The Sandwell Numeracy Test comprises of a revised edition for pupils aged 4-8 (SENT-R) and a version to enable the assessment of older pupils experiencing difficulties with numbers suitable for pupils aged 8 to 14 years (SENT KS2âKS3).
The Sandwell Early Numeracy Test assessments enable teachers to assess a pupil's ability with numbers, through exploring five strands of basic numeracy skills: identification, oral counting, value, object counting and language.
This standardised assessment is particularly useful in helping to identify targets for pupils with Special Educational Needs and it can also be used with older pupils whose performance is well below average their age group.
Administered on a one-to-one basis the assessment has been designed to identify specific number skills that require targeted teaching and to monitor the impact of teaching interventions. For children with Special Educational Needs, it can also be used to identify targets for an individual education plan (IEP) and to provide information to support decision-making within the SEN Code of Practice.
Why use SENT-R and SENT KS2-3?


ERIC Number: ED127177
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1971
Reference Count: N/A
Numbers and Counting: MINNEMAST Coordinated Mathematics - Science Series, Unit 9.
Blair, Kay W.; Thomson, Polly V.
This volume is the ninth in a series of 29 coordinated MINNEMAST units in mathematics and science for kindergarten and the primary grades. Intended for use by first-grade teachers, this unit guide provides a summary and overview of the unit, a list of materials needed, and descriptions of four groups of lessons. The purposes and procedures for each activity are discussed. Examples of questions and discussion topics are given, and in several cases ditto masters, stories for reading aloud, and other instructional materials are included in the book. The lessons in this volume are organized into four sections: (1) one-to-one correspondence, (2) tallying, counting, and reading numerals from 0 to 20, (3) writing numerals and counting practice, and (4) ordering and the order-signs. A variety of topics related to these threads is included; among these are estimation of large numbers and names for numbers in other languages. (SD)
Descriptors: Curriculum Guides, Elementary Education, Elementary School Mathematics, Elementary School Science, Experimental Curriculum, Interdisciplinary Approach, Learning Activities, Mathematics Education, Number Concepts, Primary Education, Process Education, Science Education, Units of Study
MINNEMAST, Minnemath Center, 720 Washington Ave., S.E., Minneapolis, MN 55414
Publication Type: Guides - General
Education Level: N/A
Sponsor: National Science Foundation, Washington, DC.
Authoring Institution: Minnesota Univ., Minneapolis. Minnesota School Mathematics and Science Center.


An Early Childhood Teaching Resource aligned with the Food and Nutrition for Healthy, Confident Kids Guidelines (2007) and Te WhÄriki Early Childhood Curriculum 1996. The activities within the resource focus on promoting sensory exploration, language and literacy development, numeracy skills, an understanding of the living work, motor skills, social development and physical wellbeing.
2x Early Childhood Teaching Resource Handbooks
96 laminated fruit and vegetable cards
12x A4 laminated coloured posters
Littlies Snack Ideas for 2-5 year olds
Rainbow Mobile Template
Set of playing cards
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ERIC Number: ED420560
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1993
Reference Count: N/A
Kids Explore America's African-American Heritage. Westridge Young Writers Workshop.
Jefferson County School District R-1, Denver, CO.
This book was written by 86 students in grades 3-8 at Westridge Elementary School (Littleton, Colorado) during a summer enrichment class. The book is for anyone who wants to learn about African-American culture and heritage. Chapter 1 gives an overview of African history before American contact, the introduction of slavery into America, the road to emancipation, reconstruction, the civil rights struggles, and America today. Chapter 2 describes famous 'firsts' and heroes with featured biographies of Lucy Terry Prince, Benjamin Banneker, Leroy B. (Satchel) Paige, Thurgood Marshall, Jackie Robinson, Daniel "Chappie" James, and Shirley Chisolm. Another section of the chapter contains short biographies of Estevanico Dorantez, Elizabeth Freeman, Olaudah Equiano, Norbert Rillieux, Elijah McCoy, Edmonia Lewis, Jan E. Matzeliger, Granville T. Woods, Daniel Hale Williams, Sarah B. (Madame) C. J. Walker, Charles Henry Turner, Ida B. Wells, William Christopher Handy, Carter G. Woodson, Bessie Coleman, Bessie Smith, Marian Anderson, Althea Gibson, and Wilma Rudolph. Chapter 3 discusses art, music, and dance in both Africa and the United States. Chapter 4 describes fun, food, and celebrations of African-American heritage. Chapter 5 includes eight stories common to African-American culture, a language section with words of African origin and Black English phrases, and a literature section for additional resources. The last chapter presents interviews with African-Americans who relate the importance of their culture, family traditions and values. The book contains numerous illustrations and photographs and concludes with a list of student and teacher participants and an index. (EH)
Descriptors: African Culture, African History, African Studies, Black Culture, Black History, Black Studies, Childrens Literature, Cultural Activities, Cultural Education, Elementary Education, Folk Culture, Social Studies, Student Developed Materials, Student Publications
John Muir Publications, P.O. Box 613, Santa Fe, NM 87504, telephone: 505-982-4078 ($9.95).
Publication Type: Books; Guides - Non-Classroom
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Practitioners; Students; Teachers
Authoring Institution: Jefferson County School District R-1, Denver, CO.


Google recently unveiled the latest addition to their Chrome Music Lab line-up.
Chrome Music Lab is a website made by Google that aims at making music education more accessible through hands-on experiments.
Many teachers have been using Chrome Music Lab as a tool in their classrooms to explore music and its connections to science, math, art, and more.
Theyâve been combining it with dance and live instruments.
Hereâs a collection of some uses weâve found on Twitter.
The Song Maker experiment lets users make and share their own songs.
You can check out mine here.
All of the experiments are built with freely accessible web technology such as Web Audio API, WebMIDI, Tone.js, and more.
These tools make it easier for coders to build new interactive music experiences.
Users can get the open-source code to lots of these experiments here on Github.
Users can play with these experiments across devices, phones, tablets, laptops, by opening the site on a web browser such as Chrome.
On top of this, there is no account needed so all you have to do is open it up.
Now, despite being quite cool it is worth noting that all of these experiments are quite rudimentary and creating a record selling masterpiece may prove difficult.
Despite that, there is a lot of fun to be had here, for adults and children alike.
You can watch the video on Song Maker here:


