Year: 2023

Reading intervention is a form of supplemental instruction that helps students struggling with literacy. It is based on the principle that students learn best through direct and explicit instruction.

Build phonological awareness by teaching prefixes and suffixes that follow patterned rules. Teach vocabulary through word games and direct instruction. Practice prosody by partnering students to read passages aloud to one another in a cyclical fashion.

Phonics

Using phonics empowers students to read unfamiliar text by giving them the tools to decode new words. This makes it possible for students to tackle complex stories, magazines, and books that they would otherwise have a difficult time reading.

Students who received phonics instruction showed significant growth on both standardized tests of word and nonword reading. They also demonstrated growth in their oral reading abilities and their spelling skills. Students who did not receive phonics instruction showed very little growth in these areas.

The research supports the use of explicit phonics instruction in a systematic way. This strategy teaches students the alphabet and letter-sound relationships through a direct-instruction approach. It also provides opportunities for learners to practice these new sounds and letter-sound connections. Explicit phonics strategies are often combined with embedded phonics, which involves teaching phonics within the context of reading literature. These strategies are a great way to teach new skills for struggling readers and to reinforce the foundational reading knowledge that has been learned.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary plays a key role in reading comprehension. It is essential to build vocabulary skills in all readers, but especially those who are struggling. Effective vocabulary instruction is deliberate and systematic. It includes direct teaching of new words, and it provides students with opportunities to use the words in meaningful contexts.

Vocabulary instruction is also important for promoting background knowledge, and for helping students to understand and interpret new texts. Teachers should be careful to select appropriate vocabulary for preteaching, focusing on the words that are most likely to appear in texts that the students will encounter. They should also focus on establishing a strong connection between the new word and its meaning, and provide multiple exposures through reading, writing, listening, and speaking to promote retention.

Teachers should also be mindful to teach common cognates (words that have the same meaning in different languages) and false cognates (words that sound the same but have different meanings, such as doctor/doctor and pan/musica). They should also point out idioms and slang and provide dictionaries and thesauruses for students to explore.

Comprehension

Comprehension is the ability to understand what has been read. It is the ultimate goal of reading. Children who comprehend can visualize a story, anticipate what will happen next or laugh at a joke. Comprehension also requires a child to have enough vocabulary and a deep understanding of how words fit together.

A good comprehension level allows children to use their prior knowledge and new ideas gained from reading to solve problems and make informed decisions. It is the foundation of problem-solving skills that are essential for today’s world.

Reading intervention programs are designed to improve comprehension, as well as phonics and fluency. A program should teach children how to interact with text in a motivated and strategic way by activating their prior knowledge, using strategies, and engaging in other strategic thought processes. Reading intervention programs should focus on building morphological awareness by teaching prefixes, suffixes and bases. This will help students pull apart and define words that do not follow traditional patterns and recognize when a word does not fit into a pattern.

Fluency

Fluency refers to the ability to read accurately and at a pace that sounds like natural spoken language. Students who aren’t fluent struggle to pronounce words correctly and often miss the tone of speech when reading aloud, which can result in incorrect answers when asked a question about a passage.

Reading fluency requires all of the component skills, from phonological awareness and phonics to decoding and vocabulary. It’s important that children become automatic with all of these skills before they can progress to reading for meaning.

To build fluency, teachers can have students practice reading passages out loud with a partner. In this technique, a higher-performing student reads the passage first to provide a model and then the lower-performing student repeats the same passage three times and is graded on a WCPM (Words Correct Per Minute) scale. This strategy can be used in conjunction with the other fluency interventions, including choral reading and Sight Word Bingo.

At school, children are exposed to a wide range of subjects that will help their future success. Whether it’s learning how to concentrate or building cognitive skills, young kids get the opportunity to learn many new things.

Children need a safe and positive learning environment to thrive. When poverty, conflict or natural disasters cut off children from schooling, they miss out on their chance for a brighter future.

Learning styles

Children typically have an innate preference for a learning style that allows them to absorb and process information best. Educators recommend understanding your child’s preferred learning style, so that you can adapt their education accordingly.

Visual learners process information in a picture-like way, so they thrive on maps, graphs, diagrams and charts. They often have a vivid imagination, excellent recollection and excel at art and reading.

