CREATIVE FATHERHOOD BEHIND BARS: THE READ TO YOUR CHILD PROGRAM

with their children, but also encourage children’s learning and literacy development through creative means. Research on such programs, however, is scarce. This article presents an analysis of one such family literacy program operating in a rural Pennsylvania prison. Using qualitative data, the authors describe the Read to Your Child/Grandchild (RYCG) program and the experiences of the 11 fathers who participated in the program in fall 2018. The article examines how the program bridges gaps between fathers and children in communication, physical presence, and literacy development; the unique benefits the


INTRODUCTION
"…it's hard to get creative with things when it comes to a child when you're in prison.
Because the environment sort of dampens your imagination, you know, and your creativity." (John, 2019) John and ten other incarcerated fathers had various reasons for joining the Read to Your Child/Grandchild (RYCG) Family Literacy Program at a rural Pennsylvania prison. Some men wanted to better connect with their children (both those they knew well and those they had never met or barely knew); some wanted to be more "present" in their children's lives, even if not physically present; and some wanted to create lasting artifacts that children could enjoy over and over (Prins, Stickel, & Kaiper-Marquez, 2020). However, all these fathers agreed that this program offered, or afforded, a means of creativity and connection that is otherwise unheard of in the prison system (Stickel, Prins, & Kaiper-Marquez, accepted).
As John noted in the above quotation, prison is a place that "dampens your imagination…and your creativity." Although prisons, both in the U.S. and internationally, have implemented programs to foster inmates' creativity and capacity for learning (e.g., Brewster, 2014;Tett, Anderson, McNeill, Overy, & Sparks, 2016), and many of these programs are positively related to inmates' attitudes, self-discipline, and greater participation in prison programs (Brewster, 2014;Cohen, 2009;Stevens, 2000), there is little research on parents' experiences in and perceptions of these programs. Consequently, this paper seeks to answer the following questions: How does RYCG support the creativity of incarcerated fathers? What affordances do the various program components offer the fathers? Lastly, how do incarcerated fathers perceive ways that RYCG shapes their relationships with their children?
The RYCG program was created over a decade ago and is offered in most state correctional institutions (SCIs) in Pennsylvania. RYCG's aims are to offer incarcerated individuals and their children/grandchildren shared literacy experiences while stressing the importance of family literacy for enriching one's life (PA DOC, 2013) and to maintain a foundational connection between the incarcerated individuals and their children/grandchildren, one that they may build upon after release (PA DOC 2019a). Participants select one or more books, provided by the SCI, for their child/ren (aged 12 or under) and are video recorded reading the book aloud. During the recording, participants can add a personal message to their child. Parents may make one video per household, but children in the same household may each receive a book. At this SCI, the fathers also make individualized scrapbooks for each child.
These scrapbooks, the DVD, and book are sent to the child, pending the custodial caregiver's consent.
Drawing from observations and interviews with program participants, this article describes how the multiple affordances of the program helped foster fathers' creativity and attempts to connect with their children. We argue that with a program such as RYCG, particularly with the affordances its components offer, fathers are able to reinforce the importance of education and literacy practices for their children, establish ways to be present in their children's lives while not physically being near them, and find outlets for their own creativity that they can share with their children

PARENTAL INCARCERATION IN THE U.S.
In 2017, there were more than 2.2 million people incarcerated in the USA, including 1.49 million in state and federal prisons (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2019a) and 745,000 in local jails (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2019b). Of these, over one half were parents to minor children (Glaze & Maruschak, 2010). In addition, more than 2.7 million children currently have a parent behind bars (Pew Charitable Trusts, 2010). In Pennsylvania, where this study takes place, two-thirds of incarcerated individuals are parents (PA DOC, 2019b).
Parental incarceration has a range of consequences for children, including lower high school GPA (maternal incarceration only; Hagan & Foster, 2012), lower non-cognitive school readiness (Haskins, 2014), greater likelihood of becoming justice-involved (Conway & Jones, 2015), increased externalizing behavioral problems (Geller et al., 2012), decreased reading scores (DeHart, Shapiro, & Hardin, 2017), and lower educational attainment as adults (Mears & Siennick, 2016). As a response to rising parental incarceration and concerns about its effects on parents and children (particularly children's education), prisons, non-profits, and other