Summer is the perfect time to get outdoors, play games and to get wet. Why not include a little balance and coordination to an afternoon of Gross Motor Play. Water Balloon Stomp is a fabulous way for your Little Pnuts to practice color recognition, build on counting skills, improve strategic thinking all while enjoying outdoor fun. A great water play activity for a play date or for individual play this activity is sure to elicit plenty of giggles.
What You Will Need
- Filled Water Balloons in a variety of colors, filled.
- A bucket filled with water
- A Timer for the variation on play
Gather up some water balloons. We usually fill up a bucket(s) with water and then drop the water balloons in that to keep them safer longer.
Find a good place for your Little Pnut to âstompâ. The beauty of this activity is you can do it just about anywhere outdoors. We did this activity on our deck but the yard, the driveway, or patio work great too. Gently lay out one or more water balloons on the ground.
You may have to demonstrate for your Little Pnut the action you are after but I promise you they will catch on quickly. Our 22 month old did! He had the best time trying to stomp on and break the water balloons with his feet. That alone is a good exercise in concentration and coordination. The older Little Pnuts will be a little more accurate and break the balloons more quickly but it may take the littles a few tries. Mix it up and make a color recognition game out of it for your Little Pnuts by laying out more than one balloon at a time and telling them what color balloon to stomp. Practice counting by challenging them to break a designated number of balloons.
For even older Little Pnuts write numbers on the balloons with a sharpie and see how many balloons they can break (ie. points they can score) in a designated time period. Older Little Pnuts will love the added element of a time challenge. The possibilities are almost endless. Most importantly though, have fun & get wet!
This activities focuses on the following Developmental Milestones for your Little Pnuts:
Gross Motor Skill Development, Focus and Concentration, Strategic Thinking, Balance, Coordination, Color Recognition, Number Recognition, Number Sequencing, Counting Skills, Cooperative Play, Cognitive Development, Group Play and Individual Play.âJennifer Haas, founder of Plain Vanilla Mom.


First-year fine motor skills
Did you know that tummy time, crawling and side-sitting can actually help with your babyâs fine motor development?
These basic movement patterns â and the postural control and stability needed to perform them â can affect skills later in life such as handwriting!
What can you do to help ensure that your babyâs fine motor development is on target?
Do you need to spend money on the latest gadget/toy to help strengthen those little hands?
No! Developmental motor sequences are hard-wired, and babies are set up to naturally master fine motor skills without engineering or technology.
You can encourage exploration and competence by providing opportunities throughout your daily routine to practice these foundational skills.
Here are some key concepts in fine motor development and some simple activities to try:
Postural control and stability
This is the combination of strength and balance that enables us to keep one part of the body still while another part moves. For example, shoulder stability affects the ways in which the arms and hands move.
Incorporate lots of floor time into your babyâs day. Reaching while in different positions on the floor â on the tummy, lying on his/her back, side-lying and sitting â can help strengthen your babyâs core muscles and improve shoulder stability.
This refers to the efficient use of both hands during an activity. As a child gets older, one hand often stabilizes or helps, while the other hand manipulates.
Help your baby play patty cake, peek-a-boo or other simple action songs.
Hands are one of the most sensitive parts of our body! Our tactile sense interprets what we touch and helps guide movements. For fine motor skills, we rely on touch, vision and proprioception (an unconscious sense of joint position and movement).
Allow your baby to learn by mouthing toys (no choking-sized objects) and playing with food (such as âpaintingâ with pudding).
There are 35 muscles that move the fingers and thumb â 17 in the palm of the hand and 18 in the forearm. Dexterity skill involves the small, precise, accurate and efficient movements of the hands.
- Hand separation: Babiesâ hands have two sides that do two different jobs. Precision and manipulation are accomplished by the side of the hand with the thumb and first two fingers, while stability and power are provided by the pinky and ring finger side.
Use picture books to encourage pushing, poking and pointing with the index finger. Banging toys on the table or floor helps strengthen the other side of the hand.
- Grasping patterns: Encourage babies to hold onto a variety objects of different sizes, shapes, textures and weights.
Container play with common household objects of different sizes can help babies practice grasp and release. Start with larger objects and proceed to smaller ones. Encourage your child to put things into containers and then take them out again and again. Dumping, banging, hiding and stacking items should be encouraged as well because such actions all require different grasping patterns.
- Palmar arches: The arches of the hand enable grasping objects and help provide a base of support for skilled finger movement.
Crawling as well as pushing up while in a tummy-time position can help develop the muscles and arches toward the pinky side of the hand.
Rattles and finger foods, meanwhile, help develop the skilled side of the hand (thumb and first two fingers).
If you have concerns about your babyâs fine motor development, contact your pediatrician who may refer you to a rehabilitation specialist such as an (occupational or physical therapist).
Some red flags in the first year could include not bringing hands to mouth, making no attempt to reach for or hold objects, the absence of bringing both hands together in play or weakness in the ability to hold onto objects.
Capernaum Pediatric Therapy of Edina uses a play-based approach to help children achieve developmental milestones and maximize their functional potential. This article was inspired by occupational therapists/teachers, including Mary Benbow, Rhoda Erhardt and Maryanne Bruni.


Education System in Mali
|Primary||Elementary Education||1||6||6||In the sixth grade all the students take the C.E.P.|
|Middle||Junior High school||7||9||3||Certificate/Diploma awarded: DiplÃ´me d'Etudes Fondamentales (D.E.F.)|
|Secondary||Senior High School||10||12||3||Certificate/Diploma awarded: Baccalaureat|
|Vocational||Vocational/Technical School||2||Certificate/Diploma awarded: Certificat d'Aptitude Professionnelle (CAP)|
|Vocational||Vocational/Technical School||4||Certificate/Diploma awarded: Brevet de Technicien|
|Tertiary||University First Level||2||Certificate/Diploma awarded: Licence (2-3 years of study)|
|Tertiary||University Second Level||Certificate/Diploma awarded: Maitrise|
|Tertiary||University Third Level||2||Certificate/Diploma awarded: DiplÃ´me dâEtudes Approfondies (DEA)|
|Tertiary||University Fourth Level||3||Certificate/Diploma awarded: Doctorate (Ph.D)|
There is an element of imbalance in Mali Education because the ministry of lower education is increasing throughput, whereas the ministry of secondary and higher education still does not have sufficient secondary schools. As a result, many secondary students are deprived of opportunities, and this still happens more frequently to girls than boys. Education is provided free of charge and legislated as compulsory between ages 7 and 16, of which the first 6 years are primary schooling. Despite improved facilities many poorer children still do not attend because of high ancillary education costs.
Students wishing to continue with their schooling must first pass the diplÃ´me dâÃ©tude fondamentale on finishing primary school. Of those who succeeded in 2008, almost 21% were unable to obtain admission to middle school. Those who did, followed a standard academic curriculum for the next 3 years.
Upper secondary schools are clustered in urban areas, and the best of these are privately administered. This sad reality of life ensures that the path to progress is largely obscured for those young people whose fathers are not either wealthy, or otherwise influential.
The Mali government is addressing the secondary education bottleneck by expanding vocational training and introducing a national apprenticeship system. Practical skills like literacy and basic agricultural knowledge are also being provided. The country remains one of the poorest in the world, and of necessity, progress is slower than it might have otherwise been.
One of the worldâs most ancient education institutions is Sankore Masjid which still operates in Timbuktu as a seat of Islamic learning. Its modern counterpart, the University of Bamako illustrated here, was founded in 1996 and is named after the capital city where it stands.
Its 5 faculties include science & technology, medical, humanities arts & science, law & public service, and economy & management. It also hosts an institute of management, and an institute of training and applied research. The medium of education is French.