Auditory learners thrive on listening, and do well in school when the material is presented verbally or recited aloud. They may have a good vocabulary and tend to love music, talk excessively or even sleep with their radio on.

Kinesthetic learners prefer hands-on opportunities, and do well in school when they can move around or participate in group activities. They have great physical memory and may fidget if they are not actively involved.

Healthy eating and physical activity

Getting enough exercise and eating a healthy diet are important for children’s health. They help reduce the risk for chronic health conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.

One study found that the culturally sensitive Health-E-PALS program helped improve several key dietary and physical activity behaviours in students. The programme used games, riddles, rhymes and traditional foods to deliver messages about the importance of healthy eating and physical activity in a context that resonates with local culture.

Children’s participation in healthy eating and physical activity programmes can catalyze positive family nutrition and physical activity changes. Parents in the BOKS trial reported more family meals at home, less sedentary time and healthier snacking habits since their children began participating in the intervention. They also ate more fruits and vegetables, fewer fast foods, ice cream or other high-fat and sugary snacks.

Developing good readers

Children who enjoy reading tend to have higher self-esteem and are more willing to try new things. They also have better academic achievements, which can help them to interpret life situations and make the best possible decisions.

A child’s literacy development is influenced by many factors, including the language and print they encounter outside school. Studies show that “code-focused” activities, such as reading to preschool children and teaching them letter-sound relationships, give them a head start on decoding skills when they enter school (Senechal & LeFevre, 2002).

Reading aloud to children helps them develop vocabulary. It also enables them to use their imaginations and learn about people, places and events that are different from those they already know about. This is called comprehension, and it’s an important part of developing good readers.

Imagination and creativity

Imagination and creativity are essential in children’s education. Creative thinking allows kids to think outside of the box and find new solutions to problems. This can be encouraged by allowing kids to create art or exploring different materials such as paper, clay, wood, water and shadows. It’s also important to allow kids to play imaginatively, whether it’s role-playing or creating imaginary worlds.

Research has shown that children’s imaginative ideas on issues such as sustainability of animals are important. However, their processes are not well understood. This is why this article scrutinizes how imagination as an ongoing process emerges and impacts a situation. It does this through a pragmatic analysis (PEA) of children’s transactions where imagination transforms aspects/content from diverse experiences into new imaginative blends.

Social skills

Children need to learn how to interact with other people. This includes learning what it is like to listen to others, how to make eye contact, and how to follow instructions. Children who have good social skills have a better time adapting to the classroom and developing friendships with other children. These friendships can last a lifetime and contribute to their academic, behavioral, and social-emotional development.

Children’s social skills are influenced by their environment and experiences, as well as the expectations they receive. Early childhood educators (ECE) have a unique perspective because they observe a wide variety of social behaviors and interactions. A multivariable linear regression analysis showed a statistically significant association between social skill domain scores from teachers and parents in the areas of cooperation, assertion, and self-control and children’s sociodemographic characteristics.

Education support staff—paraeducators, administrative assistants, custodians, bus drivers, food service workers and other school employees—are the lifeblood of every public school. They keep kids healthy, safe and engaged in learning so they can thrive at school.

Education support roles are available on a full-time or part-time basis and provide a work-life balance. Researching these roles is a great way to learn about different opportunities and what skills are needed.

Communication Skills

Communicating effectively is an essential soft skill that helps people thrive in both personal and professional endeavors. It is important for education because it influences students’ ability to understand instructions and classroom learning. It also supports collaboration and teamwork and allows students to express their thoughts clearly.

Communication can take place verbally, in writing (including emails and texts), through visual media such as pictures and charts, or nonverbally with body language and gestures. The most effective communicators use all of these methods to convey information in a way that creates understanding and engagement.

To teach the basics of communication skills, give students opportunities to role-play with peers in small groups. Having students practice active listening skills, such as concentrating on what others are saying and showing that you’re listening through verbal or visual cues like nodding and saying’mmm’, will help them build confidence in sharing their ideas with classmates. This will allow them to better work with teachers and classmates, and will ultimately lead to a more positive educational experience.

