One strategy that can provide immediate results in improving African American kindergarten students' success in school is improving attendance. This study examined the effect of school attendance on African American kindergarten students' learning readiness. Thirty kindergarten students in three classrooms at one Chicago school completed the…

This handbook, which was written by a retired kindergarten teacher with over 25 years of experience, is intended to bridge the gap between home and school. It describes 260 learning activities, each of which is based on a different concept. Most activities require materials usually found in the home. An activity is provided for each week of the…

Discussed are recommendations of California's 1987 School Readiness Task Force for the education of children 4 through 6 years of age. Recommendations call for: (1) provision of an appropriate, integrated, experiential curriculum; (2) reduction of class size; (3) provision of programs that meet the special needs of culturally and linguistically…

Children are generally identified as learning disabled as a result of their achievement and perceptual skills below an expectancy level which is based on mental age, grade level and/or chronological age. Despite its usefulness, Maturity is infrequently considered. The ages at entrance to school of a group of 67 learning disabled (LD) students…

THE BETTER TOMORROW FOR THE URBAN CHILD PROGRAM (BTU) ATTEMPTS TO HELP INNER-CITY CHILDREN BECOME MORE EFFECTIVE CITIZENS, BOTH EDUCATIONALLY AND SOCIALLY, THROUGH THE USE OF ADDITIONAL HUMAN AND MATERIAL RESOURCES. THE GOALS ARE TO RAISE THE LEVEL OF SCHOOL READINESS, TO DEVELOP A GREATER MOTIVATION FOR LEARNING, AND TO IMPROVE STUDENT SELF-IMAGE…

This paper discusses long and short range activities for helping children deal creatively with separation from preschool when they are ready for kindergarten. Long range activities should emphasize creating a positive school climate, involving parents in helping their children adapt to the new environment, and helping children develop…

Minimum language skills for kindergarten success are described and defined as "school readiness language." A school-readiness-language checklist gives a procedure for documenting a child's level of language skill. Specific techniques are presented to remedy documented gaps within the context of the kindergarten classroom. (Author)

The relationships between the Gesell School Readiness Test and standarized achievement and intelligence measures were examined. Children were tested before kindergarten, at the end of kindergarten, and at the end of first grade. Correlation coefficients varied from grade to grade, but did not show a higher correlation between related measures.…

All children should be started in school, and subsequently promoted, on basis of their behavior age rather than on basis of their age in years. Research data support this idea, and some schools that have adopted it as policy find that they can reduce failure by 50 percent. A child's school readiness can be tested with a behavior examination. (KH)

Presents findings on academic success of early entrants to school that show children younger at school entrance often have academic problems that last throughout their school careers. Suggests changing the cutoff dates for school entrance and using better developmental assessment to determine children's readiness to enter school. (MD)

Attempts to determine the relationship between self-concept and the academic readiness of kindergarten children using a sample of 49 children from four to six years of age. Also investigated the relationship between self-concept and other variables such as educational level of parents, family income, and marital status of parents. (RH)

In America without excuse every child should start first grade ready to learn. This goal will require that we make high quality preschool available to all 3 and 4 year olds who are at risk of starting first grade behind. Otherwise, gaps in academic achievement between at risk and more affluent children will widen in the first, critically…

By enhancing the block play in classrooms, teachers can help children acquire the emerging skills they need--with numbers, vocabulary, and reading--for kindergarten readiness. Newburger and Vaughan provide a theoretical foundation describing why and how to use blocks, and give guidance on selecting blocks and block safety. With chapters on the…

"School Readiness Indicators: Making Progress for Young Children" was a multi-state initiative that used child well-being indicators to build a change agenda in states and local communities in order to improve school readiness and ensure early school success. The central premise behind this initiative was that top-notch school readiness…