School Ready: Helping Families to Plan, Practice, and Prepare for School

Getting Ready For School

In early childhood policy and practice, one of the most pressing issues is ensuring that all children are ready for successful school experiences. It is crucial to consider society’s definition of school readiness from the age of children to each child’s independent abilities. The definition of school readiness should take into consideration that not all children develop at the same time or in the same way; also, it should include different areas of expectations: Cognitive, physical, social, and emotional competence. School readiness is a collective effort that involves more than just the children. It encompasses the families, early environments, schools, communities, and the children. The development of a child’s skills is strongly influenced and defined by the interactions prior to coming to school (Clarke & Kurtz-Costes, 1997; Maxwell & Clifford, 2004). Parental behaviors that have been identified as important predictors of children’s cognitive and academic growth include shared reading, reading to children, accessibility to books, taking trips to the library, and providing academically oriented activities (Christian, Morrison, & Bryant, 1998; Neuman, 1996). When children are engaged in active discussions with stories, their vocabulary growth, understanding, and recall of stories, language production, and knowledge of print conventions are enhanced. These skills correlate to a child’s reading abilities and subsequent success in school.