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The Primary Years Programme (K-Gr 5)
At Stratford Hall, we are authorized by the International Baccalaureate Organization to teach the Primary Years Programme (PYP). The PYP is a framework, designed by the IB, through which we deliver the British Columbia (BC) Ministry of Educationâs Curriculum. It is inquiry-based, driven by the questions teachers and students generate. Our Kindergarten to Grade 5 students are encouraged to be active learners, and to stretch their thinking by asking questions that deepen their understanding of a concept or skill.
Along with the Learner Profile, the PYP is composed of five essential elements, addressed through the curriculum developed by the teachers.
A unique feature is the transdisciplinary nature of our program. Wherever possible, knowledge and skills associated with social studies, science, literacy, numeracy, and fine arts are integrated into our Programme of Inquiry (POI). The POI represents 36 Units of Inquiry (six per grade) taught each year. The POI is reviewed annually to ensure alignment with the BC Ministry of Educationâs curricular expectations, along with consistency across, and within, the grades. Standalone instruction in specific Literacy and Numeracy skills also play a part in our balanced programming, ensuring students are set up for success by providing solid foundational skills.
Our Language Acquisition program features Spanish exclusively in the PYP. Spanish, along with Physical Education and Music, are taught by specialists, and are a regular part a studentâs timetable throughout the week.
If you would like to learn more about our programming, feel free to connect with our PYP Coordinator, Ms. Amanda Lempriere.


The splitting of a single spectral line into a group of closely spaced lines when the substance producing the single line is subjected to a uniform magnetic field. The effect was discovered in 1896 by the Dutch physicist Pieter Zeeman. In the so-called normal Zeeman effect, the spectral line corresponding to the original frequency of the light (in the absence of the magnetic field) appears with two other lines arranged symmetrically on either side of the original line. In the anomalous Zeeman effect (which is actually more common than the normal effect), several lines appear, forming a complex pattern.
The normal Zeeman effect was successfully explained by H. A. Lorentz using the laws of classical physics (Zeeman and Lorentz shared the 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics). The anomalous Zeeman effect could not be explained using classical physics; the development of the quantum theory and the discovery of the electronâs intrinsic spin led to a satisfactory explanation. According to the quantum theory all spectral lines arise from transitions of electrons between different allowed energy levels within the atom, the frequency of the spectral line being proportional to the energy difference between the initial and final levels.
Because of its intrinsic spin, the electron has a magnetic field associated with it. When an external magnetic field is applied, the electronâs magnetic field may assume only certain alignments. Slight differences in energy are associated with these different orientations, so that what was once a single energy level becomes three or more. Practical applications based on the Zeeman effect include spectral analysis and measurement of magnetic field strength. Since the separation of the components of the spectral line is proportional to the field strength, the Zeeman effect is particularly useful where the magnetic field cannot be measured by more direct methods.
Dutch physicist who observed that an intense magnetic field would split single spectral lines into three components, an observation known as the Zeeman effect. Zeeman shared the 1902 Nobel Prize in physics with his teacher Lorentz for his discovery. Pieter Zeeman was born on May 25, 1865, in Zonnemaire, the Netherlands. His father was a Lutheran minister named Catharinus Farandinus Zeeman and his mothers name was Wilhelmina Worst. It was his mother who attended to his elementary education. He attended secondary school in Zierikzee, a town a few miles from his home.
He had a strong desire to attend University, for which he had to study the classical languages. And after a couple of years he finally entered the University of Leyden in 1885. Zeeman was a student of Hendrik Lorentz at the University of Leyden. He began lecturing at the University Leyden in 1890. In 1896, at the request of Lorentz, he began investigating the effect of magnetic fields on a light source and discovered what is now known as the Zeeman effect. This discovery proved Lorentz theory of electromagnetic radiation.


Pre Primary schooling at Bhagirathi International School helps children to learn and grow in a warm and stimulating environment which makes learning fun and an ever cherishing experience. We try to create an environment where children not only Learn, they actually Love to learn.
The pre primary school curriculum has been designed to nurture and develop the following objectives within the tiny tots:
Knowledge and understanding of the world around them
Under the supervision of experienced, dedicated teachers we help your child to understand and explore his immediate environment and the physical world. We also try to inculcate within them the basic technique of exploring, questioning and drawing conclusions from their learning.
Our curriculum at the pre primary school level has been designed to introduce mathematical concepts in a simple and tangible manner concentrating on one attribute at a time and progressing gradually.
The lessons are properly planned fostering development of problem solving abilities through activities, observation, analysis and discussions.
Language arts and phonics
Throughout the pre primary school years, emphasis is laid on comprehension, making it an integral part of language development. Phonics is used to teach English in a structured manner. The prime objective of the program is to develop the habit of reading and speaking within your child.
Physical and personal development
Physical and personal development is given paramount importance at Orchids â The International School, as it is a very important aspect of overall development. It fosters development of gross motor skills, stamina, balance, rhythm, strength, agility and concentration through variety of indoor and outdoor games and activities.
Small class size & Individual Attention
In order to provide proper individual attention, we maintain a very healthy teacher-student ratio in each section of 1:20.
Thematic learning through Field trips
A very important aspect of the curriculum, we provide an opportunity to our children to experience real life scenarios by taking them for visits to the post offices, fire station, aquariums etc. thus enriching the learning experience.
The primary school curriculum is planned as an extension of pre primary, focusing on all the developmental areas. The curriculum includes a well structured schedule that mixes learning and play, all carefully orchestrated for inspiring the kids to enjoy and learn, expand their horizons and improve their imaginations and creativity. It is Trans-disciplinary, thus helping students to correlate the learning with the real world scenarios. The objective is to inculcate self-study skills within the students, an essential element for success in middle and high school.
The syllabus is as per NCERT / CBSE/ ICSE, The focus is on developing the basic concepts in core subjects (English, mathematics, sciences, art, music and physical education) through activities, projects, and work-sheets.
English curriculum has been divided into the four key areas of â LSRW (Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing). The tools used to foster development in the above mentioned key areas are guided reading program, show and tell, role plays, drama, songs, poetry, story-telling, essays and short story writing. These pave way for self-expression.
Participation in the classroom discussions is a very important tool for language development and it is highly encouraged at Bhagirathi â The International School.
English Language labs
Our schools are equipped with Language labs from Pearson Group. It enables the students to improvise on their pronunciation and vocabulary for an active conversation.
At Bhagirathi International School, The students are taught and encouraged to go beyond the books and apply the concepts taught to real world problems. By the end of the primary school, children will be very comfortable in handling problems pertaining to numbers, shapes, measurement and data analysis.
The school curriculum lays due emphasis on experimentation as it enhances the understanding power of the students and makes the subject interesting for them. Children spend an ample time in various labs (physics, chemistry and biology) to verify and validate their hypothesis on various aspects on learning.
Games cultivate a sense of sportsmanship and team. At Bhagirathi International School the children are exposed to various sports â cricket, soccer, basketball, volleyball, tennis etc.(depending upon their areas of interest) for their physical as well as mental well being.
Bhagirathi International School has a very strong track record of outstanding student discipline and behavior, which is reflected at every norm of our operations. Treating every individual with due respect and dignity cultivates self discipline and esteem within every BIS ian.