Listening Skills

Listening is the ability to receive sounds and understand the meaning conveyed in those sounds. It is an essential skill for many different types of professions, including teachers and students.

Students with good listening skills are more comfortable communicating with their teachers and peers. They are more likely to ask questions and share concerns with teachers, which can help reduce stress levels for both students and teachers.

For example, when a student is struggling with a class assignment or homework, a teacher can show their support by listening attentively and encouraging them to keep trying. Teachers should avoid interrupting and showing signs of frustration, such as looking at their watch or fidgeting, which can detract from the student’s feelings of being heard.

Another way that teachers can demonstrate their active listening skills is by insisting on one person speaking at a time in whole class discussions or paired work. It is also important for teachers to make eye contact with their students when listening.

Empathy

Empathy is an important skill for students to develop, and it can also help them form strong relationships with teachers. Empathy involves noticing others and understanding their feelings. It also requires taking action to help them. Teachers who have empathy for their students can create a more positive classroom environment and support learning outcomes.

However, it’s important to understand that empathy is not the same as sympathy. Sympathy can lead to feelings of pity for students and may cause you to lower your expectations. Being empathetic, on the other hand, allows you to connect with your students and reinforces your belief in their ability to succeed.

To demonstrate empathy, be attentive to your students’ non-verbal cues and respond to their needs. For example, if a student is withdrawn or upset, try reflecting back their feelings and rationale for their behavior instead of reprimanding them. You can also promote empathy through activities such as perspective-taking games, role plays, books and “what would you do” vignettes.

Inclusion

Inclusion is the process of ensuring that individuals, regardless of their differences feel welcomed, respected, supported and valued to thrive. It is often viewed as the key to fostering diversity in the workplace and ensuring everyone feels they can participate fully.

In education, inclusion involves integrating students with disabilities into general education classrooms to the greatest extent possible and offering them all services and accommodations they need. This is also referred to as mainstreaming, integration and full inclusion.

To truly be inclusive, teachers should take the time to get to know each student and their family and try to make sure they have a good understanding of the child’s needs. This includes learning how the child communicates, what their cultural background is and if they have any additional support systems like an IEP (Individualized Educational Plan). This allows children to be exposed to students who may learn or perform differently than them, which helps to develop acceptance, empathy and inclusivity in their own lives.

When choosing a school, parents should consider their child’s strengths, interests and specific needs. Often schools provide much more than academic instruction. They offer support for social, emotional and vocational challenges.

During a school visit, parents should pay attention to how staff and students interact with each other. Do they seem respectful and happy?

History

In the late nineteenth century schools became a focus of national concern. Presidents and secretaries of education began to talk about standards based curriculum, test-taking, and school reform. Teachers were pressured to acquaint their students with standardized textbooks and learn to use new teaching techniques.

By the end of the nineteenth century schooling reflected changes in American society. Rural schools dwindled and the nation’s cities overflowed with people seeking jobs. Most teachers, now working year round in urban schools, were women.

As a result, the American school system became less segregated. Following the Supreme Court ruling in 1954 that racial segregation was unequal, Black parents and civic rights activists worked to persuade or compel schools to desegregate. Schools now had a responsibility to educate all children. Many states require by law that American history be taught at the elementary and high school levels. Many schools also have their own historical societies which publish books, magazines and meetings. They also have libraries, manuscript divisions and museums.

Structure

Schools are organized spaces for teaching and learning. They typically include classrooms, cafeterias, schoolyards, and other facilities. They also have policies, practices and procedures that determine how students will be taught and who can teach them. These structures may be barriers to Meaningful Student Involvement, and can be changed through policy reform.

Some believe that the primary purpose of schools should be to produce workers with skills and personal styles that match available jobs. Others believe that schools should be more than workplaces, and seek to foster active citizens.

The structure of schools is a key factor in their success or failure to enable social mobility. This includes everything from the funding structure of a school (i.e., voting-approved levies and education grants) to the organizational structure of the school – including staffing arrangements and policies on student involvement. In order to support a culture of meaningful student voice, schools must change their structures, policies, practices and procedures.

Teaching methods

Imagine being in a boring classroom with the voice of your teachers echoing in your ears and trying to lift your eyelids so you can pay attention to the lesson. This is not the most effective way to learn and many educators are changing this by adopting different teaching methods.

