Building Early Learning Access and Quality with District Partners and Families September 25, 2013

Overview I.Importance of Early Investment II.FIRST 5 Santa Clara County and United Way Silicon Valley a. Background b. Goals c. Funded Programs III.Importance of Parent and Community Engagement in Early Education a. Triangle of Success IV.Bridge to Kindergarten Programs a. Components and Description b. Roles c. Outcomes d. Testimonial V.Continued Parent and Community Engagement Ideas VI.Interactive Questions 2

Mismatch in Public Investment in Early Years 3 Source: Brain Growth and Public Investment, A Mismatch (Children Now) 2010

Returns in Human Capital to a Unit Dollar Invested 4

Proposition 10 – Creation of FIRST 5 California voters understand the importance of early investment. In 1998, voters passed Proposition 10: $0.50 tax on cigarettes and other tobacco products Tax revenue distributed to all 58 California counties to be spent on early childhood health and development programs. Approximately $15.4 Million distributed to Santa Clara County in FY13-14 FIRST 5 organizations must invest tobacco tax funding locally, and priorities are determined by local needs FIRST 5 provides funding to local non-profits, schools, and public agencies to deliver high-quality health, early education, and family support programs 5

FIRST 5 Vision and Mission 6 Vision FIRST 5 Santa Clara County will be a catalyst for ensuring that the developmental needs of children prenatal through age 5 are a priority in all sectors of the community. Mission FIRST 5 Santa Clara supports the healthy development of children prenatal through age 5 and enriches the lives of their families and communities.

United Way Silicon Valley Education Goals 7 Focused on families with young children. Supporting family and parent engagement, and ensuring children: Enter kindergarten ready to learn Read proficiently by 3rd grade Make a successful transition from elementary to middle school Graduate from high school on time Be ready for success post high school graduation in college, work and life

Where We Serve: Cumulative Child Risk Factors by Zip Code 8 Legend Total Rating Points No data

Who We Serve - Birth through 5 and Kindergarten Population 149,000 Children birth through age 5 in Santa Clara County 22,000 Children enter Kindergarten each year in Santa Clara County 9 Source: Census 2010 and CA Dept. of Education

How We Serve – FIRST 5 Physical Health Children’s Health Insurance Oral Health Children’s Vision Screening Childhood Obesity Prevention Breastfeeding Support Public Hospital/Clinic Support Behavioral Health Developmental Screenings Home Visitation Parent/Child Therapy 10 Early Care and Education High Quality Preschool for 3 and 4 year olds Summer Bridge to Kindergarten Programs Raising Quality Standards of Preschool Educare Professional Development for Teachers and Family Childcare Providers Family Support Family Resource Centers Parent Workshops Court-involved Families Child Welfare and Safety

How We Serve – United Way Silicon Valley Bringing partnerships, innovative programs, and advocacy to most challenging areas of the county. Several programs underway:  Summer reading kits to all K-5 students in six elementary schools  Holiday giving program supporting all K-5 students and siblings at four elementary schools  Day of Action - full day volunteer event focused on school beautification and projects at one site (completed three sites to date)  Reading mentors - early literacy focus matching volunteers 1:1 with students K-3 in two schools for a school year  One-day volunteer activities - KaBoom playground build, science fair judging, Dr. Seuss Reading 11

Parent and Community Engagement “All of the high-performing school systems we studied have discovered ways to build in processes for parent and community engagement, believing that early childhood education is a part of the community.” Six Drivers of Student Success – A Look Inside Five of the World’s Highest-Performing School Systems, Battelle for Kids,

Parent Engagement and Early Childhood Education “Engaging families in their children’s education early in their lives improves school readiness, produces higher gains in reading and math achievement, and increases graduation rates.” Dr. Karen Mapp, Senior Lecturer on Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education,

Kindergarten Readiness – Triangle of Success Community 14 Kindergarten Readiness School/Teacher Parent

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – FIRST 5 Components: Four-week summer program taught by Kindergarten teachers Targets students who with no Pre-K or any other formal preparation for starting school. Primarily in high-risk school sites that also contain FIRST 5 Family Resource Centers Provide Abriendo Puertas parent workshops focused on parent leadership, advocacy, and school readiness skills 15

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – United Way Silicon Valley  United Way Silicon Valley’s (UWSV) strategic plan focuses on supporting families with young children and building connectedness and self-sufficiency  Bridge to Kindergarten (BTK) was a natural next step to build family engagement and support in early learning  In 2013, UWSV Invested in the BTK Program  Four schools in the Alum Rock School District  Based on program success United Way hopes to engage partners to invest in additional schools next summer 16

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – Roles Teachers and Schools Student Recruitment Curriculum Student and Parent Engagement Transition Lessons 17 Parents Engage with Teacher Attend BTK Class Continue Classroom Learning at Home Support Teacher Community Student Recruitment Parent Workshops (Abriendo Puertas) FIRST 5 Family Resource Centers

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – Readiness Outcomes 18

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – Self Regulation  Deeper look at Self Regulation Outcomes of Bridge to Kindergarten Program  Self-regulation skills enable children’s successful adaptation to the more structured classroom environment found in K-12  Self-regulation provides a foundation for positive school experiences and predicts later academic achievement 19  Used the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders Task (HTKS) o Structured 5-7 minute assessment played like a game, where children are asked to perform the opposite of a series of commands. o Test consists of 20 commands and up to 2 points can be earned on each if the correct opposite action was produced for the command. One point can be earned for a “self-correction”

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – Self Regulation Outcomes 20

Bridge to Kindergarten Programs – Self Regulation Outcomes 21

Bridge to Kindergarten – Parent and Teacher Testimonial 22

Continued Parent/Community Engagement In addition to Bridge to Kindergarten Programs, teachers and schools and can engage parents and the community before and after children enter Kindergarten: 23  Kindergarten Readiness Assessments / DRDP – SR  Refer parents and students to local FIRST 5 Family Resource Centers and other community resources  Invite community leaders and organizations to visit your classrooms  Conduct home visits  Parent classroom visits/observations  Parent volunteer opportunities  Parent “homework” assignments that strengthen in-home reading and other lessons

Interactive Questions 1.Immediate thoughts or questions from the presentation? 2.How important do you think the parent/teacher relationship is in affecting student achievement? 3.How has parent involvement been trending at your school and district? 4.Do you know your feeder preschools and involve parents at the early stages? 5.What are specific parent activities/events at your school currently? 6.What would you like to do as next steps to strengthen family engagement? (i.e. implement Summer Kindergarten Bridge programs, train in DRDP-SR or other tools, build stronger partnership with local service provider agencies, do home visits, etc.) 24

Thank You! 25

Contact Information Jolene Smith Chief Executive Officer FIRST 5 Santa Clara County Pearl Cheng Education Program Manager United Way Silicon Valley (408)