School Readiness

How Kindergarten 'Redshirting' Is Changing

Wed, 23 Oct 2024 17:27:29 GMT

Redshirting was once largely a choice made by higher-income parents of white boys.

Why Parents 'Redshirt' Their Kids in Kindergarten

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 19:07:34 GMT

Parents have a number of reasons why they decide to delay their children's school entry, but it's not always a good idea.

Young Children Were Massively Overlooked for Special Education. How Will Schools Respond?

Mon, 17 Oct 2022 04:01:14 GMT

Forty percent fewer preschoolers received special education services during the pandemic. Schools deal with the fallout.

How the Science of Reading Elevates Our Early Learners to Success

Tue, 20 Sep 2022 16:21:50 GMT

From the creators of ABCmouse, learn how a solution grounded in the science of reading can prepare our youngest learners for kindergarten.

Preschool Enrollment Has Plunged: What That Means for School Readiness

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 21:56:36 GMT

Census data confirm that more than a million young children missed preschool during the pandemic, putting school readiness at risk.

Waterford Upstart on Providing Remote Learning to 90,000 Pre-K Kids (Opinion)

Thu, 25 Mar 2021 10:00:59 GMT

Rick Hess speaks with Dr. LaTasha Hadley of Waterford Upstart about its use of adaptive software to close gaps in kindergarten readiness.

Will Kindergartens Be Empty This Fall?

Wed, 08 Jul 2020 01:26:32 GMT

As cases of COVID-19 continue to grow, parents around the country are struggling with whether to send their child to kindergarten this fall. Some say they won't.

Incoming Kindergartners Are Less Ready Than a Decade Ago

Tue, 08 Oct 2019 23:48:36 GMT

Incoming kindergartners in 2017 started school with lower early-math and -reading skills than their peers nearly a decade earlier, though some achievement gaps closed somewhat.

Academic Redshirting, and Why It’s Not So Simple

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 22:10:25 GMT

Academic redshirting has benefits and disadvantages on a child’s development that parents should keep in mind.

In These Laundromats, Adults Do the Wash, and Children Read (Video)

Wed, 03 Apr 2019 05:08:41 GMT

Librarians, early-literacy groups, and laundromat owners are combining forces to see if reaching out to families in places they frequent can help close the literacy gap between low- and higher-income students.

Should Children Be Ready for Kindergarten—Or Should Kindergarten Be Ready for Children? (Opinion)

Tue, 26 Mar 2019 00:20:44 GMT

Kindergarten readiness is highly subjective, but the concept has real consequences, writes Stanford University’s Deborah Stipek.

How to Help Your Child Love Reading (Video)

Mon, 18 Mar 2019 14:40:00 GMT

Parents should read to their children. That's well established. But what's the best way to do that? Here's how.

Home-Visiting Successes Explored in New Reports

Thu, 06 Dec 2018 22:19:00 GMT

Federal home-visiting programs received a $2 billion infusion earlier this year. Now advocates are taking time to show how well the program works for at-risk families.

Redshirting Debate Just Got New Fuel with ADHD Study

Thu, 29 Nov 2018 22:28:57 GMT

A study has shown more diagnoses of ADHD among kindergarten students who start school just before a Sept. 1 school enrollment cutoff date.

States Still Uneven on the Crucial Pre-K to Kindergarten Transition, Report Finds

Thu, 13 Sep 2018 18:47:00 GMT

Researchers with the Education Commission of the States note that a bumpy transition from preschool to kindergarten can cause problems down the line, but few states are taking a systematic approach to smoothing that transition.

Practicing Kindergarten: How a Summer Program Eases Kids Into Learning

Wed, 15 Aug 2018 20:59:00 GMT

The start of kindergarten can be overwhelming for students, and for their parents. In Portland, Ore., a summer program is working to ease that transition.

Kindergarten Can Be Overwhelming - Some Educators Try to Ease the Way

Wed, 15 Aug 2018 16:27:24 GMT

Kindergarten isn’t just about crayons and nap time anymore – it’s serious academics.