One popular modern strategy is the lecture method. It enables teachers to reach a large group of students at once and is cost-efficient. It also allows teachers to introduce material that is not easily available to students. However, this method can be boring for students and can result in their disengagement.

Another innovative approach is the demonstration method. It is especially useful for visual and kinesthetic learners. In this style, the teacher demonstrates an activity in class and students practice at home. This is the perfect approach for subjects that require dexterity or construction. Independent learning is another modern teaching method that gives students full freedom of choice, although it is often time-consuming and requires self-motivation.

Activities

School activities provide students with a variety of experiences that help them develop and enhance their skills. These activities also offer students the opportunity to develop their critical thinking skills and communicate these ideas to others.

Some of these activities include classroom scavenger hunts, which require students to think outside the box and use their creativity. Other activities like the time bomb name game help students remember each other’s names.

One of the most popular events is a fete, which has its roots in medieval village festivals. This event is usually held in the summer and includes a wide range of games and activities. A bouncy castle is always a crowd pleaser, and you can hold competitions such as Tv-gladiator-style jousting with inflatable weapons.

Another great activity is a book fair, which allows students to browse new books and get excited about reading. This event can be organized around a particular theme or holiday, such as Valentine’s Day.

Kindergarten is a new experience for many children. It teaches them to be away from their parents on a regular basis and develops social skills in a group setting.

Kindergarten curriculum includes work on the numbers 1 to 30 as well as basic addition and subtraction concepts. Kids also learn to compare objects using size and color.

Language

Children pick up oral language skills from birth, and kindergarten is a great place to expand them. They’ll learn the sounds that letters make, and begin to recognize upper- and lower-case letters. They’ll also start to read about 30 high-frequency words—like and, the, and it—that they’ll see often in their environment, such as street signs and magazines.

Kindergarten students will also learn about basic sentence structure, including subject-verb agreement and punctuation (periods, question marks, exclamation points). This is a great time to get kids excited about reading and writing with some fun activities.

The word “kindergarten” comes from Friedrich Frobel’s German school of psychology, where he encouraged development through free play and activity. It became popular worldwide, and was adapted to other cultures. In Peru, for example, kindergarten is called nido. In the Netherlands, it was called kleuterschool, and until 1985 was a separate non-compulsory form of education from primary school, now referred to as basisonderwijs.

Math

Just like learning the alphabet, kids need a strong foundation in math before they can learn more advanced concepts. Kindergarten math is focused on the basics of counting, sorting, recognizing numbers and their names, skip counting, creating patterns, and basic addition and subtraction.

They’ll also be learning the days of the week, months of the year and how to tell time. These are important early-childhood skills that will help them as they progress in their academic careers.

Children will also work on understanding the relationships between numbers and will practice decontextualizing a problem to translate it into an equation (for example, 7-3 = 4). They’ll begin to recognize number words and numerals, as well as develop a sense of how many different ways a number can be represented. They’ll start to use their number skills to create simple calculations and will be introduced to measurement. They’ll also be learning about shapes, and the shapes of objects around them.

Science

While the science curriculum can vary by state and school, most kindergartners learn some of the same science concepts. They are encouraged to experiment and observe the world around them, such as tracking how a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly or how a seed grows into a plant.

During scientific exploration, kids use observation skills and communication skills to express their ideas and observations. These skills are important for success in science and transferable to other academic subjects and real-life situations.

The McRuffy Science series introduces children to Life Science, Earth Science and Physical Science with a hands-on approach that does not depend on reading. Kids experiment with objects, sort piles of items, take things apart, and make collections. This helps them identify the properties of objects and materials like color, size, odor, temperature, flexibility, and shape. This gives them a foundation for understanding the changes of matter, such as water turning from liquid to solid and back.

Social Studies

In kindergarten students learn about the world on a social level. This includes history, geography and civics. It also helps students develop critical thinking skills.

Early childhood experiences should establish the foundations for a classroom community based on inclusive and democratic values. They should be rooted in children’s interest and curiosity about the world around them, including nonverbal yet observable social cues.

