You can get assistance, support, and information from these resources:

Organizations and Associations

The Alzheimer's Association (800-272-3900)

The American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (202-783-2242)

The American Association of Retired Persons (202-434-3525)

Children of Aging Parents (215-945-6900)

National Family Caregivers Association (800-896-3650).

The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (602-881-4005)

The National Alliance for Caregiving (301-718-8444)

The National Association for Area Agencies on Aging/Eldercare Locator (800-677-1116)

The National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers (602-881-8008)

America Online 800-827-6364

CompuServe 800-848-8199

AARP Grandparent Information Center (AARP GIC)
601 E Street NW
Washington, DC 20049
Phone: (202) 434-2296
Fax: (202) 434-6470
E-mail: gic@aarp.org
URL: http://www.aarp.org/confacts/programs/gic.html

The AARP GIC is a program of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). The GIC is a primary resource for grandparents in traditional and non-traditional family roles, including grandparents raising grandchildren and step-grandparents. Among the topics addressed are grandparents traveling with grandchildren, the visitation rights of grandparents, parenting grandchildren, and grandparent support groups.

NCPIE – National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education
This organization’s mission is to advocate the involvement of parents and families in their children’s education, and to foster relationships between home, school, and community to enhance education of all our nation’s young people.

Thrive by Five
http://www.creditunion.coop/thriveby5/index.html
 
if additional resource contact info is necessary:
 
Philip Heckman, DE
Director of Youth Programs
Center for Personal Finance 
Credit Union National Association, Inc. (CUNA)
P.O. Box 431 (53701-0431)
5710 Mineral Point Road (53705-4454)
Madison, WI
pheckman@cuna.coop
Phone: 800-356-9655, ext. 4088
Fax: 608-231-4370    

Specific Web Sites

Center for Parent Education and Family Support

This is a Web Site article that deals with development stages of parenting and family life.  In this particular research study, different stages of childhood learning is discussed.  Building Block 6 specifically talks about working with families with grandchildren.  The Center for Parent Education and Family Support is a program of development, family studies and early childhood education.  The mission of the Center for Parent Education, which is located and based in the University of North Texas, is to support parent and family educators, family support professionals, and students through research, education, involvement, and child and family policy inquiry.  Log on to www.cpe.unt.edu for further information.

WWW.LEGACYPROJECT.ORG

This website contains information regarding intergenerational mentoring.  Under Grandparents Day Activity Kit, many important points are discussed such as multigenerational mentoring, long term goals, and other issues that relates to the interfacing between grandparents and grandchildren.

This Web Site information focuses on the importance of mobilizing older adults to build strong communities.  This 43 page resource was made possible by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.  For further information, please visit www.aecf.org or www.temple.edu

WWW.CENTERFFS.ORG
Center for Family Services

The Bunbury Company has provided a $10,000 grant to support Together Across Generations (TAG) – a program designed to support multi-generational families.  One example pertains to Camden County, New Jersey.  In this county, 13,000 grandparents have children living with them and 43% of them have primary responsibility for those children.  The TAG Program connects these families with services that they may not be aware exist within their community.

Magazines, Journals and Articles

The Sandwich Generation Magazine – The Sandwich Generation, P.O. Box 132  Wichatunk, NJ  07765-0132, $14.00 for annual subscription

Kostelecky, K. L., & Bass, B. L. (2004). Grandmothers and their granddaughters:  Connected relationships. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 2(1), 47-61.
Keywords: family roles/ grandparents
Abstract: The present study applied Weiss's theoretical framework to better understand interpersonal relationships between grandmothers and their young adult granddaughters. The questions that were of primary focus for the research addressed importance of the relationship provisions, predictors of relationship satisfaction, and variability in importance of closeness and instrumental support. The sample consisted of 48 grandmother-adult granddaughter pairs where the granddaughter was an undergraduate student at a Midwestern university. The Furman and Buhrmester Network of Relationships Inventory (NRI) was used to examine the relationships between grandmothers and their granddaughters. Grandmothers and granddaughters rated the perceived level of admiration, affection, reliable alliance, and relationship satisfaction higher in their relationship with each other than the other relationship provisions. Reliable alliance was rated as the highest relationship provision for grandmothers and granddaughters with the lowest rated being intimacy. The results of ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analyses show that these intergenerational relationships vary along provisions of closeness and instrumental support when predicting relationship satisfaction. These results suggest that programs designed to link generations of women should take into consideration the variability of their relationships.

