[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuQWMHZybss”]

This school year, nearly 600 families across the Houston area began receiving free lessons in their homes to prepare their children to succeed in HISD schools, before they ever set foot in a classroom.

Parents began participating in the Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) program, which models simple educational activities for parents to practice with their three-, four-, and five-year-old children.

“The mission of the HIPPY program is to empower parents to become teachers in their houses,” said Family and Community Engagement Manager Gabriella Hernandez, in a video about the program.

Forty-four HIPPY home instructors are assigned to communities across the district to enroll families and deliver the HIPPY curriculum. The one-hour weekly lessons span 30 weeks and cover early literacy skills, mathematics, science, fine and gross motor skills, and language development. Research shows that HISD kindergarten students whose parents have participated in the HIPPY program significantly outperform their peers in reading and math.

To learn more about HISD’s HIPPY program, visit www.HoustonISD.org/HIPPY or call 713-967-5298.