The Kindergarten program at Hudson Montessori is the third and culminating year of the Primary Program. This year brings to fruition the development and mastery of so many skills, and provides students with numerous opportunities to apply these skills in meaningful ways. Research has shown that children whose educational experience provides a âdiscovery approachâ, are able to build a strong foundation for future learning.
The typical day for a Kindergarten student begins with fully participating in the mixed age Primary class in the morning. Montessori materials and concepts are learned and reinforced in this class of 3 to 5 year olds. In the afternoon, after lunch, the kindergartners meet in a designated classroom to extend their focus on Math, Science and Language Arts. The afternoon two-hour session, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, is dedicated to small group instruction, whole class instruction and individual lessons in one of the three subject areas every day. This juxtaposition of Montessori and traditional curriculums best prepares our children for their continuing education in the elementary program.
In Language Arts, the children continue building their phonics and literacy skills with Montessori materials. Additionally, kindergartners sequentially review their literacy skills with the Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) program. This program, which is aligned to the Common Core State Standards, is based on the best available research about literacy development. The CKLA curriculum extends and supports our Montessori morning work cycles. Embedded within Montessoriâs cultural and scientific curricula are studies of Geography, History, Biology, Botany, Zoology, Art and Music that are extensions of language development; allowing our children to learn about many other cultures and historical contexts while developing their consciousness as global citizens.
In Math, our kindergartners are provided the opportunity to work not only with Montessori Materials, but extend their exploration using the highly regarded Singapore Math. Singapore Math teaches mathematical concepts in a three-step process: concrete, pictorial and abstract. The Singapore Math program nicely builds on the concrete foundation that all our students have developed using the Montessori materials. Singapore Math also has a strong focus on Word Problems, so students learn what computation to use based on the situation. We also apply differentiated instruction and use ability grouping in our math program. This approach complements, enhances and expands our childrenâs mathematical approach and understanding. Parents receive in-depth information on Core Knowledge Language Skills program and Singapore Math, along with details on the Montessori Kindergarten curriculum, during Back-to-School Night, Parent Conferences and other parent education events.
In Science, the children continue their hands-on exploration of the Sciences.The STEAM, (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) approach uses real world learning experiences to deliver a strong curriculum in Science, combining Technology, Engineering, Art and Math. Our goal is to nurture this curiosity and engage them in the sciences. We encourage them to combine technical knowledge and know-how to develop creativity, critical thinking and problem solving skills. Students learn how to design, set up and carry out simple science experiments, explore technology and engineering solutions and apply math concepts to solve real world problems.
In Art, children explore various artists and art forms. They learn about a different artist, medium/technique or theme each month.Some of the artists studied may include Kandinsky, Haring, Matisse, Picasso, Miro, Nikki se St Phalle, Dali and Van Gogh. For each artist, the children explore the artistâs life (bio, stories, anecdotes) and how the artist expresses his/her artwork (ways of expression, definition of art, vocabulary and specific techniques). Children create their own works of art inspired by the featured artist and/or a medium or technique.
In Music, kindergarten children are introduced to the Keyboard. In small group classes, they will learn the basics of playing the keyboard. This class is designed to teach children where the notes are, how to properly use our fingers to play these notes, how to effectively practice, and how to play songs. Students also watch and listen to various piano classics live during the class. They will take part in a group recital during the Kindergarten Graduation Ceremony.
In Library, the mission of the program is to encourage students to become lifelong learners who are excited to read and research. Kindergartens enjoy weekly visits to the school library for stories, educational and entertaining library programming and book exchange. Students will be introduced to a diverse selection of age-appropriate fiction and non-fiction, and engage in meaningful and fun follow-up activities, such as storytelling, creative drama and readerâs theater, in language arts and other curriculum.The librarian connects students with the resources they need for class projects and introduces them to books they canât put down in their free time.
World News is also covered once a week to share important events happening in our world.


Not long back, the common sight during the vacation was of children playing around in parks and playgrounds during their vacations.
The current scenario has, however, shifting from playgrounds to AC rooms with children glued to their phones or tablets and experts believe it sends out a warning signal for society.
Dr. Sumita Saha, Consultant Pediatrician at Fortis Hospital Anandapur has sounded an alert saying, âParents often proudly describe how adept their little ones are with digital gadgets. Hardly do they realise that they are paving the way for a lot many behavioural and psychological disorders in future.â
As per a guideline from the American Association of Pediatricians, children between the age of 2-5years, should not be permitted screen time of more than 1 hour/day and for those above 6 years, the duration of exposure is to be fixed by the parents, who also need to act as a media monitor.
Dr. Sanjay Garg, Head of the Department of Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences at Fortis Hospital Anandapur, mentioned the following drawbacks of overexposure to gadgets:
- Over excites the brain: Cell phones with backlight puts lot of stress on the brain of the children. With continuous usage of gadgets, the brain gets drained out resulting in memory problem in the long run.
- Poor educational performance: The graphics of the gadgets change so rapidly that they fully engage the brain. The children gradually get used to such high levels of stimulation that they expect the same from all media. In the later stage, the books fail to provide the same level of stimulation, eventually resulting in poor academic performance.
- Restlessness and hyperactive: Excess screen time and exposure to graphics affects the functioning of the brain. The fast moving graphics of the gadgets makes the children restless and agitated. It can also bring about behavioral changes in the children and makes them hyperactive and fidgety.
- Content monitoring: Often the content, that the children get exposed to, is overtly mature for their age. Parents should act as content mentors to avoid children coming across such mature content to avoid them becoming aggressive. If the children watch such adverse content, they may undergo some prominent changes in their social behavior.
Dr. Saha further mentioned, âThe children, now-a-days are so engrossed in the world of gadgets that the amount of physical activity, they experience, is compromised which in turn hinders their fine motor skill development.â
He went on to add, âEarlier, physical games that children played including marbles, cricket, football would help them develop physical balance, hand-eye coordination and keep them fit. Since these physical activities are slowly losing their charm, the children are hardly able to develop these vital skills.
He also added that since children hardly move around nowadays, their face-to-face social interaction is also limited. This ends up in the children being socially shy and growing up to be introverts. Since these children do not having many friends of their age and cannot express their emotions, the rate of depression in children is also on the rise.
According to the doctor, many of his patientsâ parents complain that their children are not sleeping well or are throwing lot of tantrums when laid to bed. Hardly do they know that it is the result of overexposure to screen time during the day. Not only do they have problems in falling asleep, their quality of sleep is also affected.
It is high time that parents start spending some quality time with the children so that they slowly take a shift from the gadget world to the real human world. This will ensure that their world expands to a larger space and their behavioral development happens as it should ideally be.