Dellmann-Jenkins, M., Blankemeyer, M., & Olesh, M. (2002). Adults in expanded grandparent roles:  Considerations for practice, policy, and research. Educational Gerontology, 28, 219-235.
Keywords: grandparents raising grandchildren
Abstract: The primary goal of this article is to provide a representative picture of 1) the circumstances surrounding grandparents' acquisition of the surrogate parent role; 2) the consequences of the caregiving roles for the older generation (positive as well as negative outcomes); and 3) recommendations of types of support that would be most helpful for grandparents raising grandchildren. 

Fetterman, D. J. (2002). Grandparents and Other Relatives Who are Raising Children: A Training Curriculum Resource for Professionals. Pittsburgh, PA: Generations Together, University of Pittsburgh.
Keywords: grandparents raising grandchildren/ how-to/ 
Abstract: This training curriculum provides some basic information that combines theoretical, philosophical, and practical elements. It is designed for professionals who work with kinship caregivers and the children whom they are raising. It includes information about who these families are, the needs they have, and how professionals can use this knowledge to positively affect their practice with this group. In addition, information on aging, census data, and fact sheets are included.

Glass, J. C., & Huneycutt, T. L. (2002). Grandparents parenting grandchildren:  Extent of situation, issues involved, and educational implications. Educational Gerontology, 28, 139-161.
Keywords: grandparents raising grandchildren
Abstract: The number of grandparents who are parenting their grandchildren is growing.  This paper examines the extent of this phenomenon and examines some of the issues these grandparents face this "second time around" in parenting.  Implications for the educational community are discussed.

Hauptman, H. Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. H. Hauptman (Producer)Terra Nova Films.
Keywords: grandparents raising grandchildren/ video
Abstract: A 25-minute film based on a grandmother's support group.  Addresses the mental adjustment of children, difficulties of children with disabilities, changes in the grandparents' lives, and their need for respite and support networks.  This video explores the newly emerging issue by sharing the stories of 4 grandparents who are raising their grandchildren.  The video examines, through the stories that are shared in support groups, the major issues facing a grandparent as a parent.  The video should be seen by all grandparents who are facing the prospect of caring full time for grandchildren and by those who have already become the primary caregiver.  Help and support are available, and this video can serve as a guide and an encouragement to grandparents who parent.

Surrounded With Love:  Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. Terra Nova Films (Producer).
Keywords: grandparents raising grandchildren/ video
Abstract: Explores both the positive and negative feelings of the parenting grandparent - the hard work, the challenges, and the added responsibilities.  Often, the grandparent is also having to come to terms with the behavior of their own child and whatever feelings of guilt ensue.  Through the reflections of the grandparents themselves and through commentaries by professionals (including Fernando Torres-Gil, former Assistant Secretary of Aging), these issues are examined, and practical solutions are recommended.  The children's viewpoint is also heard in this video:  "It's sort of weird living with my grandma, but I like it a lot.  I'd rather be there than anywhere else."

Going to Grandma's House...To Live. The Parent Place (Producer)Springfield, IL: The Parent Place, Springfield,  IL.
Keywords: grandparents raising grandchildren/ video
Abstract: 18-minute video interview with several grandparent caregivers about their situation.

Web Sites, Government Agencies and Organizations

AARP
Grandparent Information Center
601 E Street NW
Washington DC 20049
Voice: 800-424-3410
Fax: 202-434-6470
Contact: Margaret Hollidge, Sr Program Coordinator
Web Address: www.aarp.org/grandparents/

Resource Title: Welfare Reform and Your Family
Price: Free
Description: An examination of how welfare reform has affected grandparents raising grandchildren.

Resource Title: Grandparents Raising Their Grandchildren: What to Consider and Where to Find Help
Price: Free
Description: An online resource for grandparents who are sole caregivers for grandchildren.

Resource Title: Parenting Grandchildren: A Voice for Grandparents
Price: Free
Description: A newsletter written to meet the needs of grandparents who are raising their grandchildren and professionals who serve them.

