Prenatal – Pre K

Parent Involveme

nt in Education Denise Fadina

Ethics 2011

Why Start so Early?

Early Brain

Development

Pre-Natal

Development

Kindergarten

Readiness

Critical Timing

Education System

Resources

My Experience

My question to you

is…

THE EARLIER THE BETTER

Why Start SO Early?

At birth, the brain already has some 200 billion neurons (nerve cells) - about the same number as it will have in adulthood.

By age three, the human brain weighs 90% of its adult weight

Pruning, which is when almost 50 percent of the brain cells a baby is born with will wither and die during the first few years of life, proves the plasticity of infant brains and that they are literally sculpted by the environments in which they are raised.

IF YOU DON’T USE IT YOU LOSE IT!

www.brillbaby.com

EARLY BRAINDEVELOPMENT

Week 25 Human ears are structurally complete. The

baby can now clearly hear the mother's voice and perhaps the father's, if he is close enough, also startling in response to loud noises.

Week 27 Able to recognize her parents' voices. Recognition of patterns of speech and

intonation (if not individual words), with vowel sounds coming through particularly clearly.

Newborns Soothed by hearing the same stories and

songs they were used to listening to in the womb.

www.brillbaby.com

PRE-NATALDEVELOPMENT

Time frame - The critical time window begins at five months into pregnancy and continues until the age of two.

Orientation - Babies who received prenatal stimulation were better able to deal with the world outside the womb.

Movements - Babies on the program were often more in control of their movements after birth.

Emotions - Thanks to prenatal stimulation, babies appeared more calm, alert, and happy.

PRE-NATAL CLASSROOMRene Van De Carr

Dr. Robert Titzer… “Children who enter school with reading skills

have higher self-esteem than children who cannot read when they enter school.”

“Reading is the most important skill a child

learns.” “Reading increases learning skills, and it helps

children succeed both in school and later in life.”

YOUR BABY CAN READ

KINDERGARTEN READINESS

Academic, Social and Developmental factors to determine if a child is ready for Kindergarten:

Language skills. Does she communicate her needs? Express her

feelings appropriately?

Strong fine-motor skills. Is she able to hold and use a pencil? Cut with

scissors? Is she learning to write her name?

Basic letter and number awareness. Can he sing and recite the alphabet and recognize

some letters? Can he count to 10 and identify numbers one to five?

http://www.greatschools.org

KINDERGARTEN READINESS

Enthusiasm toward learning. Is he eager to explore and discover? Is he comfortable

asking questions? Does he persist even when a task is difficult?

Ability to listen. Can he follow simple instructions? Is he able to listen

to an entire story without interrupting?

Desire to be independent. Does she separate from parents for the school day? Is

she starting to take responsibility for her personal belongings? Can she follow simple two-step tasks? Can she use the bathroom by herself?

Ability to interact with children and adults. Is he able to share, compromise, take turns and

problem-solve?http://www.greatschools.org

BY THE END OF KINDERGARTEN

Follow class rules Separate from a parent or

caregiver with ease Take turns Cut along a line with scissors Establish left- or right-hand

dominance Understand time concepts like

yesterday, today, and tomorrow Stand quietly in a line Follow directions agreeably and

easily Pay attention for 15 to 20 minutes Hold a crayon and pencil correctly Share materials such as crayons

and blocks Know the eight basic colors: red,

yellow, blue, green, orange, black, white, and pink

www.greatschools.org

Recognize and write the letters of the alphabet in upper- and lowercase forms

Know the relationship between letters and the sounds they make

Recognize sight words such as the and read simple sentences

Spell his first and last name Write consonant-vowel-consonant

words such as bat and fan Retell a story that has been read

aloud Identify numbers up to 20 Count by ones, fives, and tens to

100 Know basic shapes such as a

square, triangle, rectangle, and circle

Know her address and phone number

The critical period for language learning begins to close around five years of age.

Kindergarten is the beginning of a school career with little room for error; because the school record preceeds the student.

Research indicates that investments in high-quality early education yield a high public return in terms of lower educational costs, crime rates, and social service expenses, and the highest returns come from investments in at-risk children.

www.zerotothree.org| www.readyforschoolmn.com

CRITICAL TIMING

EDUCATION IN AMERICA

29% Proficient Language & Literacy:

Using letter-like shapes, symbols and letters to convey meaning.

30% Proficient Language & Literacy:

Demonstrates phonological awareness.

38% Proficient Language & Literacy:

Begins to develop knowledge about letters.

http://education.state.mn.us

32% Proficient Mathematical Thinking:

Begins to recognize simple strategies to solve mathematical problems.

39% Proficient Mathematical Thinking:

Shows beginning understanding of numbers and quantity.

62% Proficient Physical Development:

Performs some self-care tasks independently.

MN K-READINESS

Seeds of Early Literacy Sensitive Encourage Educate Develop through Doing Self-Image

The Big ‘5’ Conversation Alphabetic Knowledge Book and Print Rules Phonological Awareness Vocabulary and Build on

Background Knowledge

RESOURCES

Mission“…Family provides a child’s first and most significant learning environment and parents are a child’s first and most important teachers…”

30min: Parent/child interaction Parents are on the floor, paying attention one on one

to their children 4 children; 1-2 parents a child Other parents are playing with other children

10min: large group time Sing songs in a circle, head teacher playing a guitar,

then read a book all interactive Kids act their age and parents work through it and

continue group time. Very healthy environment

Separation: Parents Leave for parent discussion time

RESOURCES

MY EXPERIENCEName: MayowaAge: 3Reading Level: Kindergarten (2-3 word sentences)

Number Sense: Count to 40 Recognition: Numbers to 20Writing and Letter Recognition: • All Capital Letters, • All Lower case letters

except ‘b, d, p, q’• Recite/Spell and write

her name• Recite/Spell and

identify 10 primary colors

MY SCHEDULE

Work 40 hrs|7:30-4pm M-F

School 14 credits 5 classes (2 online, 3 in-

class)

Sleep 6-7hrs/night, nap 2x

week

Extra Curricular Church 3x week Family/Friends events Style Hair 2x week

Time for him:Being available, thorough & cute.

Time for me:Do homework at night, keep myself pampered.

SUCCESS IS IN BALANCE

Time for her:Evenings, at least 30 min, on the floor doing what she wants. Consistency!

Choice for her:Choose educational activities as her options, still fun and creative but particular.

www.greatschools.org says: "Reading to them helps them develop the language skills

needed for reading." Also emphasizing the importance of learning social skills by providing opportunities for children to interact in small and large groups.

Create a routine at home to help your child get oriented to following directions and helping with transitioning to the school routine.

Give your child developmentally appropriate chores at home, and hold him accountable for doing them. These types of activities will automatically transfer over into the classroom and help your child to feel successful and comfortable.

Websites with educational activities to DO & ENGAGE WITH your child! www.preschoolpalace.org www.kidslearningstation.org www.handwritingworksheets.com www.readinga-z.com

HOW YOU CAN DO IT!

How many families do you experience, where the parent

interacts with their child, with respect to the position of “first”

teacher?

Do you agree this type of awareness of social responsibility,

has the power to change our

neighborhoods… communities…

nation…?

My Question to you is...