Transcript School’s Cool in Kindergartenfor the Kindergarten Teacher

School’s Cool in Kindergarten
for the Kindergarten Teacher
School’s Cool Makes
a Difference!
Why School’s Cool in
Kindergarten?
The School’s Cool program addresses vulnerabilities (e.g.
inability to separate from parent, self-regulate) that are
closely tied to poor school performance.
Offering School’s Cool in kindergarten:
• gives teachers the opportunity to close the skill gap, before
implementing the kindergarten curriculum
• helps ensure that more children, including the most “at
risk” have improved chances of school success
• provides teachers with a detailed baseline of school
readiness skills for all children upon school entry
• helps teachers gain insights into the strengths and needs of
all children that can be used to inform their teaching
The Purpose
School’s Cool is a short term, play-based curriculum designed
to increase the school readiness of 3-5 year olds, especially
those who may be “at risk” of academic challenges.
The School’s Cool program is intended to:
• assist children in acquiring the self-regulation skills they need
to navigate and succeed in the kindergarten classroom
• establish a sound skill base in the 5 domain areas – language,
math/cognitive, psychological, social and self-help to facilitate
learning in kindergarten
• close the skill gap between children who are ready to
transition to kindergarten and those who are not
The Curriculum
The School’s Cool curriculum is play-based and links activities
with observable learning outcomes.
The curriculum:
• reflects widely accepted best practices in the field of early
child development and related teaching approaches
• is outcome-focused, increasing specific skills and abilities (e.g.
listens to examples of safety practices)
• encompasses over 100 learning activities that address the 5
domains
• is delivered by the team in circle, outdoor play, and in
teacher- directed, child-directed and transition times
School’s Cool Outcomes
Pre and post testing of over 3,000 children has shown that, on
average, children attending School’s Cool experience up to a
one year increase in school readiness skills.
The School’s Cool program provides children with
play-based learning opportunities to:
• become familiar with classroom routines and expectations
• practise the skill of self-regulating in a group – listening, taking
turns, following instructions
• engage in making choices that impact their learning and
behavior
• be better prepared for the transition to kindergarten
Implementation
The School’s Cool program is flexible and can easily fit into any
kindergarten classroom, whether it be full day, every other
day or half day.
The School’s Cool program in kindergarten most often:
• begins at the start of the school year
• consists of 24 sessions, within a 3-5 hour daily timeframe
• runs for approximately 10-16 weeks
• is delivered 3-4 days per week
• can be interspersed with kindergarten expectations
throughout the day (e.g. shared writing or reading)
School’s Cool Philosophy
School’s Cool focuses on reframing challenges, finding solutions
that teach the skills of effective problem solving and moving
situations to a positive resolution.
The School’s Cool philosophy:
• builds on strengths that encourage a positive sense of self in
the children, their families and the instructors
• looks for the positives in each situation and collaborates on
solutions that are win-win
• creates an atmosphere of constructive communication
where children, parents and colleagues practice a solutionfocused approach
Assessment and Evaluation
School’s Cool provides teachers with the Developmental
Checklist®, a measurement tool to collect data on individual
skill development and determine next steps in planning.
The Developmental Checklist is used to:
• guide skill observation of children
• measures child progress, daily and over time, in specific skills
• inform further planning and teaching for individual children
and small and large groups
• share successes and challenges with parents and provide
suggestions for next steps at home
Pre and Post Evaluation
Teachers complete a pre and post Developmental Checklist for
each child. By comparing the pre and post checklists, teachers
will see the overall change in children’s progress in the 5
domains over the course of the program.
Pre and post checklists:
• are completed in the first 4 and last 4 sessions of the program
• allow teachers to assess individual children, create small
groups for common needs and gain a broad perspective of the
whole group
• provide teachers with a clear picture of each child’s strengths
and needs at the end of the 24 sessions
Parent Involvement
School’s Cool understands the importance of parent
involvement in the child’s development and education.
School’s Cool encourages parents to help make those first
connections with the school community and to
communicate regularly with teachers and other school staff.
School’s Cool promotes parent involvement by:
• helping parents understand the important role they play in
their children’s development
• planning and delivering 2 parent information sessions
• creating weekly newsletters that keep parents informed
• keeping daily student logs that identify key successes or
challenges
• communicating regularly in person or by phone
Training
School’s Cool Master Trainers provide 3 days of certified
instructor training, teaching how to plan, deliver and
evaluate an effective outcome-based program.
Training is also available online at www.schoolscool.com.
School’s Cool training addresses:
• planning, set up and delivery of the program
• the solution-focused approach to problem solving
• outcome-based learning
• observational coding using a developmental continuum
• engaging parents
• the benefits of working as a team
The Team Approach
School’s Cool supports the idea that knowledgeable educators
working as a team can improve the school readiness skills of
children, preparing them for kindergarten and grade 1.
School’s Cool recommends that sites have a minimum of 2
staff trained in order to achieve optimal success.
The delivery of the School’s Cool program is based on
trained certified instructors consistently working and
encouraging each other as a team in the following areas:
• planning and delivery of the program
• debriefing of observations, thoughts and ideas
• learning and growing as instructors of young children
• communicating both program and personal successes and
challenges
The School’s Cool Kit
The School’s Cool kit plus training and evaluation is a
comprehensive package that encompasses all of the tools
needed to deliver the program to children and their families.
The School’s Cool kit includes:
• an evidence-based school readiness curriculum for children
3-5 years
• a Developmental Checklist for observing and tracking skills
• Cool Bear and clothing
• templates for communicating with parents
• set up and delivery strategies including planning, timing,
materials, assessment and evaluation and more
Thank you for your interest in
School’s Cool
For further information contact us
at: [email protected]
or visit: www.schoolscool.com