Resource Title: Support Groups for Raising Grandchildren
Price: Free
Description: A web page dedicated to helping grandparents who are sole caregivers for their grandchildren join and form support groups.

Center for Law and Education
1875 Connecticut Ave NW
Suite 510
Washington DC 20009
Voice: 202-986-3000
Fax: 202-986-6648
Web Address: cleweb.org

Resource Title: Parents are Powerful
Price: $2. Bulk orders available for as low as $1 per copy.
Description: 32 pages. 1997. A full-color guide written for a general parent audience, it gives parents practical advice to guide their children from preschool through high school. It also informs them of their rights and what to expect from key federal programs like Title I, IDEA, and Vocational Education. Available in Spanish.

Resource Title: Powerful Schools Handbook: Starting and Running a Collaborative School Improvement Program
Price: $19.95
Description: 148 pp. This is a true grassroots guide to organizing in neighborhoods to make schools and communities stronger. It is based on the experience of four public elementary schools and several community groups in Seattle, Wash., but its message is universal. The Powerful Schools Handbook tells how to start an effort to improve student performance while building stronger communities; outlines fundraising and managing volunteers; describes family involvement and community involvement; and explains the role of community schools and their adult education programs in improving outcomes for children. It also includes samples of all the materials used by Powerful Schools. Published by One Court Street Press.

Resource Title: Urgent Message for Parents
Price: $3 single copy. See order form for discounts on multiple copies.
Author: Anne Henderson, Anne Lewis, Kathy Boundy, Paul Weckstein, Larry Searcy
Description: 16 pp. In English. 2000. This guide answers parents' questions about standards -- what do they mean for my child, what if my child didn't pass the test, how can I help my children learn what they need to know? It gives examples of high and low level student work, explains the difference between the new and the old tests, and tells how families can improve student achievement. This is an excellent resource for staff development, parent training and conferences.

Center for the Improvement of Child Caring
11331 Ventura Blvd
Suite 103
Studio City CA 91604
Voice: 800-325-2422
Fax: 818-753-1054
Web Address: www.ciccparenting.org

Resource Title: The Power of Positive Parenting: Ten Guidelines for Raising Healthy and Confident Children
Author: Kerby T. Alvy, Ph.D
Description: 2000, 36 pages This guidebook provides standards and suggested parenting practices for building more positive and nurturing relationships with children, disciplining in ways that bring about greater cooperation without having to resort to yelling, screaming, threatening or spanking, preparing children for successful school and work experiences, and supporting their formal education, helping children relate productively to the multi-cultural world of today's schools and work settings, modeling practices and life styles that increase their children's overall chances of health and happiness. Available in English and Spanish.

Resource Title: A Study of the Parent Involvement and Parenting Program Activities at the Elementary Schools of the North Hollywood and Polytechnic Families of Schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District
Description: July 2000, 55 pages. Report.

Resource Title: A Study of the Parent Involvement and Parenting Program Activities at the Middle, High, Adult and Preschools at the Norwalk Unified School District in Los Angeles County
Description: February 1999, 51 pages.

Resource Title: Black Parenting: Strategies for Training
Author: Kerby T. Alvy, Ph.D
Description: 260 pages.

Resource Title: Helping Palm Beach Parents: A Study of the Parent Education and Parent Involvement Programs and Activities of Palm Beach Institutions and a Plan for a Comprehensive Effective Parenting Project
Description: October 2000, 117 pages and a 100 page Appendix.

Resource Title: Parent Training Today: A Social Necessity
Author: Kerby T. Alvy, Ph.D
Description: 377 pages. A comprehensive guidebook for Parent Training. Covers numerous issues, including:. changing family contexts in which America's children are being raised, modern parent training programs that teach effective parenting, the numerous responsibilities and challenges of contemporary parents, what propels children and parents to behave the way they do, benefits of parent training programs for parents, children, families, communities, what is known scientifically about effective parenting. Also offers guidelines for how various segments of our society - the media, churches, schools, businesses and government - can work together to provide parents with the kinds of training that are necessary for survival and achievement in the 1990s and beyond.

