History

The Office of Youth Preparation (OYP), housed within Academic Affairs at Arizona State University (ASU), has been committed to providing academic support to Arizona youth through Classroom, University, Community, and Research Programs since 1989.  In the early 2000s, OYP became aware of the rising need to prepare children for school and began a search to develop a program that would assist families in the Arizona valley. 

In June of 2003, OYP concisely developed a research report known as “Kindergarten Readiness: A Review of the Literature and Recommendations for Educational Outreach Programs,” in which research and curriculum support was provided by ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton College of Education’s (COE) Division of Curriculum and Instruction (Early Childhood Program Area) in collaboration with New Directions Institute for Infant Brain Development (NDI). This document served as the building blocks for the program that was to develop into the Leaps and Bounds Program. Sample activities from New Directions were used as a template for the activity cards that were developed for this program.

The Leaps and Bounds Program was piloted in February of 2004 in Roosevelt and Isaac school districts with great success.  Because there was a huge demand to continue the workshops in the valley, the Office of Youth Preparation decided to continue funding the project. 

Why is kindergarten readiness so important?

The 21 st century has brought many substantial changes to the field of early childhood education. A huge emphasis has been placed on learning during the first few years of life as research now concludes that early success in school sets the stage for all learning during subsequent years of school and beyond (Elkind, 1986; Egertson, 1987; Katz, Raths, & Torres, 1987; Phillips & Love, 1994; Henderson & Berla, 1994; National Education Goals Panel, 1995; Shore, 1998; Pianta, Rimm-Kauffman, & Cox, 1999; Ramey & Ramey, 1999; Pianta & Cox, 1999a; Pianta & Cox, 1999b, Moyer, 1999; Plevyak & Morris, 2002; Pennsylvania Build Initiative, 2005; National Education Association, 2006).

Providing educational opportunities for young children is an investment in their future. Research now concludes that early success in school sets the stage for all learning during the early years of school and beyond (National Education Panel, 1995). Research clearly reveals that early success in school helps provide students with skills that are necessary for obtaining jobs and success later in life including enhanced academic attainment and college progression; improved health; and higher wages (Belfield, 2004; Karoly & Bigelow, 2005; Reynolds, Temple, Robertson, & Mann, 2002).

Though providing these opportunities for young children can be expensive, e.g.; the costs of high quality pre-schooling programs include staff salaries, classroom space, curriculum materials, curriculum plans; teachers with certification and in-service training; meals; and screening/referral services (NIEER, 2003), the benefits for young children offset these costs. Economic scholars Schweinhart, Montie, Xiang, Barnett, Belfield, & Nores (2005) suggest that if taxpayers spend more money on individuals as children, they would save more money during their adulthood. In fact, taxpayers actually save $17 in social costs, by contributing $1 in early childhood.

Clearly, early education has a far-reaching positive impact on children and society. Beyond the initial direct benefits to the child, early education can set the academic stage for the child’s future. Early education can benefit all members of society, as this investment leads to a better-educated population (NIEER, 2003). Societal benefits include: more efficient education systems; higher tax payments by participants; lower reliance on welfare; ultimately lower rates of criminal activity and the subsequent costs related to incarneration. Research concludes that these societal benefits alone exceed the costs of the early education programs (Belfield, 2004; Karoly and Bigelow, 2005; Reynolds et al., 2002).

Hence, ensuring children’s’ success in school has become a top priority in the United States. New academic requirements have been developed at the national level to ensure that children are successful in school. A number of national initiatives have been created to ensure children’s early success, including Head Start and Early Head Start, Even Start Family Literacy Program, Jump Start, A Nation of Learners (National Education Goals Panel, 1995), the Goals 2000: Educate America Act (Moyer, 1999), Good Start, Grow Smart (a part of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB initiative), and Reading First and Early Reading First (other initiatives of NCLB). These initiatives will be described in detail in chapter 2 of this document.

