TIP SHEET

Division of Education and Training 

Two-Generation Family Approaches to 

Citizenship Education 

Naturalization has always involved the whole family. 

From children helping their parents study the 100 

civics test items at the dining table to new citizens 

looking forward to reuniting with family members 

overseas, the naturalization process itself brings 

families together and helps build communities. 

Two-generation or “2Gen” approaches to citizenship 

education is a model of education that involves both 

parents and children in the learning process. At 

the heart of the model is family engagement – and 

with greater engagement, programs achieve greater 

outcomes. 

USCIS 2Gen Citizenship Education Model: 

What can it look like? 

K-12 Citizenship 

Education – i.e. civics 

for children 

A K-12 school is exploring new 

Family Civics Time – 

i.e. field trip to a history 

museum 

Adult Citizenship 

Education – i.e. civics for 

adults 

A nonprofit that provides adult 

ways to engage parents. The school serves a large 

number of immigrants. The parent engagement 

coordinator surveys the parents and sees that 

there is a strong interest in the citizenship 

process and learning the civics content needed 

to pass the naturalization test. They invite their 

local USCIS Community Relations Officer to 

do a presentation on the naturalization process 

during their next parent-teacher association (PTA) 

meeting. After the PTA presentation, teachers and 

the parent engagement coordinator realize that 

they have enough parents interested to hold an 

adult citizenship class. The school reaches out to 

education specialists at the Office of Citizenship 

to help set up a new adult citizenship class after 

parents drop children off in the morning. 

citizenship education in the evening is struggling 

with attendance and retention. They know that 

many of their students have young children at 

home and daycare costs in their city are steep. To 

help improve retention, the teachers offer onsite 

childcare staffed with volunteers. The teachers 

also reach out to education specialists at the Office 

of Citizenship to help align their curriculum for 

adults and children, so both parents and children 

are exposed to the same civics content. Once a 

week they plan an interactive civics activity, such 

as visiting a local history museum, with the entire 

family. 

Two-Generation Family Approaches to Citizenship Education H uscis.gov/citizenship 1 
 

 

 

 

2Gen Citizenship Education Strategies in K-12 

Education: 

• Display a citizenship corner with resources for

parents.

• Contact the Office of Citizenship for any help

setting up programs, materials, and resources.

• Engage PTA groups and invite your local

USCIS Community Relation’s Officer to present

on pathways to naturalization.

• Offer daytime or evening adult citizenship/ ESL

classes for parents.

• Conduct educational family home visits.

2Gen Citizenship Education Strategies in Adult 

Education: 

• Offer onsite childcare to boost retention and tap

into parental motivation.

• Use volunteers to teach civics in childcare

rooms while parents are studying.

• Invite the entire family for educational field

trips and other events.

• Conduct educational family home-visits.

Strategies 

Outcomes: 

• Greater engagement and retention in both K-12 and adult education programs

• Stronger long-term educational outcomes by creating a culture of family learning at home

• Children stop being seen as a barrier but as a motivational asset in adult education

• Diversified avenues for fundraising for organizations

Resources in the field: 

USCIS Program Development Guide - https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/guides/M-677_Program_Development_Guide.pdf

National Center for Families Learning - https://familieslearning.org/

Ascend – The Aspen Institute - https://ascend.aspeninstitute.org/

Migration Policy Institute - https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/serving-immigrant-families-through-two-generation-programsidentifying-family-needs-and

www.uscis.gov/citizenship 

2 Two-Generation Family Approaches to Citizenship Education H uscis.gov/citizenship