Center on School, Family and Community Partnerships
Johns Hopkins University
3505 North Charles Street
Baltimore MD 21218
Voice: 410-516-8807
Fax: 410-516-8890
Contact: Joyce Epstein
Web Address: scov.csos.jhu.edu/p2000/center.htm

Resource Title: Reprints of Research and Practice Recommendations
Price: Prices range from $.50 to $8.
Description: The Center makes available a large number of articles and reprints from other magazines and publications on topics ranging from research on partnership development to surveys of existing practices.

Children’s Aid Society
105 East 22nd Street
New York NY 10010
Voice: 212-949-4800
Fax: 917-286-1580
Contact: Sarah Jonas, Director of Curriculum
Contact E-mail: sarahj@childrensaidsociety.org
Web Address: www.childrensaidsociety.org

Resource Title: Building A Community School
Description: A description of the Children's Aid Society community school model and a workbook/guide on to how to start a community school in your own community.

Resource Title: CAS News
Price: Free
Description: A newsletter for friends and supporters of the Children's Aid Society. Read about Children's Aid's amazing array of arts programs, the innovative Medicaid Enrollment project, and other society happenings.

National Parent Teacher Association
1090 Vermont Ave
Suite 1200
Washington DC 20005
Voice: 202-289-6790
Fax: 202-289-6791
Contact: Parent Involvement Coordinator
Contact E-mail: PICertification@pta.org
Web Address: www.pta.org

Resource Title: Parents Guide to the Information Superhighway
Price: $5.00
Description: Offers a simple step-by-step introduction to parenting in the online world. This guide is a starter "tool kit" to introduce parents to technology in an online world and provide some tools and rules for use with children at home, at school, and in the community. Developed in conjunction with National PTA and the National Urban League, with advisors including the American Library Association.

Resource Title: Building Successful Partnerships: National PTA's Parent Involvement Initiative
Price: $18.95
Description: Schools with strong parent involvement programs experience profound benefits for students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Research shows that when parents are involved in students' education, those students generally have higher grades and test scores, better attendance, and more consistently completed homework. Building Successful Partnerships is a multifaceted program focused on increasing awareness and implementation of the National Standards for Parent /Family Involvement Programs. This implementation guidebook is a comprehensive resource for parents, educators, communities, schools, designed to provide the foundation for developing a quality parent involvement program.

Resource Title: National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Booklet
Description: Voluntary guidelines to strengthen parent and family involvement on behalf of children in schools and other programs. The six standards and their quality indicators provide PTAs, schools, and communities with the components that are needed for highly effective parent/family involvement programs.

Resource Title: Our Children
Price: $10 (Members), $20 (Non-Members)
Description: The official magazine of National PTA. Published bimonthly, it provides information and ideas on how to make households, neighborhoods, schools, and communities better places for children. Our Children offers a variety of exciting new features and columns, including "Our PTA," a special center section devoted entirely to the work of parents and PTAs across the country, "What's Happening in Washington," information on how to help adults advocate on behalf of children, "Chalkboard," stories told from the perspective of educators, and "Frontlines," the latest news, facts, and people affecting children and youth.

National Urban League
120 Wall Street
New York NY 10005
Voice: 212-558-5300
Fax: 212-344-5332
Contact: Katrina D. Mitchell, Manager
Contact E-mail: kmitchell@nul.org
Web Address: www.nul.org

Resource Title: Read & Rise: Preparing Our Children For A Lifetime of Success
Price: FREE - While Supplies Last
Author: NUL & Scholastic
Description: Read and Rise is a resource guide that offers research-based information and practical tips to help you engage your child in reading and literacy-building activities. The guide is divided by age and grade. Each section includes: An Introduction, where you will find brief, research-based information on the common literacy behaviors by age and grade. A list of Milestones, important literacy goals that your child should be able to achieve at each age and by the end of each grade. Try This!, ideas and activities that can help you help your child gain the skills needed to become a successful reader. And Book Nook, which presents five basic features to look for when choosing books for your child.