The kindergarten curriculum should allow children to explore their families, school and neighborhood in order to increase their understanding of a sense of place. This includes learning about the different locations in their city, state and country, recognizing national holidays and exploring their own personal histories through family stories.

In addition, children should be able to understand time and chronology. This includes identifying the difference between past, present and future as well as distinguishing between days of the week, seasons and maps. Children should also be able to identify the countries of their home and the world using various resources such as magazines, physical maps or interactive websites.

Reading intervention is the process of providing supplemental reading instruction to students in addition to their regular classroom curriculum. Students are selected for reading intervention based on teacher recommendation, classroom performance and district local assessments including standardized tests.

Poor readers with word recognition difficulties often over rely on textual cues to identify unknown words and reduce the likelihood of transforming sight words into sound words (Pressley, 1998). Teaching phonological awareness and rhyming skills helps children better understand the sounds of letters.

Phonics

Students receive instruction in decoding, reading comprehension, writing and study skills that dovetails with class curricula at their instructional level. They also read self-selected books for homework each night.

Students enrolled in Reading intervention typically take a universal screener in the fall that gives them information about where they are on a progression of skills. They then get diagnostic assessments that give teachers the information they need to reteach and strengthen specific skills. Then, the teacher provides ongoing formative assessments and interventions that move students quickly through the progression of skills.

Children need to become automatic at recognizing words so that they can focus their cognitive energies on understanding text. The underlying skills for this are phonological awareness, phonics and decoding. These are taught using Heggerty phonemic awareness practice, Sound Partners that teaches letter sounds in a systematic way and progresses through blending syllables, recognizing spelling patterns and multisyllable words. Orton-Gillingham is another phonics method that focuses on multisensory, direct, explicit, and explicit language teaching.

Fluency

Reading fluency is an important component of a student’s literacy skills. It allows readers to process words more quickly and automatically, which frees cognitive resources for interpretation. Fluency also supports comprehension as it increases the number of words a reader can decode and recognize in a short amount of text.

A student’s reading fluency is best developed through repetitive reading. Repeated reading is especially effective for students who are experiencing difficulty with word decoding or reading accuracy. It is recommended that the teacher provide students with a variety of texts to practice reading each day.

A number of studies have compared the effectiveness of different methods of repetition in improving reading fluency. Some studies have used a cue to read for fluency or comprehension and other studies have used a set criterion such as a specific oral reading rate. Studies using a criterion have generally found more consistent positive effects than those that use a cue to read.

Comprehension

Reading comprehension involves integrating what you read with your own knowledge and experiences. It includes understanding the text or audio, answering questions about it, having an emotional reaction and thinking about it.

When you read for comprehension, it’s important to give students time to respond. Oftentimes, teachers ask a question and call on one student right away, but this takes time from other students. To help students engage, try to wait at least 7 seconds before calling on someone.

Teaching comprehension skills can be difficult, but there are many ways to support student success. One way is to break down large assignments into smaller ones that are easier for students to manage. Also, it’s helpful to give students explicit instruction about strategies they can use to improve their comprehension. This is called metacognition. For example, teaching students to underline or highlight words they are unfamiliar with can help them identify their own confusion about the text.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary is the set of words that a person knows and uses to convey meaning. Vocabulary has been shown to correlate with reading comprehension, and in some cases accounts for a large portion of unique variance in reading comprehension after other factors such as chronological age, nonverbal IQ and word-level reading are controlled.

Students who struggle with reading often have poor vocabulary knowledge. This is because poor readers have difficulty suppressing irrelevant information from their short term memory, which limits their ability to understand texts. In addition, these students have difficulty recognizing words and decoding them accurately, which further limits their comprehension capacity.

In order to close the gap for students who struggle with vocabulary, teachers need to find ways to help them learn new words. One way to do this is by using vocabulary teaching strategies that are fun and engaging for the students. For example, students can be given sticky notes and asked to label vocabulary words on them. Then they can walk around the room and stick them on objects that apply to those words.

One of the main concepts in children education is socialization. Kids meet other kids their age in a safe environment away from home and learn to share, take turns and cooperate.

They also build a healthy self-esteem that helps them to persevere at difficult tasks and to try new things.

