational book exchange project. This project was initiated when a group of Central Michigan University (CMU)…

The SMILES (Senior Motivators in Learning and Educational Services) program was initiated in 1977 by Salt Lake City School Volunteers, Inc., a nonprofit organization working with the Salt Lake City School District, as an addition to an established, successful school volunteer program. The purpose of the SMILES program is to recruit and train older…

Describes an innovative intergenerational pilot project, Team Work, in Northern Virginia in which older adult volunteers help disabled young people progress toward secure competitive employment. (BB)

Involvement in community service can benefit middle-school students by helping them feel valued, teaching responsibility, and improving teacher-student relations. A rural Pennsylvania middle school evaluated community-service opportunities and then employed StarServe, a resource kit encouraging students to develop their own service projects.…

Both senior volunteers and learning disabled preschool children benefitted from the Grandparents Read to Me Project in Lakewood, Ohio. Seniors rarely missed a session and the children began to select books over toys during free time and ask their parents to buy books and read to them at home. (CB)

This document contains 19 papers on volunteerism presented at a conference on aging. The papers, grouped into themes of trends and implications, resourceful roles, resources, and an agenda for the future, include the following: "Demographic Potential and the Quiet Revolution" (Opening Remarks by Robert A. Harootyan); "Volunteers in the 1990s"…

Describes a 9-month intergenerational program designed to establish a more intimate involvement between a group of 25 fourth graders and 25 elderly volunteers from Senior Neighbors, a multipurpose senior citizens center. Presents the format used to organize the project and identifies ongoing activities and program benefits. (Author/PVV)

Describes an Adopt-a-Grandparent program involving seventh-grade students and area senior citizens. Describes aspects of program implementation and organization, including advance preparation, contacting and meeting grandparents, funding, and visits. Discusses program outcomes, including behavioral observations, studies related to…