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Ready Schools e-Newsletters

Assessments and Evaluation Tools

Curriculum/Standards/Vertical Alignment

Diversity

Environments

Family, School, Community Partnerships

Professional Development

Ready Schools School Designs/Reform

School Readiness

Transitions

In this section, you’ll find links to research that has been done in ready school issues, materials that you may use to support your own ready school efforts and templates or materials that have been developed by others that you can adapt for your own use in your community or school. This section will be continually updated to provide new resources for you so check back as often as possible. In the area of research, it should be noted that the Foundation for Child Development (FCD) has been fairly prolific. Many of the documents we cite in this section are materials that FCD has published or funded. We also express our appreciation to the W.K. Kellogg Foundation who has done an excellent job of gathering reference materials on ready schools. Finally, for your convenience, we are also including links to resource materials that have been referenced in other parts of this website.

Ready Schools e-Newsletters

2008

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2009

January | February | March / April | May / June | July

2010

January

 

Assessments and Evaluation Tools

 

Research and Best Practices

 

Presentations and Handouts

 

Templates and Examples

High/Scope Ready School Assessment High/Scope Assessment serves as a planning tool for Ready School Teams to use to evaluate their "Readiness Rate".

Early Learning Is For Everyone (ELFE) Asset Development Worksheet This tool was created by the SPARK grantees in North Carolina. It asks teams to discuss their current policies and practices relating to five indicators.

Ready Schools Self Inventory NEGP developed a self-assessment based on the "10 Keys to a Ready School" document.

Teacher Working Conditions Survey A voluntary survey for public school teachers in North Carolina. The results are published on the website. This survey could serve as an informational base needed to complete aspects of a Ready School Assessment.

PTA Parent Involvement Survey The National PTA organization has created a Parent Involvement School of Excellence Certification. This survey could serve as an information base needed to complete aspects of a Ready School Assessment.

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Curriculum/Standards/Vertical Alignment

Research and Best Practices

Ladders of Learning: Fighting Fade-Out by Advancing PK-3 Alignment The New America Foundation Early Education Initiative posted this issue brief in January 2006. This brief discusses the benefits of a PK-3 alignment for increased academic performance.

Ready to Teach? Providing Children with the Teachers They Deserve The Foundation for Child Development wrote this report October 2006 in favor of PK-3 alignment.

Core Knowledge for PK-3 Teaching: Ten Components of Effective Instruction The Foundation for Child Development prepared this policy briefing high-lighting the 10 components to effective classroom instruction.

The Power of K: North Carolina Position Statement on Kindergartens of the 21st Century The North Carolina Board of Education endorsed this position paper discussing the importance of a developmentally appropriate kindergarten.

North Carolina Early Grade Retention in the Age of Accountability This was a collaborative report written by the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, North Carolina Child Resource and Referral Network and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. The purpose of this paper was to discuss the data relating to children being retained in the K-3 setting, the implications and the alternatives to this practice.

Presentations and Handouts

Templates and Examples

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Diversity

Research and Best Practices

Presentations and Handouts

Templates and Examples

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Environments

Research and Best Practices

Presentations and Handouts

Templates and Examples

Self Outdoor Learning Project A RASEM2 RAISE pac project. This document is a resource guide for kindergarten teachers who wish to incorporate science through outdoor learning projects. It was created in New Mexico.

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Family/School/Community Partnerships

Research and Best Practices

Parent Involvement at Selected Ready Schools This document was created by The Chief State School Officers (CSSO) through funding by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in November 2006. It provides insight into the impact of parent involvement in developing ready schools.

Reaching out to Latino Parents A PowerPoint Presentation given at the 2008 Smart Start Conference in Greensboro, NC.

Presentations and Handouts

Parent Empowerment Training Series This 6-part training series was created for parents/families by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. The trainings are 90-minutes in length and can be part of a stand-alone presentation or part of a series.

Templates and Examples

Getting School Ready A Neighborhood/School Transition Teams Handbook.

Parent Empowerment Survey This survey was created by the Down East Partnership for Children to evaluate the effectiveness of the Parent Empowerment Training Series by the Department of Public Instruction.

Title I Parent/ School Compact An example of an agreement created by Telluride School District defining school and parent expectations.

Born Learning This is a public awareness campaign created by the United Way designed to help parents, grandparents and caregivers turn everyday moments into a learning activity for children.

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Professional Development

Research and Best Practices

Leading Early Childhood Learning Communities – What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do Published by The National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP). The book and training series has played a key leadership role in the ready schools movement. The training is for elementary school principals that emphasizes the ideas and guidelines promoted in their book.

Principals Lead The Way for PK-3 A series of case studies published by NAESP has also done a series of case studies emphasizing ready school reform efforts.

Core Knowledge for PK-3 Teaching: Ten Components of Effective Instruction In October 2006, the Foundation for Child Development published this report outlining the ten areas of core knowledge for teachers working in classrooms with students from Pre-K through Third Grade.

Presentations and Handouts

Templates and Examples

North Carolina Ready Schools Professional Development Disk The professional development resources disk swerves as a companion resource guide for the 2006 report called “Core Knowledge for PK-3 Teaching: Ten Components of Effective Instruction." This disk provides a list of resources for each of the associated core content knowledge areas. Please click on the link to request your free copy of the disk today.

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Ready Schools & School Design

Research and Best Practices

Early Steps with Ready Schools: The CCSSO School Readiness Project The Council of Chief State Officers wrote this report with funding from the Annie E. Casey grant. The report analyzed six state level Ready School Initiatives.

Report from the National Summit on School Design This report provides 8 recommendations for the creation of a school that facilitates student achievement and community collaboration.

Schools as Centers of Community: A Citizen’s Guide for Planning and Design This report outlines six design principles for building a school that will serve as the cornerstone for the community.

PK-3 Education: Programs and Practices that Work in Children’s First Decade This paper provides the history, rationale, and analysis of the pk-3 reform.

PK-3: What is it and how do we know it works? This report published by FCD evaluates the effectiveness of the pk-3 reform movement.

PK-3 As Public Education’s Base Camp: Getting There A report published in Oct 2005 by FCD outlining the Pk-3 reform movement

Making the Case for P-C, Education Commission of the States A July 2007 position paper (draft) making the case for P-3 educational reform.

Transition Planning for 21st Century Schools, Public Schools of North Carolina North Carolina Department of Public Instruction published this transition plan.

Presentations and Handouts

Ready School Talking Points and Recommendations  A handout providing a list of talking points surrounding Ready Schools.

Overall Summary - Base Camp A handout with talking points surrounding Ready Schools.

Pathway to a Ready School A SPARK document outlining the 9 pathways to a Ready School.

Compendium of Ready Schools Resources A list of resources supporting Ready Schools

Templates and Examples

FirstSchool: A New Vision for Education First School is a concept model for the creation of the perfect school. The work surrounding First School was made possible by a grant from W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

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School Readiness

Research and Best Practices

National Governor’s Association Task Force on School Readiness. Building the Foundation for Bright Futures: Final Report of the NGA Task Force on School Readiness This report written in 2005 that identified polices and practices that governors and states could adopt supportive of families, schools and communities prepare children for school success.

Presentations and Handouts

 

Templates and Examples

 

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