Stranger in a Strange Land

Imagine entering a new place all alone, where the imposing brick and glass buildings tower over you, where nothing seems as comforting as home, where people all around you are more than twice your size, and where everything is just plain different. The sights, the sounds, the smells, they're all unfamiliar. It's big, it's scary, it's traumatic, and for a four year-old, it's called junior kindergarten.

But it doesn't have to be that way. By helping children and parents understand what to expect from school before they start, the fear and anxiety related to starting school can be reduced or eliminated entirely.

The importance of providing a proper and healthy transition between home care or pre-school and kindergarten is gaining more prominence in today's society. Whereas in the past, children were thrust into kindergarten to sink or swim, today a greater emphasis is placed on ensuring that children are ready for school, that they are prepared physically, intellectually, emotionally and socially for the challenges ahead.

In Zero to Six: The Basis for School Readiness, a report available through Human Resources and Development Canada, author Gillian Doherty defines five components of school readiness. They are: physical well-being and appropriate motor development; emotional health and a positive approach to new experiences; age-appropriate social knowledge and competence; age-appropriate language skills; and age-appropriate general knowledge and cognitive skills.

By reaching proper levels of development in these areas, a child will be better prepared to excel in school. Alternately, by identifying deficiencies in advance, parents can work with numerous members of the community to overcome the problem.

A child's readiness to learn can be positively or negatively affected by a number of factors, the majority of which are beyond their ability to correct. A child's home life is the most likely reason for a child to be either well prepared, or insufficiently ready to begin school. Parents who spend time with their children, talking to them, reading with them and other activities will see the benefits when their child enters school.

School readiness can be linked to financial issues as well. In studies, children from higher-income families have performed better upon entering school than their lower-income brethren. As well, physical or developmental disabilities or developmental delays can prevent a child from being fully prepared for school.

Asking the question of how prepared children were to enter school, a survey of Colorado kindergarten and grade one teachers released this spring showed some shocking results. The survey, conducted by Educare Colorado and Colorado Children's Campaign, asked teachers to assess how ready their students were for school. In general, the teachers believed that 33% of students were not prepared emotionally or socially, while also believing that 40% were not prepared academically. Within this, the kindergarten teachers believed that 40% of their students could not identify letters and numbers upon starting school.

When asked whether students who started school behind other students could catch up to their peers in the school year, a whopping 95% of the kindergarten teacher answered "rarely" or "sometimes." The survey also found that teachers in schools with high standardized test performances found the children to be better prepared on entering school, while teachers in lower performing schools found a significantly fewer number of students prepared.

In the United States, there are many statewide programs in place or in development that assist with school transition, and the number of initiatives in Canada is steadily increasing. In Zero to Six, Gillian Doherty, a social services planner and researcher, concludes that because of the busy lives that most parents lead, "preparing children to be school-ready must be a collaborative effort involving the family, the community in which the child lives and the broader society."

High schools have long held orientation sessions for incoming students, while universities and colleges welcome potential students and parents to visit their campuses throughout the year. And yet, elementary schools, where the overwhelming majority of children get their first exposure to formal education, traditionally have not reached out in such a fashion.

Fortunately, there are many community resources, particularly here in the Thames Valley, to support families in reaching the same levels of development, regardless of culture, income or ability. One innovative new community program starting this fall hopes to alleviate the concerns, anxiety and questions that children and parents have as they look ahead to starting school for the first time.

Thames Valley Neighbourhood Early Learning Program is a collaborative, precedent-setting effort to maximize early child development and to enhance readiness for school through linking community early and parent programs.

The Thames Valley Neighbourhood Early Learning Program was launched on May 31 of this year, with the presentation of funding by London North Centre MPP Diane Cunningham at the Thames Valley District School Board offices. The funding comes from the Early Years Challenge Fund, a provincial fund supporting community early years initiatives. The program is a partnership of many organizations, including the Thames Valley District School Board, the London District Catholic School Board, Investing in Children, the Ontario Early Years Centres and the YMCA-YWCA.

At its core, the Early Learning Program will create the basis for children to succeed at school, in their community and throughout life. This will be done by ensuring that children will be at the appropriate stage of development to start school, and assisting parents in helping their children reach that level.

But, the Early Learning Program takes school readiness one unique step further. Not only will it help to prepare children and parents for school on an academic and social level, but it will also introduce them to the school itself.

Three year olds and their parents will be encouraged to visit their local school five times between October and May, with each session lasting 90 minutes. These events are free and fun for all parents and three year-olds, and will be led by a multi-disciplinary team of Early Childhood Educators, Community Outreach Facilitators, Librarians, Recreation Outreach Workers and Teachers on Assignment.

The first sessions will take place starting in October 2002, at twenty elementary schools in London, Oxford, Elgin and Middlesex.

The first session in October or November will feature an orientation fair, taking place in the school auditorium. After an introduction by the school's principal, and an overview of the five days, parents will visit different information centres. These centres, staffed by experts from the community, will cover a wide range of important topics, including a profile of the school, the importance of regular attendance, literacy and numeracy, healthy child growth and development, and the unique needs and opportunities in the school and the surrounding community.

The second session will focus on literacy, led by the Ontario Early Years Centres Literacy Specialists. Parents will learn about reading to a child, creating crafts based on the story in a book, and the recommendations for fostering early literacy skills.

Session three will look at numeracy, in a similar way to literacy. Sowing the seeds for a life-long love for numbers and mathematics will be demonstrated through fun activities for parent and child.

Recreation and healthy activity are the cornerstones of session four. Representatives from the YMCA-YWCA will join others to discuss quality daily physical activity, health care programs in the community, and to provide examples of healthy exercise for children.

Finally, session five in May or June will be highlighted by a visit to the Junior Kindergarten classroom. Parents and children will spend the entire session in the classroom, interacting with the teachers, education assistants and school administration, and having the opportunity to explore the different centres and activities the children will take part in once they enter school.

Local Learning activities reflecting the needs and preferences of the community will also take place throughout the year, initiated at the school level with the assistance of the project staff.

The success of the Thames Valley Neighbourhood Early Learning Program will be measured according to various criteria. Higher registration of children in both neighbourhood early learning programs and Junior Kindergarten, improved attendance and positive transition of children enrolled in Junior Kindergarten and a greater understanding by parents of child development factors contributing to early literacy and numeracy skill acquisition will indicate the success of the project.

Entering Junior Kindergarten is like being a very small fish in a very big pond. If families and the community work together to prepare children for school, the odds are greater that children will swim to the top, rather than sink to the bottom.

School Readiness resources

Readyweb - readyweb.crc.uiuc.edu/
Zero to Six: The Basis for School Readiness - www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/sp-ps/arb-dgra/publications/research/abr-97-8e.shtml
California Department of Education Transition to School Project - www.cde.ca.gov/elementary/transition/
National Center for Early Development & Learning - www.ncedl.org