Personalized learning is somewhat that educators of all kinds are motivated for. A teacher who can make learning relevant, real also appropriate for each student in their class is one who can see amazing successes also empowered students. But with too many students also too little time making learning as personalized as possible is not always easy.
Handy info-graphic use in learning is to drive a great example of personalized learning. When you learn to drive, you are basically having a personalized, one on one instruction with real time observation also feedback. Can you imagine if students could learn math that way?
Why Learn Math Like You Learn To Drive?
Info graphic explores âtraditional teaching' as compared with teaching âfocused on point of learning'
Teaching focused on point of learning:-
1) Demonstrates skill
2) Watches student perform skill
3) Observes also gives critical feedback
4) Ensures testing is practically applied
1. Demonstrates skill
2. Students practice skill on their own, with little feedback
3. Testing is less about demonstrating that student has acquired practical skill
4. Many âlife also death' professions are taught in âfocused on point of learning' method, with one-on-one training also feedback (like surgeons also pilots)
5. Kids who excel in math in elementary school are twice as likely to find out employment as adults, achieve higher levels of education also earn more money in their lifetimes
6. America's GDP is estimated to increase by $77 trillion if students in US could increase their math scores to be equal to those of students in Canada
7. Only 41% of 4th graders scored proficient in mathematics in 2013
8. Only 24% of 8th graders scored proficient in mathematics in 2013
9. US students consistently perform poorly in math despite increased spending per student.
Does this approach of teaching math fail even smartest kids?
Here is why math education your children need is most likely not what their school is teaching. As sure as one plus one equals two, it happens year after year. Kids who have been bringing home as in chemistry also acing AP Calculus arrive at college with visions of STEM careers dancing in their heads. Then they hit an invisible, but very painful, wall.
According to research from University of California, Los Angeles, as many as 60 percent of all college students who intend to study a STEM (science, technology, engineering, also math) subject end up transferring out. In an era when politicians also educators are beside themselves with worry over American students' lagging math also science scores compared to whiz kids of Shanghai also Japan, this attrition trend so troubles experts it has spawned an entire field of research on "STEM drop-out," citing reasons from gender also race to GPAs also peer relationships.
One theory for STEM exodus is that American students aren't getting a good foundation in math - a necessary skill in many scientific also technical curricula. After all, about a third of American high school seniors don't score proficient in math. But here's kicker: STEM attrition rates are even higher at most selective colleges like Ivy Leagues places where kids need killer AP scores also grades just to get in.
So, why do even most accomplished students burn out of STEM programs when they hit college? From alluring grade inflation in arts also humanities, to what one engineering professor characterized as boring, largely theoretical "math-science death march" of first-year requirements.
We have not found the right balance between traditional math and discovery math. The solution above includes one on one teaching which a great idea is if cost was not an issue. Cost is an issue. Find a practical (cost effective) solution that combines teaching traditional foundational skills and allows for creativity but neither should be at the expense of the other. Traditional math skills have been taught in the drill and kill format for years. With technology we can now provide the same principles in a more fun and engaging format and make learning the basics into a drill and thrill format.


Horatio William Parker (1863-1919) was one of the most respected American composers of the late 19th century and professor of music at Yale University.
Horatio Parker was born on Sept. 15, 1863, in Auburndale, Mass. At 14 he began taking piano lessons from his mother and soon wrote a collection of songs for children. At 16 he became organist of a church at Dedham and began to compose hymns and anthems.
In 1882 Parker went to Europe to study at the Royal School of Music in Munich. While abroad he married fellow music student Anna Plossl, a Munich banker's daughter. Upon returning to America, Parker settled in New York, teaching at the Cathedral School in Garden City. He taught at the National Conservatory of Music in New York City at the time Antonin DvoÅÃ¡k was its director and in 1893 became choirmaster and organist at Trinity Church in Boston. The following year Parker was appointed head of the Music Department of Yale University, a position he held until his death. While at Yale, he organized the New Haven Symphony Orchestra.
Although Parker attempted a number of symphonic and instrumental pieces, his choral music was his finest work. His most lasting composition, the oratorio Hora Novissima (1891-1892), was written during a time when he was grieving over the loss of a sister. Here the composer reveals his ability at massed choral effects, as well as his skill for developing hymnlike themes. The music is masculine and vital, if at times overly calculated. He received the National Conservatory Award in 1892 for his cantata The Dream King and His Love.
Parker's first opera, Mona, won a $10, 000 prize offered by the directors of the Metropolitan Opera House for the best American opera. It was premiered on March 14, 1912, but was dropped from the Metropolitan repertoire after four performances. His second opera, Fairyland, was also awarded a $10, 000 prize, this time by the National Federation of Music Clubs; the work was performed six times in 1915 during the federation's biennial in Los Angeles.
Parker served as editor in chief for a series of graded songbooks for children and remained actively interested in music education in the public schools. He received a doctor of music degree from Cambridge University in 1902, by which time his choral works were enjoying considerable success in England. He commanded greater social standing than most American musicians of his day, although his strong-willed, individualistic personality made him a figure of controversy among students and colleagues. He died at Cedarhurst, N.Y., on Dec. 18, 1919.
Further Reading on Horatio William Parker
An interesting, personalized account of Parker is George W. Chadwick's Horatio Parker (1921). Isabel Parker Semler, Horatio Parker (1942), is based primarily on the composer's papers and family letters. The best brief discussion of Parker's life and work is contained in Gilbert Chase, America's Music, from the Pilgrims to the Present (1955; 2d ed. 1966).
Additional Biography Sources
Kearns, William, Horatio Parker, 1863-1919: his life, music, and ideas, Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1990.
Semler, Isabel Parker, Horatio Parker: a memoir for his grandchildren, New York: AMS Press, 1975.


For the past ten decades, public schools have had difficulty funding school programs like art class and music course. Not having at least any sort of music or art education gives children a serious disadvantage when they enter college and the work place.
In music and art classes, children learn to be creative and use different parts of their brain aside from the logical portion of the brain used in most school subjects. Additionally, studies have shown that art and music help kids in other areas like mathematics and science.
Artists back then and today went through different phases in life, both good and bad, that later inspired their work. Some even took to Marijuana seeds in order to appeal to their creativity. Children need not go through this (unless theyâd like to when theyâre of legal age, of course) because education aims to unlock each kidâs artistic trait.
Art and music course can help children gain confidence required to be successful in college and in the professional world. Finally, in art class, students learn how to use tools such as drafting chairs and drafting tables that many professionals use, like architects and graphic designers. Therefore, itâs very important that public schools make sure that they get the funds they need to keep these programs alive.
Music and art classes teach children about creativity. When kids are being creative theyâre using a different part of the brain they donât use in regular courses, like science and mathematics. Itâs necessary to develop this creative part of the mind, so children have a much better chance of being successful in their chosen career path.
A kid who wants to go into marketing as a career option will have to have creativity to think of new and innovative advertisements for a business. If kids just have an education in science, mathematics, English, and social studies, then they wonât be ready for life after college.
There have been a number of studies which have proven that music and art education help children do better in their regular courses. Itâs a fact that a great music education contributes to better math grades. Art education helps teach kids to be creative, which helps them learn how to think of creative solutions to problems given to them in different classes.
Tools which are used in the art classroom and tools used in music course teach children how to be in charge of expensive equipment that they will almost certainly be working with for future companies.


