INTERVENTION: CLOSING THE ACADEMIC GAP BEFORE KINDERGARTEN Kathy Petersen Bonnie VanAusdal Brittney Nelson

INTRODUCTIONS  Kathy Petersen  Title I Director  Bonnie VanAusdal  Early Childhood Specialist  Brittney Nelson  Curriculum specialist

HISTORY School data Title I goals Research Action plan Not all kindergarteners are created equal!

EVOLUTION  2009One school-site migrant preschool  1 session (1 instructional para & 16 children)  Site curriculum and no professional development  2010Three school-site Title IA preschools  2 sessions, 2 days per week ( 3 instructional paras & 60 children)  Suggested curriculum, no professional development  2011ten school-site Title IA preschools  2 sessions, 2 days a week (11 instructional paras & 330 children)  Program curriculum, summer bootcamp & semi-weekly professional development  2012Twelve school-site Title IA preschools  3 sessions, 4 days per week (12 instructional paras & 600 children)  Common curriculum, summer bootcamp, weekly professional development, and professional learning communities  2013Collaborating within our state to improve early childhood for all children  Early childhood Symposium and open house  Waterford early learning interactive computer program

PURPOSE Our goal is to provide a high quality and developmentally appropriate preschool experience for children in our community. Our program emphasizes the whole development of children. We promote the physical development of children by encouraging healthy play, the cognitive development that prepares the preschooler for Kindergarten, and the social-emotional development that focuses on self regulation, social skills, problem solving, and age appropriate behavior.

ROLES School district school Preschool Staff Title I team Director  Develop, organize, and oversee program goals  Develop job descriptions  Hire supervisors  Secure and manage finances  Ensure compliance  Coordinate with district leadership Early Childhood Specialist  Coordinate with site principals  Ensure adherence to the professional code of ethics  Supervise and evaluate certified staff  Develop marketing and advertising  Train and motivate certified personnel  Establish and maintain effective learning climate to build student success Curriculum Director  Organize and implement all program goals related to curriculum  Conduct professional development  Publish monthly parent newsletter  Prepare materials for parent involvement and training  Purchase curriculum materials and classroom equipment.

CURRICULUM  Started with two commercial programs  Little Treasures and Math connects  Sample lesson plans  Lesson plans weren’t followed (for various reasons)  Curriculum director hired  Experience with preschool and Kindergarten curriculum and standards  Wrote and distributed detailed lesson plans  Teachers were trained on the lesson plans every Friday  Lessons were modeled during training and in classrooms  Teachers were given all the materials needed to follow the lesson plans  Teachers were held accountable to follow the lesson plans

CURRICULUM

CLASSROOMS

WE CAN! MANAGEMENT

SCHEDULE

WATERFORD ONLINE PRESCHOOL PROGRAM  Individualized learning  Each student participates for 15 minutes each day 4 days per week

ASSESSMENTS  Formal assessments  Pre assessment (August)  Mid assessment (November)  Post assessment (May)  Monthly Formative assessments  Monthly skills  Alphabet  behavior

FORMAL ASSESSMENT  From granite county school district, Utah  Skills assessed:  Oral language  Phonological & Phonemic awareness  Alphabet Knowledge  Prewriting/Fine Motor Skills  Book Knowledge  print Awareness  Number Concepts  Relationships  Characteristics  Patterns  Geometric shapes  spatial relationships  Social emotional skills  Gross motor skills

ADVERTISING

TRAINING  Summer Boot Camp  Curriculum training  Professional Development  Conferences  Learning walks  Classroom coaching

 Parent Training Meetings (5 per year)  Parent Council (3 per year)  Take Home Library Books (daily)  Newsletters (monthly) PARENT INVOLVEMENT

PARENT TRAINING 1.Reading with your child 2.Alphabet recognition 3.Math 4.Technology 5.Preparing for kindergarten/avoidin g the summer slump

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES  Focus on learning  Guaranteed viable curriculum  Skills assessments  Sharing data  Instructional collaboration  celebrations

BUILDING COMMITMENT  Minimizing employee turnover  Maximizing employee productivity  Commitment  Loyalty  branding

ASSESSMENT DATA Washington County School District Preschool Assessment Pre-AssessmentMid-AssessmentPost-Assessment (out of 165) District Average Percent of Maximum Score34.4%60.4%78.4% Percent Increase 75.9%29.8% Percent Increase (Pre to Post) 128.2%

ASSESSMENT DATA

KINDERGARTEN PRE-ASSESSMENT DATA All Kindergarteners Kindergarteners without Title I preschool At risk Kindergarteners with Title I preschool

KINDERGARTEN POST-ASSESSMENT DATA All Kindergarteners Kindergarteners without Title I preschool At risk Kindergarteners with Title I preschool