Resource Title: Read & Rise Magazine
Price: FREE - While Supplies Last
Author: NUL & Scholastic
Description: As a publication, the magazine is primarily targeted to African-American children, ages 3-5 and promotes a pride of heritage while introducing young children to basic concepts that are important tools for reading and literacy development. Through a variety of stories, poems and other activities, parents and caregivers have the opportunity to explore concepts of print with young children, helping them to develop phonemic and phonological awareness and gain a fundamental understanding of the alphabet. It also provides research-based information on the range of practical ways parents can foster their children’s reading and literacy development, in easy-to-understand language, while providing them with ideas for games and activities that they can do with their children. Designed to be fun as well as educational, the magazine also offers an introduction to the world at large, from stories about nature and science, to whimsical pieces about people in the neighborhood.

Reading Is Fundamental, Inc. ®
1825 Connecticut Avenue NW
Suite 400
Washington DC 20009
Voice: 202-287-3220, 877-RIF-READ
Fax: 202-287-3196
Contact: Corrie Fisher, Senior Program Specialist
Web Address: www.rif.org

Resource Title: Becoming A Family of Readers
Description: This video features parents and their children modeling book sharing and encouraging viewers to become involved in family literacy programs. Co-produced by RIF® and Literacy Volunteers of America.

Resource Title: Helping Your Children Become Readers
Description: This flyer features ten reading tips in easy-to-read language. Available in English and Spanish. Purchase includes RIF's permission to duplicate and distribute unlimited copies, so long as they are free of charge.

Resource Title: Parent Brochures from Reading is Fundamental, Inc.
Description: These pocket-size items are for parents who want their children to grow up reading. Titles include Choosing Good Books For Children; Family Storytelling; Reading Aloud to your Children and Summertime Reading.

U.S. Department of Education*
Office of Civil Rights
330 C Street SW
Washington DC 20202
Voice: 202-205-9220
Fax: 202-205-9677
Contact: Rosemary Fennell, Sr. Program Analyst, Office of Elementary & Secondary Education (OESE), Student Achievement, School Accountability Programs (SASA)
Web Address: www.ed.gov

Resource Title: Teenage Pregnancy and Parenthood Issues
Price: Free
Description: Code No.20 (1992). 14 pages.. This pamphlet is for elementary and secondary school administrators, teachers, counselors, parents, and students. It describes school retention problems associated with teenage pregnancy and parenthood and requirements pertaining to these issues in the regulations implementing Title IX. Information is included on approaches and programs that schools have developed to address the educational needs of students who are pregnant or married, or have children.

Resource Title: School-Home Links Reading Kit
Price: Free
Description: (February 1999) This kit contains four booklets of research-based reading activities in English and Spanish for children in kindergarten through third grade. Each booklet includes 100 activities that families can use at home and tutors can use in before and after school programs to help children increase their reading skills and achievement.

Resource Title: Strengthening Your Child's Academic Future
Price: Free
Description: Discusses the importance of high academic standards and provides sample questions that parents can ask teachers and administrators about the academic expectations in their children's schools.

Resource Title: Summer Home Learning Recipes -- U.S. Department of Education Partnership for Family Involvement in Education
Price: Free
Description: To help parents become better teachers, we've compiled fun and engaging learning activities they can try with their children during the summer months. Our four different brochures are age and grade appropriate and offer great new ideas for developing math, reading, and science skills!

Resource Title: Questions Parents Ask About Schools
Price: Free
Description: This easy-to-read question and answer booklet discusses teachers' expectations and student workload at each grade level, how parents can help their children succeed in the classroom, safety issues in schools, steps for college preparation, and much more. Available in English and Spanish.

Resource Title: READ * WRITE * NOW! Series
Price: Free
Description: These materials, available in both English and Spanish, are available to help children build their reading skills outside of school, especially during the summer months.

Resource Title: Safe & Smart: Making After-School Hours Work for Kids
Price: Free
Description: (June 1998) This report, jointly authored by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice, highlights research evidence on the potential of after-school programs to increase the safety of children, reduce their risk-taking, and improve learning. Find out more about the evidence of success for after-school activities, key components of high-quality programs and effective program practices, and how communities are meeting their local needs for after-school activities.

Resource Title: The Partnership for Family Involvement in Education: Who We Are and What We Do
Price: Free
Description: Partner organizations, alliances and individuals are developing and implementing effective family involvement practices in education. They are encouraging mutual responsibility at home and at school and throughout the community to give students a better education and start in life. Examples of partners' efforts, resources, and information are included in this publication.

