To help children succeed at school, Lake Anne Elementary School is trying something new but proven — help more children prepare for school before it starts.
As part of the Fairfax County School Readiness Collaborative, Lake Anne was one of four schools selected by the county to team up with local childcare providers and local agencies to expand the benefits of early learning.
The Collaborative will provide a common understanding of what young children should know when they enter kindergarten by working to give childcare professionals the knowledge and skills they need to design early learning programs that set the stage for future success in school. In addition, the four elementary schools will introduce activities in their neighborhoods that will be designed to ease the transition of families and their children to kindergarten.
"The first five years of learning are extremely important," said Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins (D), who added that she was very excited about the new program. "School readiness is the biggest predictor of success in school."
AS PART OF the state’s Investing in Virginia’s Children Initiative, the Collaborative brings together for the first time the Office for Children, Fairfax County Public Schools, Fairfax County Head Start, Northern Virginia Community College, and Fairfax Futures to improve the quality of child care so that children enter school with the skills they need to succeed.
"It’s about taking the mission of Head Start and sharing that mission and those teaching strategies to others in the community because they’re about helping children just like we are," said Lake Anne Principal Laura Shibles.
Head Start, a federal program originally developed to foster the healthy development of young children from low-income families, grew from a short summer program for preschoolers in 1965 to a year-round program today, serving children from birth to age five.
Researchers continue show that helping children learn before age five can have a positive impact once they enter kindergarten.
BUILDING ON THAT SUCCESS, the Fairfax County School Readiness Collaborative formed last March as a result of a $500,000 grant received by the Office for Children from the Virginia Department of Social Services.
Part of a two-year grant schedule, the Collaborative will also try to spread the benefits to other schools. "In the second year, lessons learned will be expanded to benefit the rest of the county, while also continuing to work in these four neighborhoods," said Gail Bjorklund, director of the School Readiness Collaborative.
Bjorklund said the four selected elementary schools — Lake Anne, Annandale Terrace, Freedom Hill and Hollin Meadows — were selected based on various factors, including the percentage of at-risk children and an adequate supply of childcare and daycare providers in the neighborhood.
Lake Anne will be working with the Laurel Learning Center and TLC 4 Kids, both located close to the school. Also, other individual childcare providers in the area will participate: Rafia Hamid, Maria Jimenez, Carla Marty and Phyllis Potter.
"I believe getting kids off to a positive start is really helpful in shaping their success in school," said Shibles, who had experience working with children under five before becoming a principal.
In the next two months, said Bjorklund, the Collaborative will work with childcare providers to begin to identify some program improvement plans. From there, the program will concentrate on developing early learning guidelines for children from birth through age five, setting up a program to offer School Readiness Certificates to childcare professionals, forming Neighborhood School Readiness Teams and beginning a parent involvement initiative.