FAMILY LITERACY
Outside of carceral settings, FL programs and practices have been found to support children's school success (Paratore, 2001), writing development (Crain-Thoreson & Dale, 1999), and later educational and literacy outcomes as teenagers and adults (Desforges & Abouchaar, 2003). While there is significantly less research on FL programs for incarcerated parents, there are numerous studies on the outcomes of parenting programs for incarcerated parents and their relationships with children (e.g., Collica-Cox & Furst, 2018;Kampter, Teyber, Rockwood, & Drzewiecki, 2017;Troy et al., 2018). In his critique of research on incarcerated parenting, Muth (2018) challenged the prevailing perspective that parenthood, and particularly fatherhood, is suspended during incarceration. Rather, he found that FL programs enable incarcerated parents to remain in contact with their children (Muth, 2006).
FL and read-aloud programs in correctional institutions vary in their focus and design.
For instance, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) integrates family literacy into its academic programs, transition programs, and support services (Hudson River Center for Program Development, 2001). A more customary approach is to offer stand-alone FL programs or projects. For instance, Reading Unites Families in Maryland offers a "literacy Saturday" in which fathers and children participate in literacy activities (Gardner, 2015). Similarly, in "Daddy and Me," a New York Public Library Correctional Services program, fathers attended librarian-led trainings and classes on children's literacy and were audio-recorded reading a children's book (Higgins, 2013). Other programs involve parents in reading books for children by phone or compact disc (Quinn-Kong, 2018). Research in the U.K. and Canada similarly shows that FL programs have enhanced incarcerated fathers' involvement in their children's literacy practices and their awareness of children's development (Nutbrown et. al, 2019); helped keep families together (Brown, 2017); and promoted parent-child bonding and parents' and children's literacy skills (Finlay, 2014). All such programs link incarcerated parents with their children through reading and other FL practices, with the goal of nurturing parent-child relationships and fostering literacy (Zoukis, 2017). Although these findings are optimistic, there is scant research on FL programs for incarcerated parents and how these programs play multiple roles in the lives of incarcerated parents and their children. In the following sections, we seek to explore what creative affordances one such program, the RYCG FL program in Pennsylvania, has on incarcerated fathers and their children.

AFFORDANCES
The term affordances was coined by psychologist James Gibson (1979) to describe what the natural environment offers, provides, or furnishes living beings. This concept has since been adapted to understand the possibilities for action offered by artifacts and technologies (Hutchby 2001;Lee 2007;Pozzi, Pigni, & Vitari 2014), including digital technologies in educational settings (e.g., Alexander, Powell, & Green, 2011;Ilomäki, Lakkala, & Paavola, 2006). Within this paper, we draw on the idea of affordances and specifically center on Norman's (1990Norman's ( , 1999 concept of perceived affordances. As Norman argued, "affordances result from the mental interpretation of things, based on our past knowledge and experience applied to our perception of the things about us" (p. 219).
Expanding on Norman's work, Hutchby (2001, p. 444) contended that "affordances are functional and relational aspects which frame, while not determining, the possibilities for agentic action in relation to an object". Hutchby noted that technologies are not blank slates open to any possible interpretation but, instead, "render available different (though sometimes overlapping) ranges of uses…" (p. 448). Consequently, affordances are both objective and subjective (Pozzi et al., 2014).
Drawing from literature on affordances, and particularly perceived affordances, this paper explores how the multiple components of the RYCG Programnamely, its use of reading, writing, scrapbook making and video recordingafford certain types of creativity to the participants that otherwise are not available during incarceration. Moreover, we seek to reveal how these multiple affordances fostering fathers' creativity influence the relationships they experience with their children. In the following section, we describe the methods we used to explore these affordances and their role in the participating fathers' creations.

METHODS
We selected qualitative research methods that would help us understand the father's perceptions of and experiences in the RYCG program. Specifically, we drew upon the ethnographic tradition (Wolcott, 1999) by using observation, detailed description, interviews, and analysis of artifacts (scrapbooks) to elicit participants' emic meanings. The research team included two faculty members (white women) and two graduate students (one white woman and one African American woman). Although we had not conducted prior research in prisons, we collectively had a variety of experiences with formerly incarcerated people and considerable experience establishing rapport with research participants and adult learners who experience social exclusion because of their social class, educational level, or other vectors of inequality.
We chose this SCI because of its active RYCG program and proximity to Pennsylvania State University, where we work and study. The SCI advertised RYCG in fall 2018 by posting a flyer on prison bulletin boards. The teacher who oversaw RYCG gave each father who enrolled in the program a flyer about our study. We then held an informational session about the study, and all 11 RYCG participants volunteered to be part of the research. We took several steps to ensure ethical treatment of incarcerated research participants, a population that has often been exploited by researchers (Gostin, Vanchieri, & Pope, 2007). We emphasized that the study was voluntary; that their decision to participate would have no bearing on parole or other decisions by SCI personnel; and that there was no compensation. We sought to affirm participants' dignity and self-determination by asking them to choose a pseudonym or use their real name or nickname. As a form of reciprocity, we donated children's books for RYCG, sent fathers a thank you letter and a certificate (these items are considered in parole hearings), and asked the teacher to share copies of our RYCG presentations and papers with those still incarcerated.
The fathers had varying levels of education: three did not complete high school, three had a high school degree or GED® diploma, four had attended college but did not have a degree, and Anna Kaiper-Marquez, Tabitha Stickel, Esther Prins

