The achievement score gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged children at school entry is a major problem in education today. Identifying the skills critical for school readiness is an important step in developing interventions aimed at addressing these score gaps. The purpose of this study is to compare a number of school readiness skills with…

Preschool and kindergarten educators know that strong oral language skills must be in place before children can learn to read. In "Before They Read: Teaching Language and Literacy Development through Conversations, Interactive Read-Alouds, and Listening Games," Cathy Puett Miller helps educators teach those early literacy skills with engaging…

Substantial research supports the need for early intervention efforts for students at risk for failure. Despite the empirically documented importance of early, explicit reading intervention for students who enter school without critical prereading skills, many kindergarten programs delay intensive reading instruction until later in the year.…

The ability to understand causal connections in narrative has been shown to be related to a variety of school-related skills such as reading, comprehension, and memory in adults, school-age children, and children with disabilities. Research also shows that there is a developmental trend in the ability to use and understand causal connections. This…

Play is a significant medium for children's literacy development. As children engage in play activities, they are given opportunities and the motivation to show what they already know about reading and writing systems. Previous literature has shown that a literacy-rich environment increases the number of literacy activities available through play.…

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between school readiness skills as measured by the Missouri KIDS and academic potential in reading and math as measured by the scores on the CTP4 in grades 2-4 in a private, independent school. This study identified which school readiness skills most accurately predict the need for…

The collision of the childhood obesity epidemic with pressure to achieve high academic standards is of serious concern in the United States. Growing numbers of low-income, minority children face double jeopardy as alarming obesity rates further widen existing achievement gaps. Health and education disparities persist when children enter…

This study examined the relationship between attention problems and expressive language and academic readiness skills in preschool-aged children from middle-class families. Forty-three children (44% female) were assessed individually for expressive language skills and knowledge of basic academic concepts (e.g. colours, letters and numbers). The…

This study sought to explore the relationship between attendance in public prekindergarten programs and school readiness skills using regression discontinuity methodology. A sample of 179 students entering prekindergarten and 67 students entering kindergarten who had completed prekindergarten the previous year was collected with parental consent…

Home environment quality is a well-known predictor of school readiness (SR), although the underlying processes are little known. This study tested two hypotheses: (a) child language mediates the association between home characteristics (socioeconomic status and exposure to reading) and SR, and (b) genetic factors partly explain the association…

As early as preschool, children who struggle with emergent literacy skills can benefit from effective response to intervention. Don't wait until later grades when they've already fallen behind--improve their literacy skills now with this evidence-based Tier 2 RTI curriculum, ready for any pre-K educator to pick up and use right away. Created by…

The school readiness of young dual language learners depends on high-quality preschool programs that meet their needs--but how should schools promote and measure the progress of children learning two languages? Find out what the research says in this authoritative resource, which investigates the experiences of dual language learners in preschool…

This exploratory study examined the relationship between use of an interactive (touchscreen) whiteboard and development of school readiness skills. Over one school year, public school regular education prekindergarten classrooms used an interactive whiteboard with preloaded literacy and math activities. The children were low-income and English…

Arts enrichment provides varied channels for acquiring school readiness skills and may offer important educational opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds and with diverse needs. Study 1 examined achievement within an arts enrichment preschool that served low-income children. Results indicated that students practiced school readiness…

Many studies and reports in recent years have argued that there's an important "expectations gap" between the skills students are typically bringing to college and what college teachers think students should be bringing with them to college. This article, presented in the form of an open letter to first-year high school students, is an attempt…