Is Your Child Ready for Kindergarten? Are You? Tips From a Teacher

Fri, 03 Aug 2018 19:04:22 GMT

Preparing a child for kindergarten can be a daunting task for any parent. Beyond the challenges of managing separation anxiety, some may also try and get their children “up to speed” by teaching them the alphabet or how to count from 1 to 10. For families whose first language is not English there are also language and cultural barriers to contend with. But what are the most important skills on day one? In Portland, Ore., a kindergarten preparedness program offers parents strategies to help prepare their children to hit the ground running. Teacher Donna Shinagawa shares six tips with us.

Utilizing Research to Expand Early Childhood Services in Baltimore (Opinion)

Thu, 21 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Research findings yield new insights into how Baltimore's 'Judy Centers' already support and can continue to support early ed and school readiness.

Toward Kindergarten Readiness For Every Child (Opinion)

Mon, 18 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Research examines how Baltimore's early ed 'Judy Centers' improve disadvantaged children's kindergarten readiness.

From Age 3 to Grade 3: How Atlanta Promotes School Readiness and Achievement (Opinion)

Mon, 05 Mar 2018 11:00:00 GMT

A cross-sector partnership works to develop the data infrastructure and research agenda required to support Atlanta's preschool to third grade system.

Parent Changemaker: Fighting for Teacher Home Visits

Mon, 22 Jan 2018 21:26:28 GMT

Single dad Paul Lumpkin had moved himself and his two children to Springfield, Mass., to begin life anew, after a bruising custody battle for his son and daughter. So he was understandably wary when his daughter’s kindergarten teacher asked to pay a home visit. He wondered if she had done something wrong in school. “I was expecting the worst, to say the least,” Lumpkin said. Instead that visit, designed to encourage parent engagement, turned out to be “transformative” for Lumpkin and his daughter Key-Aurah. Getting to know her teacher informally helped turn the shy 5-year old into a class leader. Lumpkin became actively involved in his children’s education and then stepped up as a parent leader when the district decided it could no longer fund parent-teacher home visits - despite widespread parent support. “I thought that if parents wanted it, then it was one of those things that they would find a way to make it happen. It was a rude awakening … because it didn’t work like that.” His advocacy, and that of other parents convinced the district to find the needed resources. Lumpkin says his experience has taught him that as “parents, we need to establish our voice.”

Helping the Littlest Learners: District Reflections on the Potential of 4-Year-Old Kindergarten (Opinion)

Thu, 21 Dec 2017 11:00:00 GMT

A school district leader reflects on the impact of recent research about the district's 4-year-old kindergarten program.

Kindergarten Readiness: Enhancing Equity With 4-Year-Old Kindergarten (Opinion)

Mon, 18 Dec 2017 11:00:00 GMT

New research analyzes the associations between enrollment in four-year-old kindergarten and kindergarten readiness. Contributed by the Madison Education Partnership.

Cities, Counties Join New Initiative to Focus on Kindergarten Readiness

Fri, 17 Nov 2017 20:05:00 GMT

A $6.5 million year-long pilot program will focus on getting children from birth to 3 ready to start kindergarten through a partnership between several national groups.

Academic Gaps Linger Between Social Classes at Kindergarten Start, Study Finds

Fri, 13 Oct 2017 20:50:00 GMT

A study released last month by the Economic Policy Institute finds that large academic gaps found between kids from low-income families and more affluent ones have gone unchanged since the late 1990s.

Home Visiting Has Bipartisan Support. So Why Did the Federal Program Lapse?

Sun, 01 Oct 2017 12:45:00 GMT

Congress has failed to renew a home-visiting program that provides parent coaching to vulnerable families, but advocates hope lawmakers can resolve their differences and bring it back.

Time Runs Low for Home-Visiting Act as Congress Debates State Buy-In

Tue, 19 Sep 2017 21:27:00 GMT

The House and the Senate have each introduced bills to reauthorize federal support of home visiting, but there's a conflict in how much states should be required to contribute to the program.

Smoothing the Entry to Kindergarten

Wed, 23 Aug 2017 02:52:09 GMT

Nearly 4 million kindergartners will be enrolled in the nation’s schools for 2017-18, mostly starting with a blank slate for teachers.