2/13/13 - Early childhood providers, teachers, administrators, parents and community partners came together Tuesday to talk about efforts in making sure kids are not only ready for success in school but later in life. The 3rd annual Kindergarten Readiness Summit was hosted by Great Start Livingston at the LESA building in Howell. Information from Kindergarten Observation Surveys was presented in which teachers observed different development indicators among 1540 students across all five local districts in September. Great Start Livingston Collaborative Coordinator Robin Schutz says based on research and what theyâre seeing in the community, school readiness is not always linked to academics. Officials say results from the past three surveys and others clearly indicate the skills that students lack the most when entering kindergarten are social and emotional and approaches to learning. Jeri Kay Thomas is a kindergarten teacher at Spencer Elementary in Brighton. She says the summit offers county-wide perspective about what can be done for early learners and possible changes because they want kids to be successful and productive citizens. She said the survey results really werenât a surprise because they do see struggles in the areas of social/emotional development as well as problem solving skills, the ability to stay focused and regulate themselves or getting along with peers. Officials say in moving forward, they will continue with the surveys and work to build strategies while identifying more supports for families and kids, including partnerships between a childâs outgoing school and new school to ensure a smooth and more successful transition. Child transition forms are already being utilized by some pre-schools for placement purposes to help ensure classroom success. Officials are now in the process of putting together information for possible inclusion during kindergarten round-ups at local school districts, which will be happening in the next few weeks. They intend to also send it out to local private pre-school providers while continuing work with community partners to find different ways to reach parents. (JM)
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