These initiatives have prompted the implementation of national early learning standards and mandated testing to “guarantee” children will be more successful in school. Schools have been required to implement measures of accountability that hold them responsible for overall student success. The overarching goals of these new legislative initiatives are:

• To ensure children start school ready to learn by providing them with equal opportunities for learning.
• Improve children’s outcomes in school by providing them with explicit and systematic instruction in a variety of skills, with a strong focus on early literacy skills.
• Prevent school failure by providing high-quality early education to young children.

A new academic curriculum has been developed to make sure schools are meeting the demands of these new initiatives. Children are expected to know more at much earlier ages and schools are being held accountable for children’s achievement in school (National Education Panel, 1995). School has become much more rigorous than ever before and children must be able to meet the demands of school in order to be successful in school and beyond.

Sadly, the kindergarten of yesterday has become a pleasant memory of the past. Instead it has become a staging ground for the primary grades and beyond (Elkind, 1986; Moyer, 1999). Academics have become the new and only focus of current kindergarten classrooms. Children are now required to begin school with discrete skills that will allow them to succeed in kindergarten and beyond (National Education Panel, 1995). Research indicates that only half of all children are entering school with the skills necessary for success. Research suggests that parental involvement is integral for student success in school. Thus, it is crucial that programs are developed to meet the needs of the demanding new school environment.

Research has consistently demonstrated that children who have parents that help prepare them for school by engaging in reading, math, and social activities are highly successful in school (Henderson & Berla, 1994; Ramey, & Ramey, 1999; Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998; Epstein, 2001). Evenmoreso, increased parent involvement in the home, leads to increased learning and performance in school (Connell & Prinz, 2002; Logsdon, J., 1998; Henderson & Berla, 1994; Marcon, 1999; Seitz, Rosenenbaum, & Apfel, 1985; Olmsted, 1991; Marcon, 1998). Furthermore, parental involvement is an essential component of ensuring a child’s later success in school (National Center for Early Development and Learning, 1998).

Research conducted by Connell & Prinz (2002) has determined that children from low socioeconomic areas and diverse backgrounds face the greatest challenge in this new kindergarten environment. This is because children from low socioeconomic status have different home experiences that may not reflect school literacy activities (Heath, 1982). Whatever the differences families from diverse economic and cultural backgrounds may have, they have one important value in common – they want their children to be successful in school and they are all involved in their child’s learning in the home (Ferguson, 2005; Epstein, 1986; Christensen, Hurley, Sheridan, & Fenstermacher, 1997). Yet most parents have little understanding of what is now expected of young children in today’s kindergarten classroom (Gonzalez, Moll, Tenery, Rivera, Rendon, Gonzales, & Amanti, 2005; Piotrokowski, Botsko, & Matthews, 2001).

Fortunately, the transition to school is a process that parents, children, teachers, schools, and communities can jointly create and participate in (Pianta, Rimm-Kauffman & Cox, 1999). Teachers who create warm, caring, and sensitive classroom environments are integral for enhancing children’s social competence and improving outcomes in kindergarten and beyond (Schweinhart, Barnes, & Weikart, 1993; Wang & Reynolds, 2000). Schools that help children transition to kindergarten by implementing practices that help them be more prepared for the school setting, including communicating with families prior to entry into kindergarten and engaging in in-home visits before the start of the kindergarten year (Rathbun & Hausken, 2001). Communities that provide support to families are necessary, including social, health, and educational resources (Schorr, 1998).

In order to help children develop strong home-to-school transitions, many programs have been developed over the past 40 years (Pianta, Rimm-Kauffman, and Cox, 1999; Neuman & Roskos, 1994; Ramey & Ramey, 1999). However, these programs vary widely in their approaches to accomplish this goal. Enz, Rhodes, and LaCount (In Press) reviewed approximately a hundred programs to help compare aspects of program services and developed the following categories to help compare and contrast program services, delivery systems and levels of resources required to maintain program viability. The following categories emerged: Traditional parent education programs, Family interactive programs, Family support programs, and Teacher-child education programs.

Traditional parent education programs focus on providing parents with information about how to be a better parent. Parents engage in education classes (such as Parents as Teachers Program, First Teacher Project, and Parent University) in order to learn new behaviors and skills that are central to creating long-term positive changes in their parenting abilities (Parents as Teachers, 2006; Detroit Community Justice Partnership, 2005).