Physical Development

The physical development of children is an essential part of their education. It involves the advancement of gross- and fine-motor skills, which are necessary for children to participate in classroom activities.

For example, a child who can sit still for extended periods of time for reading or math class needs strong muscles in their legs and arms to maintain this posture. Children also need good balance and coordination to play games that require hopping, jumping or throwing.

Children also need to develop their ability to understand and regulate their emotions, have self-confidence and a positive outlook on life in order to thrive at school. Teachers teach these skills through small-group interactions, activities and the use of educational e-books and animated learning videos. These tools support healthy brain growth and provide children with the motivation to continue their education.

Social Development

Children learn about the world around them through relationships with their teachers and peers. They begin to understand the needs of others, and how their own actions affect those around them.

Early childhood education (ECE) teaches kids how to communicate by gestures and eventually with words. This lays the foundation for later learning.

Teachers can promote social development by encouraging cooperation and helping students find solutions to conflict. They can also teach children how to read the signals that their peers are sending through their tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language.

Children with strong social skills tend to do better in school, have higher self-esteem, and are more likely to stay in school. Providing quality education is the most effective way to break the cycle of poverty and improve the lives of children.

Emotional Development

A child’s social & emotional development influences their ability to learn. They need to be able to experience, express, & regulate their emotions in order to interact with others. This is a crucial stage in their life for building relationships that will lead to a lifetime of success.

In middle & late childhood, children start to understand that a single event can lead to the experience of mixed emotions such as sadness & happiness. They also develop empathy for others’ feelings & perspectives.

Encourage your school-age students to become emotionally healthy by focusing on mindfulness and learning how to respond rather than react. Try activities such as a “how would you feel” exercise or watching a movie with intended lessons about different emotions. Kids who are mentally healthy have a better attitude toward school, more eagerly participate in class activities, & perform well academically than their peers.

Language & Literacy

Children’s language and literacy skills form the foundation for later academic success. While much research has focused on the literacy development of monolingual children, fewer studies have examined the reading and writing skills of dual language learners (DLL).

In one study, DLL preschoolers’ English recognition was related to their future school-based English reading outcomes. DLL preschoolers with higher English recognition also had more extensive vocabulary in both languages.

Several studies have found that DLL children’s vocabularies overlap, although in some cases the concepts are quite different. Some of these studies have examined the differences in grammatical development between DLLs’ two languages. These findings suggest that DLLs may have two separate grammatical systems. Some studies have also looked at DLL children’s language usage and their home literacy environment.

Thinking Skills

Critical thinking skills are important for kids to develop as they learn. Analyzing and thinking critically is how we make sense of the world around us—whether it’s people, objects, problems or texts.

Developing these analytical thinking skills requires children to remember and understand information, analyze, compare, contrast, draw conclusions and create new ideas. According to Bloom’s Taxonomy, kids start with lower level thinking skills (remembering) and move up through higher levels of thinking as they learn.

One way to help kids develop their critical thinking skills is to ask them to give a reason for their answers, rather than just making an unsupported statement. Another is to encourage them to participate in philosophy or debating clubs at school or as out-of-school activities. A recent study compared the impact of a thinking skills program on locus of control and self-concept for five-year-olds and found that students receiving the training outperformed those who did not.

Education support refers to a broad array of educational strategies. In general, these strategies are designed to help students accelerate their learning progress or better meet academic standards.

From paraeducators to cafeteria workers, bus drivers and office staff, education support professionals are vital to the school community. MSEA is committed to helping them win decent wages, working conditions and respect.

Guidance or Counseling Office

School counselors typically focus on academics and future plans, addressing concerns about which courses to take for the next year, college or career advice or financial aid. They also might help students with personal issues and family problems that interfere with school. They often have relationships with school psychologists or social workers who can handle more serious situations that may require professional intervention.

They work in a private office and often have meetings with students, parents or teachers. They should be able to empathize with their clients and provide them with appropriate strategies for solving problems.

To become a guidance counselor, a four-year undergraduate degree in psychology, education or sociology is usually required. In many states, a master’s degree in counseling or a similar field is also needed. Obtaining national certification from the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) can make you more marketable. It requires supervised counseling hours and passing one of the organization’s exams.

