I don't mean to alarm you - and can you save this date?

I was in a meeting today with an eclectic group of people.  There were business leaders, community leaders, public and private school leaders as well as many non-profit organizations.  The topic of the meeting was basically, "the early years matter!"  This group of people were discussing what we as a community can do to ensure all parents understand the importance of the early years of a child's life. The discussion wasn't limited to school readiness but included the importance of the need for sleep, good nutrition, quality daycare  etc.

As with any good group of adults we had data!  Two pieces that really caught my eye and made me think and made me nervous were the following.   First, there has been quite a body of research done that shows kindergarten readiness sets the ceiling on school success.   In other words, the more ready your child is for kindergarten the more successful he or she will be.  The interesting thing was it crosses economic lines.  This doesn't mean go get the worksheets for your 2 year old. Rather make sure you are doing the things I have been discussing on this blog, you know read and talk, read and write, and then talk some more.

The second point made that I hadn't really thought about was that in Texas in order to teach Kindergarten or Prekindergarten you have to have an EC-6 certification.  What that means is that you are certified to teach prek through 6th grade!  Back in the day, we had to have an early childhood endorsement.  Every class we took was on child development and how a young child learned.  They don't have time for that now.  Basically, the state is giving the responsibility to either the school district or the individual teacher to become an expert in early childhood.  What that means to me is no wonder we have so many teachers doing developmentally inappropriate activities with young children.   They don't know any better.   What this should mean to you is don't assume your child's teacher is an expert in early childhood practices.   Ask!   Some are and some are not.   If you think an activity or homework is well above grade level, ask.  Ask what their background is.

So one thing you can do for readiness is save October 21.  This is Read for the Record day.  It's a national campaign to get as many people sharing in the reading experience as possible.  This year the book to read is one of my favorites, Bunny Cakes by Rosemary Wells.  If you go to the website you can pledge to read and see all the previous books for past years.  There are activities listed in both English and Spanish.

So let's do it.   Get your book soon so you are ready!