Resource Title: Preparing Your Child for College (1996-97)
Price: Free
Description: It's never too late to think about college -- both the benefits of a college education and the ways to put college within reach academically and financially. Throughout their school years, students make academic and extra-curricular decisions that affect whether they will be eligible to enter college. This resource book is designed to help you with the process of preparing for higher education.

Resource Title: Putting Standards into Action
Price: Free
Description: This video helps parents understand what academic standards are and what they can do to help children reach them. This video is produced by the National Urban League, Inc. and the U.S. Department of Education.

Resource Title: Helping Your Child Series
Price: Free
Description: Available in Spanish & English. This series addresses ways parents can help schools meet the National Education Goals. Brochures cover a variety of subject areas, including:

Helping Your Child Become a Reader
Offers pointers on how to build the language skills of young children, from infancy to age six. This booklet provides numerous activities you can do to boost your child's love of reading. Includes a list of typical language accomplishments for different age groups; suggestions for books your child will love; and resources for children with reading problems or learning disabilities.

Helping Your Child Learn Math
Contains activities that parents can use to help their elementary school-aged children learn math. This booklet suggests activities that involve materials found inside the home and explains how to make learning experiences out of everyday routines, such as grocery shopping and cooking.
Helping Your Child Learn History
Provides a tool for parents to help stimulate their children's active involvement in learning about the history that surrounds them every day.

Helping Your Child With Homework
Helps parents of elementary and junior high school students understand the purpose and nature of homework and makes suggestions for helping their children complete homework assignments successfully.
Helping Your Child Use the Library
Encourages parents to awaken their children to the joy of learning by teaching them how to use the library.

Helping Your Child Learn Science
Provides examples of a few simple scientific activities that parents can do with children 3 to 10 years old to interest them in science. This booklet defines being scientific as being curious, being observant, asking how things happen, and learning how to find the answers.

Helping Your Child Get Ready for School
Offers ways that parents can help their preschool children grow, develop, and have fun learning.

Resource Title: Parent Involvement in Children's Education: Efforts by Public Elementary Schools
Price: Free
Description: (January 1998) This report by the National Center for Education Statistics provides interesting and informative statistics on the extent to which schools and families reach out to one another.

Resource Title: Parents' Guide to the Internet
Price: Free
Description: Provides parents with strategies for navigating the Internet, which is an important educational tool. This guide gives parents an introduction to the World Wide Web, simplifies the often overwhelming amount of consumer information, explains how to locate information and communicate with others using the Internet, and offers ideas parents can use to help their children maximize the benefits of the Internet.

Resource Title: Fathers' Involvement in Their Children's Schools
Price: Free
Description: (October 1997) This report by the National Center for Education Statistics discusses the extent to which resident and nonresident fathers are involved in their children's schools and examines the influence of their involvement on student achievement.

Resource Title: Fathers Matter! Involving Fathers in Children's Learning
Price: Free
Description: This kit is for educators and other professionals who are working to increase family involvement in education. It outlines strategies for involving fathers in children's learning at home, at school, and in the community.

Resource Title: Growing Up DRUG-FREE: A Parent's Guide to Prevention
Price: Free
Description: Provides information that parents can use to help keep their children drug free. This publication outlines what children should know about drugs and suggests family activities that can reinforce children's motivation to avoid drugs and alcohol.

Resource Title: Employers, Families and Education
Price: Free
Description: With examples and illustrations, this publication demonstrates the need for family involvement in education and ways in which companies can better develop family-friendly workplaces.

Resource Title: Family Involvement in Children's Education: Successful Local Approaches
Price: Free
Description: (October 1997) Intended to assist educators, parents, and policy makers as they develop and nurture school-family partnerships, this idea book identifies and describes successful strategies used by 20 local Title I programs that have overcome barriers to parent involvement.

Resource Title: Family Involvement in Education: A National Portrait
Price: Free
Description: Showcasing findings from a new analysis of data, this publication provides parents with a checklist to assess their own issues of family involvement. This is a great resource for both families and educators interested in bridging the gap between home and school.