ESL (English as a Second Language) Specialists and Bilingual Teachers

Many school districts offer bilingual programs to help students who speak other languages in addition to English. Some have full or part time ESL or bilingual teachers who provide instruction to ELLs and support them in classrooms in a “push-in” model. Others do not have such a program. In any case, all schools must provide a means for ELLs to achieve academic success.

The ESL administrators surveyed reported that university coursework prepared them well in areas such as second language acquisition, curriculum, and pedagogy. Initiating collaboration with classroom teachers was a key responsibility but one that was often complicated by scheduling and time constraints.

Individuals interested in a career working with ELLs should seek out professional organizations that represent the unique population and educational programs of each region or state. For example, there may be a state or regional TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) association. There are also a number of national and international professional associations.

Library and Media Services

School library media centers provide students with access to a wide range of resources that support the curriculum. They help students become critical thinkers and enthusiastic readers. They are also skilled researchers and ethical/responsible consumers of ideas and information.

School librarians and media specialists model and teach information literacy skills that empower all learners to live and thrive in a digital age. They collaborate with classroom teachers to build a community of lifelong learners who are college, career and “life” ready.

JCPS library media specialists work with the district curriculum team to ensure that students have equitable access to a rich, varied literature collection. They also offer a variety of instructional and instructional media for instruction and student creative expression. In addition, media services provides a no-cost, centralized checkout for faculty/staff of audiovisual equipment with priority given to those seeking to create course integrated student media projects. For more information on utilizing media services, click here.

Health Services

Health services staff includes physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, dentists, school health educators and allied health personnel who provide a variety of medical and preventive services to students including vision and hearing screening; recording of health histories; dental prophylaxis; physical examinations and in-school immunization; monitoring and management of chronic illnesses like asthma and diabetes (select high schools), and emergency care programs for ill or injured students. In addition, some schools also offer classes and workshops on topics like reproductive health (select high schools), and asthma and diabetes management (Open Airways and HOP). Education Law 912 requires that the school district in which a student resides provides students who attend religious and independent schools with all health and welfare services available to public school students in the district, provided the administrators of the nonpublic school request such services in writing. The administration of these services is then governed by the written agreement between the school districts.

Schools are places where kids go to learn. They can be private or public, and they may have different curricula. They can also be specialized in a particular field or skill.

Kids at school spend long periods of time in class, with short vacations. This is an important way to develop their minds.

1. Prioritize learning over grades

A school is a place where students learn skills that will help them in life. This includes things like how to communicate with others and how to interact with different people. This is a valuable skill that will help them in their future careers and in their personal lives. Schools also teach them how to think critically and solve problems.

However, many students have a hard time prioritizing learning over grades. This is due to the fact that grades are often based on factors such as artificial deadlines, grade inflation, and extra credit.

Instead of focusing on grades, teachers should prioritize teaching students to focus on learning itself. This can be done by changing the way they give assignments. For example, instead of saying “this assignment will earn you a certain score,” teachers should say “this will help you develop these skills.” This will make students more interested in their assignments and will motivate them to work harder.

2. Include games in the classroom

Games in the classroom can be a great way to make learning fun and engaging for students. They can also help teachers better understand student progress in a subject. The key is to choose the right games for the subject. Make sure they are age appropriate and that they have a clear educational objective. For example, a game about volcanoes is much more educational than a game about naming the continents.

Another important aspect of educational games is their ability to engage all different types of learners. Reading-oriented students can benefit from learning activities that incorporate written directions or stories, while experiential learners can learn by doing.

For example, a teacher could transform the classic game of tic-tac-toe into a math game by adding an equation or word problem to each square. This would allow students to practice their math skills in a fun and exciting way. Moreover, it would encourage teamwork, which is an essential skill for students to develop throughout their lives.

3. Inculcate reading habits in your kids from a young age

If kids are taught the importance of reading early, it can help them develop a love for books. They are also able to improve their reading skills and learn more about the world around them. Having good reading habits also helps children have better analytical thinking and longer attention spans.

To encourage your child to read, make sure that they have a cozy area where they can sit and read. Create a space with a comfy sitting area, lots of pillows and stacks of books so they can enjoy their time reading. Also, make it a point to take trips to the library to give your child new opportunities to explore different types of books and authors.