ERIC Number: ED408122
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1997-Mar
Reference Count: N/A
Primary Education in India. Development in Practice
World Bank, Washington, DC.
Having steadily raised primary enrollment rates over the past 4 decades, India now has 67 million children aged 6-10 who are attending primary school, but 28-32 million who are not. This book draws on a wide range of sources, including original analytical work by Indian researchers and others, to describe the current state of primary education in India, identify key challenges, and recommend directions for reform. Chapters: (1) provide an overview of Indian primary education; (2) explain the economic and social benefits that justify investment in primary education; (3) examine low attendance rates and widespread grade repetition in certain regions, the need to increase the supply of classrooms and teachers, possible incentives to increase school attendance, and the cost benefits of improved student flow; (4) discuss low student achievement in low-literacy rural areas, achievement gaps by gender and social class, and strategies for improving achievement; (5) explore the effects of poverty on enrollment, persistence, and achievement, as well as strategies for reducing gender, caste, and ethnic gaps in these indicators; (6) describe teacher characteristics and weaknesses, teaching conditions, and strategies for improving teacher performance; (7) examine means for improving textbook quality and the efficiency of their production; (8) discuss recent decentralization of educational governance and strategies for building managerial and institutional capacity; (9) describe educational finance at the federal and state levels; and (10) recommend financial strategies. Appendices summarize studies of school incentive programs and unit costs of elementary education and provide tables of basic education indicators for the 15 major states. Includes notes, an extensive bibliography, and many tables and figures. (SV)
Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Access to Education, Disadvantaged, Educational Attainment, Educational Benefits, Educational Development, Educational Finance, Educational Policy, Educational Quality, Efficiency, Elementary Education, Enrollment, Equal Education, Foreign Countries, Literacy, Poverty, Rural Schools, Teacher Education
World Bank Publications, P.O. Box 7247-8619, Philadelphia, PA 19170-8619 ($30).
Publication Type: Books; Information Analyses
Education Level: N/A
Authoring Institution: World Bank, Washington, DC.
Identifiers - Location: India


Mental Health Education in Elementary Curriculum
This petition had 957 supporters
Those who sign this petition wish to see Mental Health Education implemented in states' elementary curriculum, on a national scale. Arming our children, this nationâs future, with knowledge, awareness, and compassion.
Mental illness does not target a specific group through race, religion, or salary. In the United States, 1 in 5 people suffer with mental illness each year; half of which are seen by the age of 14.
In the elementary levels, we teach our children the symptoms of physical illnesses and diseases, so why not depression, OCD, and anxiety?
As a college student at a large university, I come across people with mental health issues routinely. What if children were able to talk about their feelings in the same way they might if they had a stomach ache? If the same emphasis were put on mental health as physical health at an elementary level it would help remove the negative connotation attached to mental health.
It is for this reason, I am calling on all state senators to focus their efforts onto the addition of mental health in the elementary school curriculum.
In its severity, one person every forty seconds dies due to suicide -- second leading cause of death among 15-29 year olds. There is large correlation between the lack of mental health education and suicide rates. Peopleâs lives are ruined by the lack of mental health education and services.
We need to provide our children with a curriculum that includes mental health education in order to give them a future where they are not afraid to ask for help.
Today: Summer is counting on you
Summer Pylant needs your help with âLamar Alexander: Mental Health Curriculum Required in Elementary Educationâ. Join Summer and 956 supporters today.


Exploration, Discovery, and Learning for Your Toddler
In our toddler daycare program, your little one can channel his or her seemingly boundless energy and curiosity into fun activities in a safe, stimulating environment. Professional, patient caregivers guide your toddler through this period of immense growth, fostering cognitive, socio-emotional, and physical development through art, movement, music, reading, and active outdoor playtime. Within our well-structured toddler programs, your child will have plenty of choices with which to express his or her blossoming independence and self-confidence.
Boosting Your Toddlerâs Early Development
Walking and talking at age two, your child is especially inquisitive about the world, and these are prime years for learning. The brainâs ability to develop with new stimuli is greatest in children under three because this is when trillions of brain-cell connections called neural synapses form. Unfortunately, synapses that fail to connect are lost forever. Our learning centers for toddlers are designed to stimulate early development through fun, engaging activities.
- Cognitive: A host of factors influence brain development during these formative years. Chief among them are the safety and security of the environment, responsiveness of caregivers, and exposure to talking, reading, singing, and other mentally stimulating activities.
- Socio-Emotional: Understanding individual feelings and the feelings of others, managing emotions in a constructive manner, regulating behavior, and maintaining relationships are essential to healthy socio-emotional development in toddlers. Positive ongoing relationships with nurturing caregivers and communication about thoughts and feelings are important as toddlers discover themselves, peers, and adults.
- Physical: Eager to explore the world around them and their newfound physical abilities, toddlersâ little bodies sometimes struggle to keep up with their imagination. As their gross and fine motor skills continue to develop, toddlers need plenty of safe indoor and outdoor spaces to walk, jump, run, and play.
Developmental Activities Include:
- Discovery Time: Toddlers learn best through exploration and discovery, and thereâs no better place for this than playtime. Whether casting spells as a wizard, building with blocks, or painting a mini masterpiece, your little one can imagine to their heartâs content with our abundant array of props, costumes, and arts-and-crafts materials.
- Early Learning: We nurture your toddlerâs budding enthusiasm for learning through our theme-based curriculum, which is full of fun, age-appropriate activities involving language, colors, and shapes.
- Talk, Talk, Talk: Exposure to language and participation in conversation in the first three years of life lays the foundation for cognitive thought, reading comprehension, and healthy socialization. In our toddler daycare, your tot will be encouraged to talk, talk, talk with teachers and other toddlers.
- Baby SignsÂ®: When your toddler doesnât know the word for a need or emotion, he or she can express it with Baby SignsÂ®, a sign language program for hearing children that can help alleviate the frustration of learning to talk.
- Socialization: Our nurturing teachers guide your little one through his or her first friendships with group songs, finger play, stories, and movement activities.
- Growing Independence: As toddlers forge their identities, they want independence. Whether washing hands, picking up toys, or putting on a coat, children have plenty of opportunities to do things âtheir wayâ in our toddler programs.
- Fun with Fitness: Toddlers learn and express independence through movement, while also developing important motor skills. In our daycare for toddlers, your youngster dances and frolics with music and games. The fun doesnât stop thereâwe send home activities and healthy recipes for the family to share.
Developing Foundational Skills through Fun
The experiences and interactions your child has during his or her first three years are critical to lifelong success. At Cadence Academy, we understand that toddlers learn best through exploration, experimentation, discoveryâand, most of all, fun. Weâve designed our toddler programs to engage your youngster in playful, entertaining ways while also constructing the strong neural scaffolding upon which later skills will be built.