Resource Title: A Compact for Learning: An Action Handbook for Family-School- Community Partnerships
Price: Free
Description: (December 1997) This resource can help teams of school staff, teachers, parents, and others develop and use a compact that outlines the shared responsibilities of school partners for children's learning. The guidebook and its activity sheets engage partners in a continuous improvement process to build and strengthen partnerships for learning.

Resource Title: Early Childhood Digest
Price: Free
Description: This quarterly newsletter provides information based on research conducted by the Harvard Family Research Project, which studies programs and policies in education and child care that support families. See especially the following back issues: (May 1999) Helping Parents Communicate Better with Schools, (March 1998) Families and Teachers as Partners.

Resource Title: Early Warning Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools
Price: Free
Description: This resource outlines early warning signs that can help adults identify and reach out to troubled children quickly and effectively to reduce the likelihood of school violence. This guide was jointly issued by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice and was introduced to the nation by President Clinton.

Resource Title: A Call to Commitment: Fathers' Involvement in Children's Learning
Price: Free
Description: There is overwhelming evidence that a parent's involvement in a child's education makes a very positive difference. In the past, often an unstated assumption was made that "parent involvement" meant "mothers' involvement." New research shows that the involvement of both mother and father is important.

Resource Title: Challenge Young Minds: 50 Ways to Better Education
Price: Free
Description: Describes 50 simple ways to help improve children's education and contains activities for parents and family members; employers; teachers, administrators, and principals; and community members, neighbors, and concerned citizens. This booklet was produced by the Education Excellence Partnership.

Resource Title: Community Update
Price: Free
Description: This monthly newsletter contains lots of valuable information -- examples of what communities across the country are doing to improve schools; listings of resources, services, publications, and upcoming events; and summaries of the latest research in education. Search current or back issues online or become one of over 200,000 subscribers.

Books and Literature

The Grandparent Guide by Arthur Kornhaber, Publisher-McGraw-Hill Professional, September 1, 2002, 400 pages, $30.00 (Available at Amazon.com, Froogle, Barnes and Noble, and BookSense.com) Gone are the days when your role as a grandparent was easily definable as the provider of homemade cookies and a quick game of catch. Times have changed, and so have grandparents. You're healthier, wealthier, younger, and smarter than any previous generation. Families have also become far more diverse and complex, making the role of grandparent more complicated, unclear, and confusing. Fortunately, Arthur Kornhaber, M.D., can help you through the experience with The Grandparent Guide.

The Cambridge Handbook of Age and Ageing, edited by Malcolm L. Johnson, edited in association with Vern L. Bengtson (University of Southern California), Peter G. Coleman (University of Southampton) and Thomas B. L. Kirkwood (University of Newcastle Upon Tyne), December 2005, 770 pages, $55.00 (Available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, BookSense.com and Froogle) Emphasis on the subject can be found in parts 3.4, 4.5, 5.2, 5.6, and 6.4 respectively.

Welcoming Our Children to a New Millenium – A Daybook of Hopes and Wishes for the Future by Jane Middelton-Moz, Ph.D., Health Communications, 350 pages, $12.95 (Available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Froogle, and other fine bookstores everywhere)

Global Aging and Challenges to Families edited by Vern L. Bengtson, Ariela Lowenstein, Publisher Aldine Transaction, 387 pages, $25.00 (Available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Froogle, BookSense.com)  This volume focuses on the emerging consequences of global aging for families and for the well-being of elders in those families. Contributors examine the changing life course, and trace an astonishing change over recent decades in the expected, traditional life course of individuals, especially in industrialized societies. They also examine worldwide changes in families and family structures that have occurred over the past fifty years: some due to a changing life course; others, to the consequence of remarkable changes in the average family structure; still others, to the result of changes in values and political expectations regarding the role of the state in individuals’ lives.  

Community Resources for Older Adults: Programs and Services in an Era of Change (Hardcover) by Robbyn R. Wacker, Karen A. Roberto, Linda E. Piper, Pine Forge Press (Available at Amazon.com, Froogle, Barnes and Noble, BookSense.com, and other fine bookstores everywhere) By the year 2030, older Americans will make up nearly one quarter of the population. The rapid growth of this population segment puts increased importance on the analysis of existing social policy regarding the responsibilities of caring for older adults. This book provides a comprehensive overview of current community resources available to elderly Americans, including both public and private programs.