CREATIVE FATHERHOOD BEHIND BARS: THE READ TO YOUR CHILD PROGRAM
one had a bachelor's degree. Fathers had one to eight children, with most fathers (7) having two children (five of these fathers had children in the same household).
The SCI's rural location makes visitation difficult, particularly for fathers whose families lived several hours away. Seven of the fathers had more than one previous visit with the child who received the video (hereafter, focal child), but in most cases visits were infrequent. Four fathers had little or no previous face-to-face contact with at least one of the focal children because the child was very young or not yet born when they entered the SCI, the child was in foster care in another state, or other reasons. Three of these fathers had communicated regularly with the child since entering the SCI. As Rundy put it, the program provided them with a chance to "build a new relationship" and strengthen their "bond" with their child. The remaining seven fathers had pre-existing relationships with the focal children, even if they were not custodial parents. In addition, three fathers had participated in RYCG at a previous SCI.
We collected data in three stages from November 2018 to February 2019. First, we observed and wrote field notes while the teacher video-recorded the fathers. In all, fathers made 18 videos (four fathers made two or more); videos lasted 22 minutes on average. After videotaping, one or two researchers interviewed each father in a classroom. We also took notes on the scrapbook contents and asked men (in some cases) to read aloud the letters they wrote to their children. Interview topics included father's pre-incarceration education and literacy practices; relationships with children and involvement in their literacy, learning, and education in and out of prison; and experiences in and reflections on RYCG. We also interviewed the RYCG teacher and the SCI administrator overseeing educational programs at the SCI. Finally, we conducted follow-up interviews in February 2019 with four out of five fathers who heard back from their child about the video. One father was released soon after the video was sent; the other five fathers may have heard back, but did not alert the RYCG teacher. Follow-up interviews inquired about children's responses to the DVD, book, and scrapbook, how fathers felt about their children's reaction and RYCG overall, and what they learned from the program.
We used content analysis to analyze field notes and verbatim transcripts (Patton, 2015).
We started with codes derived from interview topics (e.g., what fathers liked about RYCG) and created new codes to refine these topics and capture other data (e.g., being "present" without physically being present").

AFFORDANCES OF RYCG COMPONENTS
The components of the RYCG-and the video in particular-offered unique benefits, or affordances, specific to their mediums. These affordances included the rare opportunity to make and send a video from inside a prison, a more realistic conveyance of the father's image (versus a simple photograph), and the repeatable and lasting nature of the various components (Prins, Stickel, and Kaiper-Marquez, 2020).
Carl explained that, despite how easy videos are to make and send in the outside world, making a video recording within SCIs is "just unheard of… The video is something that you can't do anywhere else" apart from RYCG. As John pointed out, participating in the program as a whole allowed him to create something unique: "something special for him [son] that's the only one that exists in the world." Several fathers noted that the video component was particularly important because it allowed their children to see them, particularly in a positive endeavour like reading aloud. Carl described the video's ability to show "body language" as an important dimension for making it "more lifelike." Scho similarly specified that video can convey a sense of authenticity because "You could see if they're putting on a show or if they're Omari to see his dad's image-see that his dad looked okay-and understand that, despite being incarcerated, he was "still dad." Rundy also thought the video would help establish him as "daddy" because it would allow his son "to really get to see me, hear me, hear my… voice coming from me [rather than] just see a picture and then hear a voice, but can't put it together." This was particularly true because many of the fathers described the video as a medium for conveying their genuine, "more lifelike" selves.
Other fathers, like Malik and John, emphasized that the program was a way to be involved in their children's lives despite the distance. Although John questioned the relevance of sending the video, he realized it was a new way for his son to see him: "Sometimes I'll look at, like, the program and I'll say... what's he going to get out of a video? And then… you don't really look at it that way. A four-yearold looks at it as like, there's dad... Without the long drive." As Malik put it, RYCG was a way to "interact with your kids without being there." As Malik put it, RYCG was a way to "interact with your kids without being there." Conveying Parental Messages. The program created an opportunity for the fathers to show themselves as parental figures through more traditional messaging. These messages included an emphasis on: the importance of reading, literacy, and schooling; respecting people like mothers and teachers; and making better choices than they did to avoid incarceration.
Many of the fathers, in both their interviews and in the RYCG video recordings, stressed the importance of schooling and of reading. Within the videos, fathers modelled reading to show their children the importance of engaging with books; LaDiDaDi particularly emphasized this connection for his children: Because one thing is, you reading to 'em, they see actually you holding a book. And those images just, you know, it just kinda like install in their brain... it kinda encourage them to say 'I should pick a book up and read the book.' Anna Kaiper-Marquez, Tabitha Stickel, Esther Prins