Working to Improve Health and Financial Literacy.
Health literacy is the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.
Health literacy is dependent on individual and systemic factors:
Communication skills of lay persons and professionals
Lay and professional knowledge of health topics
Demands of the healthcare and public health systems
Demands of the situation/context
Interested in a GED?
Bainbridge College EC Campus
Health literacy affects peopleâs ability to:
Navigate the healthcare system, including filling out complex forms and locating providers and services
Share personal information, such as health history, with providers
Engage in self-care and chronic-disease management
Understand mathematical concepts such as probability and risk
Health literacy includes numeracy skills. For example, calculating cholesterol and blood sugar levels, measuring medications, and understanding nutrition labels all require math skills. Choosing between health plans or comparing prescription drug coverage requires calculating premiums, copays, and deductibles.
In addition to basic literacy skills, health literacy requires knowledge of health topics. People with limited health literacy often lack knowledge or have misinformation about the body as well as the nature and causes of disease. Without this knowledge, they may not understand the relationship between lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise and various health outcomes.
Health information can overwhelm even people with advanced literacy skills. Medical science progresses so rapidly that what we learned last year often becomes outdated or forgotten, or it is incomplete.
Why do we care?
Only 12 percent of adults have proficient health literacy, according to the National Assessment of Adult Literacy. In other words, nearly nine out of ten adults may lack the skills needed to manage their health and prevent disease. Fourteen percent of American adults (30 million people) have below basic health literacy. These adults were more likely to report their health as poor (42 percent) and are more likely to lack health insurance (28 percent) than adults with proficient health literacy.
Low literacy has been linked to poor health outcomes such as higher rates of hospitalization and less frequent use of preventive services. Both of these outcomes are associated with higher healthcare costs.
We must work together to ensure that health information and services can be understood and used by all Early County residents. We must engage in skill building with healthcare consumers and health professionals. Adult educators in our GED program can be productive partners in reaching adults with limited literacy skills.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) defines financial literacy as: âThe ability to make informed judgments and to take effective actions regarding the current and future use and management of money.â
The ability to understand financial choices
Plan for the future
Manage the challenges associated with life events like: -Job loss-Saving for retirement-Paying for a childâs education
An international survey recently found that American teens scored in the middle of the pack when it came to answering finance-related questions. The survey found that 18 percent of the American 15-year-olds surveyed could not answer basic financial questions or handle simple tasks, like understanding an invoice.
The United States has one of the most developed financial markets in the world, and a country with the most developed financial markets should not be average, given the decisions young people are already asked to make, like whether to take out student loans. Just as students learn math and English, they should learn financial literacy because it is also a basic skill that young people need. Although research on the effectiveness of financial literacy courses is mixed, that doesnât matterâ¦.In other words, personal finance is so important that it should be part of a curriculum, regardless of whether itâs proven to influence later financial decisions or not.


Author(s): Jill McDonald
This traditional rhyming tale takes children on a counting journey through Jill McDonald's colourful meadow scenes, meeting a variety of busy animal families along the way. Children will relish the vivid descriptions of the animals and their activities, from a bumpy mother toad and her baby basking in the sun to a hairy mother spider and her ten children spinning webs in a den. About this title: Includes a dual-purpose audio and video CD to listen to the singalong on a CD player or listen and watch the video animation on a Mac or PC. Evocative descriptions, charming characters and repetition of words and numbers create an exciting and satisfying rhyming story. Counting the baby animals encourages numeracy skills.


We help improve visual memory to enable children to draw from their mind realistically. We use all our senses to build up 3D images in their mind, from which they can draw on.
Fine Motor Control
We create building blocks for tackling more complex pictures. Specific shapes- for example an eyeâ can be especially challenging for younger children.
We help children learn the proportion and placement of objects in space through scaling and 3D modelling.
Visual Perceptual Skills
We teach children observational drawing through patterns, shapes and shading techniques.
The art education service for children aged 6-16 expanding across the U.K.
Our innovative teaching methods develop artistic skills through learning patterns, observation and memory.
students per week
When children are young they draw symbolically; typically, around age 6 they start trying to draw realistically. At this point, children are ready for guidance and support to develop their love of art.
By understanding the visual skills that children can achieve at each age, we are able to provide a personalised art programme to each individual.
We teach a range of mediums and techniques. Once mastered, imagination and skill combine, resulting in creation of original artwork.
Working towards an Art GCSE can be daunting; our art lessons help GCSE students with perspective, portrait drawing and techniques that build up their sketchbooks to create structured, well-formed coursework.
art-K is a family business with a strong purpose; making art matter. Art is everywhere we look; the TV, the clothes we wear, the buildings we design, the websites we create.
âWhen Kathryn got in touch to ask if the children could use my artwork for inspiration I was more than delighted. With art often being squeezed out of the curriculum its even more important to find alternative ways of getting children creative. The children have produced some wonderful pieces of art with the specialist help of art-K putting their own ideas and influences into them. Well done!â
âWe were delighted to know Art-K use our paintings to inspire children and the results we saw were fantastic. The peacock paintings in particular are fabulous. We hope you continue to inspire lots more children to pick up a paintbrush in the future and get cracking. Itâs the best job there is!â
âItâs wonderful to see how Art-K work with young people to help them find their creative voice. Iâm so glad that in some of this work they find my books to be useful creative tools, or catalysts for the imagination. I think it is so important in this world where children are often ignored that they are given opportunities to express themselves and discover the talents that lie within all of us.â
Join a Childrenâs Art Class
We help grow childrenâs visual skills by providing developmental art projects that are educational and fun.
GCSE Dedicated Groups
Our art lessons help GCSE students with perspective, portrait drawing and techniques that build up their sketchbooks to create structured, well-formed coursework.


|Caring for children|
|Outside the home|
|Institutions and standards|
A primary school (or elementary school in American English and often in Canadian English) is a school in which children receive primary or elementary education from the age of about seven to twelve, coming after preschool, infant school and before secondary school. (In some countries there is an intermediate stage of middle school between primary and secondary education.)
In most parts of the world, primary education is the first stage of compulsory education, and is normally available without charge, but may be offered in a fee-paying independent school. The term grade school is sometimes used in the US, although this term may refer to both primary education and secondary education.
The term primary school is derived from the French Ã©cole primaire, which was first used in 1802.
- Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom, Ireland and many Commonwealth nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- Elementary school is preferred in some countries, especially in the United States and Canada.
In the United States, "primary school" may refer to a school with grades Kindergarten through second grade or third grade. (K-2 or 3). In these municipalities, the "elementary school" includes grade three through five or grades four to six.
In some places, primary schooling has historically further been divided between lower primary schools (LP schools), which were the elementary schools, and higher primary schools (HP schools), which were established to provide a more practical instruction to poorer classes than what was provided in the secondary schools.
A ShÅgakkÅ or Elementary school class in Japan
- Blab school
- Early childhood education
- Elementary school
- Educational stage
- Secondary school
- Virtual reality in primary education
- "Online Etymology Dictionary".
- Primary school. In EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica. Retrieved on 12 June 2007, from EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica Online: http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9061377
- Bruce Ryburn Payne, Public Elementary School Curricula: A Comparative Study of Representative Cities of the United States, England, Germany and France (1905), p. 155.
- National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) (United States)
- Elementary Schools with Education and Crime Statistics (United States)


Albert Einstein said: âI am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.â
Creativity is essential to the development and continued evolution of humans. However, through legislation and budget cuts, we have undermined the full potential of the youth by placing the arts in a lower caste â even though they have a direct correlation to math. Decision-makers who have helped defund the arts see only the trees, not the forest.
One of the reasons that art is critical is that it requires active participation. Ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius said, âTell me and Iâll forget; show me and I may remember; and involve me and Iâll understand.â
As an engineer, web developer, photographer, parent, food grower, entrepreneur, author, mentor and more, I know I would not have some skills or talents today if not for art education in elementary and middle schools.
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The achievement gap that continues to widen for low-income students and students of color will increase unless a change is made. This can occur by having art in our schools. Ask legislators to not cut arts programs and agencies in the 2019-2020 budget.