Family interactive programs focus on both the parent and child working and playing together through an interactive curriculum. Parents are provided with information on child development and then are presented with highly interactive research-based activities that can be conducted in the home to help their children get ready for school (Enz, Rhodes, & LaCount, IN PRESS). Examples include Susan B. Anthony Elementary School Transition Tea program, Mesa Family Tree Project, and the Parent Connection, a member of Arizona’s Children Association.

Family support programs are based in the community and are hosted by schools, community centers, pediatricians and other non-profit organizations, and focus on the needs of the entire family. They provide a range of services, including parent education, information on child development, personal growth and family relationships, peer support groups, parent-child activities, home visits, drop-in programs, early developmental screening and family health care services, outreach, community referral and follow-up, job skills training, and/or adult education, especially language and literacy education (Weiss & Halpern, 1991; Keniston, 1977; Weissbourd, 1987; US Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1993). The goal of family support programs is to support family relationships and promote parental competencies and behaviors that contribute to both parental and young children’s health and development (Weiss & Halpern, 1991). Examples include SPARK program, AVANCE, The Schools of the 21st Century (21C), Educare, FAST, Smart Start, and Head Start.

Teacher-child education programs provide education directly to children

Although there are many successful programs of all types, family interactive programs and family support programs have been found to be the most successful in preparing children for school because they immediately involve the family in the learning process and take into consideration life factors that play a large role in determining how successful children will be in school and beyond (Keniston, 1977; Weiss & Halpern, 1991; Weissbourd, 1987; US Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1993; Enz, Rhodes, & LaCount, In Press). When children are prepared for school, they are more successful throughout the school years and will become more successful citizens later in life (National Center for Early Development and Learning, 1998); they are more likely to contribute to the greater good of society, thus eliminating the financial burden they often place on the citizens of our society (Huffman et al., 2000; Enz, 2003).

Where are we now?

The program is currently housed and funded by the Office of Youth Preparation. It is currently organized and directed by Michelle Rhodes, Program Director. Leaps and Bounds is being conducted in eight school and community sites this year, including Roosevelt Elementary School District, Phoenix Elementary School District, Murphy Elementary School District and the Boys and Girls Club and Communities in Schools with a target of 120 families to be served. There are also several schools on a waiting list. Leaps and Bounds will continue to train facilitators from Arizona school districts. Because the future continuation and expansion of the Leaps and Bounds Program is dependent upon funding, the program is diligently working to publish as much as possible in order to get the Leaps and Bounds name out across Arizona. The train-the-trainer workshop session has been completed three times over the past year. In addition, an article on Leaps and Bounds has been published in the January 2006 edition of Young Children, in the December 2005 edition of ASU in the Community, and the December 2005 edition of ASU’s Insight. In August 2006, Leaps and Bounds was also featured on Channel 5 news, Latino Perspectives Magazine and in Prensa Hispana Magazine.

Current goals

1. Disseminate knowledge and theory about Kindergarten Readiness through the “World as a Classroom Workshop Series” (as a free program) to as many parents in Arizona as possible and to help prepare their children for kindergarten.
2. Engage in program evaluation.

Where will we be in the future?

Future funders are being identified at this time in order to ensure the continuation of the Leaps and Bounds Program. With this funding, the program will be expanded across the Phoenix Metropolitan area during each school year. In addition, training will be provided to school districts and community organizations throughout the Phoenix, metropolitan area in order to ensure the self-sustainability of this program in the future. With each training that is offered, schools across Arizona will be enabled to sustain the program indefinitely throughout Arizona. The Office of Youth Preparation plans to continue hosting the Leaps and Bounds Program until it is sustained in the community by schools and community sites.

Future goals

1. Obtain funding from grants to support the program into the future.
2. Develop Community Partnerships and enable the Leaps and Bounds Program to be self-sustained in the community by schools and teachers.
3. Offer the Train-the-Trainer workshop session as often as possible to teachers and parent coordinators across Arizona.