CREATIVE FATHERHOOD BEHIND BARS: THE READ TO YOUR CHILD PROGRAM
As LaDiDaDi pointed out, the video recording in particular affords this visual connection for children because they not only hear their fathers reading aloud, but also see them with the book. As the SCI principal explained in her interview, the modern world is very visual.
Thus, images of fathers reading might further "install" in children the importance of literacy.
Many fathers not only hoped to convey the importance of reading and literacy, but of school in general. Scho told his 14-year-old daughter, Mo'nique, that life without education can "get dark." He emphasized that math, which his daughter struggled with, could help her see through falsity: "the world is built on numbers... People can lie, but numbers don't lie." Ron also underscored the importance of education and said he knew that his son Omari would "do well." In his interview, Ron noted that his mother and grandmother were adamant about Ron graduating from high school, and Ron was similarly adamant that all his children likewise graduate.
Lastly, RYCG allowed fathers a chance to offer the wisdom they gained through what many labeled as their own mistakes. For some fathers, like John, Ron, and Rundy, they explained their incarceration as mistakes for which going away was a consequence. As Ron described it, "daddy made a mistake and needed a time out. It's like if you made a mistake and you have to go to the corner because you did something wrong, daddy did something wrong." In the follow-up interview with Ron, he expressed the hope that his son might learn from his own incarceration. Rundy likewise hoped to use his incarceration to relate to his sons' own lives explaining "Parents mess up too sometimes." Though Scho tried to explain his incarceration in videos to all his children, it was to his teenage daughter he offered up his own experiences in detail as life lessons from which he hoped she might learn. Scho described his life mistakes and his incarceration poignantly: But the truth is, I went about life wrong. You're probably wondering to yourself, what exactly does he mean by that? Well, the first bad decision I made was leaning towards the streets more than going to school and receiving an education by completing and graduating high school… The things that I saw in the streets captured my interest more than learning about boring history or confusing science… The streets accepted me for who I was and provided everything that I thought I needed... I began getting into trouble, arrested, receiving felony on top of felony. Once you receive a felony on your record, it becomes much harder to find an honest job, especially without an education. When you look at your choices in life and make the right decisions, you'll be rewarded with much promising future. Being that I did the total opposite, I'm Scho and the other fathers did not hide their incarceration or its reasons from their children, but rather sought to explain it to their children, in age-appropriate ways, in the hopes that their children might learn larger lessons from their fathers' mistakes. Though the fathers in this study richly conveyed their experiences in the RYCG program, this project is only a small step in understanding family literacy in carceral settings.

DISCUSSION
Our findings suggest pathways for research on topics such as other types of family literacy and read-aloud programs worldwide; the short-and long-term consequences of these programs for incarcerated parents and their children and families (e.g., parent-child relationships, children's social-emotional well-being, parent and child literacy practices, re-entry outcomes); and the role of demographic variables (e.g., race, social class, linguistic background) in shaping these outcomes.
This study offers a glimpse of how fathers used the RYCG program to be creative parents within the constraints of a prison setting. The fathers in this study were able to enact their parental roles despite their incarceration, and used the affordances provided by the RYCG program to be a creative, positive presence in their children's lives.

RESUMEN
Más de la mitad de las personas encarceladas en los Estados Unidos son padres or madres de hijos menores de edad. Los programas de alfabetización familiar y de lectura en voz alta no solo proveen a estos padres maneras de conectarse y comunicarse con sus hijos, sino que también promueven de formas creativas el aprendizaje y el desarollo de la alfabetización de los niños. Sin embargo, las investigaciones sobre tales programas son escasas. Este artículo presenta un análisis de uno de estos programas de alfabetización familiar que se ofrece en una prisión rural de Pennsylvania. Utilizando datos qualitativos, las autoras describen el programa Read to Your Child/Grandchild (RYCG; "Léele a Tu Hijo/Nieto") y las experiencias de los 11 padres que participaron en el program en otoño 2018. El artículo examina cómo el programa cierra brechas entre padres e hijos en cuanto a la comunicación, la presencia física, y el desarrollo de la alfabetización; los beneficios únicos que los componentes del program ofrecen a los participantes; y los hechos de creatividad y creación de los padres en un contexto de restricción carcelaria. Palabras chave: Educación correccional. Alfabetización familiar. Padres encarcelados. Padres y madres encarcelados.