Another way to encourage your children to read is by reading out loud to them. This can make them feel comfortable and confident while reading out loud. It can also be beneficial to expose your children to different book genres like mystery, science-fiction and comic books to make them more interested in reading.

4. Make learning fun

Students learn better when they’re enjoying the process. This is true for all ages. Whether they’re in elementary school or learning to become software developers, making learning fun is essential for their long-term success.

There are many ways to make learning fun, from carefree games that blow off steam to educational apps that build core skills. But for learning to be truly fun, it must be a philosophy that informs every element of the learning environment.

One way to do this is by using flashcards and other visual aids. Another way is to get students moving around the classroom. This could be as simple as having them work with a different partner for two minutes, or it could be more involved such as creating learning centers that allow students to study the topics they’re most interested in. Lastly, try to incorporate Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory in the classroom by teaching to the strengths of each student.

Kindergarten is usually a child’s first experience in a classroom setting without the supervision of their parents. Depending on your state’s academic standards, kindergarten can be a year full of new challenges in reading, writing and math.

Kids in kindergarten learn their letters and basic math concepts such as counting, comparing shapes and organizing objects by size. They also begin to learn their shapes and colors.

Academics

In kindergarten students learn the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. They also have time for structured and facilitated play in a safe, teacher-monitored classroom environment.

The etymology of the word kindergarden, which means garden for children, suggests that this is a time for them to blossom and grow into more independent adults. This is why many kindergarten settings encourage a balance of academic learning with social skills, emotional regulation and hands-on explorations.

In language arts kindergarteners begin to understand the structure of sentences, including question words (who, what, where, when and why) and punctuation. They may even start to write their own names.

In music, kindergarteners learn to appreciate music from a variety of musical traditions and develop early individual preferences by playing Orff instruments and engaging in improvisation. Students also experience a daily program of song, dance and percussion that reinforces curricular themes.

Social Skills

Young children are naturally egocentric, so it can be challenging to teach them to share, empathize and collaborate. Kindergarten puts them in a large group setting where they can learn to interact with other kids and practice these social skills.

Children develop social skills by watching others and mimicking their behavior. They are also taught how to resolve peer problems and participate in group activities. This allows them to learn to take turns, manage emotions and read body language.

It is important for kids to know that it is normal to make mistakes. When they do, they can learn from the experience and try again. For example, a game like stacking tokens on a stick helps kids build decision-making and problem-solving skills by asking them to keep trying even when they don’t get it right the first time.

Other games that encourage good sportsmanship can help kids learn to be kind and respectful of others, whether it is during recess, birthday parties or sporting events. These skills can carry into the rest of their lives and help them maintain healthy relationships throughout their life.

Personality Development

Personality development helps children develop a positive attitude and learn to express themselves effectively. It also helps them improve their verbal and non-verbal communication skills, as well as understand the importance of respecting people of all ages and backgrounds.

Parents can encourage personality development in their kids by showing the right behaviour themselves. This includes demonstrating politeness and patience, encouraging them to participate in group activities, and not physically reprimanding them when they make mistakes.

A person’s personality is influenced by the environment in which they are raised, including their family, teachers, and peers. This study uses a Bayesian network (BN) to represent the relationship and extent of the probability that each variable influences the others. It found that temperament has a greater impact on personality than family and kindergarten expectations do. However, family and kindergarten both have an indirect influence on preschool children’s personalities through their temperaments. This makes it difficult to identify a direct correlation between these variables.

Health

A growing body of research indicates that children who attend high-quality early care and education (ECE) programs have positive short-run health outcomes. These benefits are especially pronounced for children in public preschools and child care centers with standardized care.

Kindergarten activities help kids develop their fine motor skills as they play and create. They learn to use scissors, hold pencils and manage small objects, which lays the foundation for future tasks like writing.

They also begin learning to count and identify letters, as well as basic math concepts like counting and adding small numbers. Kindergartners will also begin reading, using a core reading resource that helps them develop sound and phonic skills before applying those skills to books. In the US, kindergarten is typically followed by elementary school. This transition gives kids a feeling of familiarity with a formal educational setting that will help them navigate the challenges they might encounter later in life.