#43 Leveraging Family and Cultural Insights to Enhance Literacy with Judy Paulick

Make It Mindful: An Education Podcast

In this episode of Make It Mindful, host Seth Fleischauer dives into the intersection of literacy, family engagement, and cultural responsiveness with Judy Paulick, Associate Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Virginia. As part of the 2024 National Literacy Month and in partnership with Reading Is Fundamental, Judy shares how to create transformative educational experiences by understanding and leveraging the cultural and literacy assets of students' families. She explores how home visits, family engagement, and asset-based approaches can reshape literacy instruction to meet the needs of all learners.

Key Topics Discussed:

• The importance of asset-based home visits and how they can deepen teacher-student-family connections.
• How family engagement enriches literacy practices by incorporating storytelling, cultural values, and everyday literacy activities from home.
• Strategies for teachers who may not have access to home visits but still want to leverage family assets in the classroom.
• Using culturally responsive teaching techniques to create a classroom environment where every student sees themselves in the curriculum.
• The challenges and opportunities AI presents in education, particularly around culturally relevant pedagogy and differentiation.

Call to Action:

For more practical, transformative solutions to teaching that emphasize mindfulness and cultural competence, be sure to listen to the full episode! Learn about the tools and strategies Judy Paulick shares that can help educators build stronger connections with their students and communities.

Guest Bio:

Judy Paulick is an Associate Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Virginia. She specializes in language arts instruction and family engagement, with a focus on equity and culturally responsive teaching. Judy's work emphasizes the importance of recognizing and leveraging family and community assets to enrich classroom learning.

Episode Links:

• Reading Is Fundamental (RIF): www.rif.org
• Parent Teacher Home Visits: pthvp.org
• Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk on the Single Story: Watch here

Host Links:

• Seth Fleischauer: Learn more about Seth’s work at Banyan Global Learning, where he helps educators bring cultural and digital competence and transformative learning into classrooms worldwide.