The PraxisÂ® program occasionally adds research sections to certain tests. These sections will allow us to try out new kinds of questions, including:
- questions assessing Content Knowledge for Teaching (CKT)*
- questions that take advantage of computer delivery to assess knowledge and skills that go beyond what can be assessed using standard single-selection selected-response questions.
For example, instead of selecting an answer to a mathematics question, the candidate might be asked to enter a numeric answer using the computer keyboard or by transferring the display from an on-screen calculator. Or, instead of selecting an answer choice to a question about a reading passage, the candidate might be asked to locate the portion of the passage that answers the question.
Participation and Incentives
The research sections will be voluntary and will be administered after candidates have completed their tests. As an incentive, candidates will be eligible for an award of $150, which will be given to those 200 individuals who score highest on the research section relative to their performance on the preceding test. In this way, test takers at all ability levels will be eligible for an award. Candidates who do not wish to participate may exit the section, and their decision to participate or not will have no effect on their scores. Responses will be used for internal research, but no scores will be reported to candidates or institutions, and the anonymity of the candidates will be preserved.
Tests that Currently Contain Research Sections
- Elementary Education: Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment (5017)
- Elementary Education: Content Knowledge (5018)
- Mathematics: Content Knowledge (5161)
*Content Knowledge for Teaching (CKT) items are tied to teaching practice and are designed to measure the specialized types of content knowledge that teachers need, including "tasks of teaching" and common student misconceptions. These "practice-based" assessments are specific to a subject area and grade range. Since CKT assessments are practice-based, they are defined from the teaching perspective â the items focus on content knowledge unique to teaching practice rather than on straight content knowledge. Practice-based assessments take into consideration the problems teachers may encounter in teaching the content, not just on providing a correct or defensible answer to a content problem.


Learning materials in the home, learning activities, and meaningful conversations as infants and toddlers make children more likely develop early cognitive skills that can help them succeed in school later.
ââ¦strong home learning environments arm children with foundational skills that are springboards to long-term academic achievementâ¦â
The study, which appears in the journal Applied Developmental Science, followed a group of children from birth through 5th grade to track the influence of early home learning environments on later cognitive skills and understand the factors that might explain long-term influences.
âThere is growing evidence for the power of early learning environments on later academic success,â says Catherine Tamis-LeMonda, the studyâs lead author and a professor of applied psychology at New York Universityâs Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development.
âOur study confirms that strong home learning environments arm children with foundational skills that are springboards to long-term academic achievement,â she says.
Research shows that the home learning environment powerfully shapes childrenâs language and cognitive development. Childrenâs participation in learning activities, the quality of parent-child interactions, and the availability of learning materials like books and toys are three key features of the home learning environment that support language and pre-academic skills in early childhood.
In this study, Tamis-LeMonda and her colleagues examined early home learning environments and whether they predict 5th grade academic skills for children of families from ethnically diverse, low-income backgrounds. The researchers studied 2,204 families enrolled in the Early Head Start Research Evaluation Project.
Childrenâs learning environments were measured through a series of home visits at 14 months, at 2 and 3 years, and at pre-kindergarten. The researchers looked at literacy activities (including book reading, storytelling, and teaching letters and numbers), learning materials in the home (including books, toys, or games that facilitate expression and learning), and the quality of mothersâ interactions with their children.
Examples of high quality interactions included labeling objects in the environment and responding to childrenâs cues; these sensitive interactions are attentive to childrenâs needs and cognitively stimulating.
Learning environments were again assessed in 5th grade based on the number of books in the home and the quality of mothersâ engagement with children, both spontaneous interactions and during a discussion-based task.
At the pre-kindergarten and 5th grade visits, children were assessed on age-appropriate academic skills. The pre-K visit included measures of vocabulary, letter and word identification, and math problem-solving; the 5th grade visit measured vocabulary, reading, math, and general cognitive abilities.
The researchers found that early learning environments supported the emergence of pre-academic skills that persisted into early adolescence to predict childrenâs 5th grade academic skills. Pathways from early learning environments to later academic skill were similar for children from White, Black, Hispanic, English-speaking, and Hispanic Spanish-speaking backgrounds.
Notably, learning environments were highly stable over the 10-year study, suggesting that the experiences parents provide their infants as early as the first year of life may solidify into patterns of engagement that either continue to support or impede childrenâs emerging skills.
The study highlights the importance of early childhood experiences for childrenâs skill development and long-term academic success, and reinforces the notion that families have a major influence on childrenâs academic outcomes.
The researchers note that the findings have implications for policy and practice, including the design of interventions for young children and parents from disadvantaged backgrounds.
âImprovements to early learning environments, whether it be in the home or through early childhood programs like Early Head Start, can effectively support the development of children exposed to socioeconomic disadvantage,â says Tamis-LeMonda.
Additional coauthors of the study are from Rutgers University-Camden, Brooklyn College, Mathematica Policy Research, and Michigan State University.
The study used data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project, which the Administration for Children and Families, US Department of Health and Human Services funded. Funding from the National Science Foundation also supported the research.
Source: New York University


The purpose of this study was to assess the Parents as Teachers program and its relationship to literacy and school readiness among kindergarten students enrolled in three elementary schools in southwestern New Mexico, using the Dynamic Indicators of Literacy Skills assessment system. Data were collected by trained teachers and parent volunteers and used by the Parents as Teachers program as part of their program evaluation. Analysis of these data showed that the PAT program is having positive results for participating students in this school district in comparison to non-PAT kindergartners. The overall results from this study support continuing implementation of the PAT program in this area because it appears that PAT children are entering school with sufficient literacy readiness skills based on the Fall 2005 and Spring 2006 outcome of the DIBELS assessment outcome.
College and Department
David O. McKay School of Education; Counseling Psychology and Special Education
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Ockey, Teresa Lynn, "The Parents As Teachers Program And Kindergarten Literacy Readiness" (2008). All Theses and Dissertations. 1516.
Kindergarten Literacy Readiness, Parents as Teachers Program, DIBELS, Dynamic Indicators of Literacy Skills, Literacy Development


California stained-glass artist William Poulson uses his knowledge of carpentry and color to create unique stained-glass artwork.
by Jennifer King
1988, glass, 8â 5â x 14â 3â.
Collection the artist.
Like many artists, William Poulson is constantlyâand sometimes unexpectedlyâinspired by unique qualities in nature. Activities, such as rock climbing near his home in Arnold, California, often awaken solutions to piecing together stained glass back in his studio.
Piecing things together is one of the most important considerations for a stained glass artist. "When I'm creating a pattern for a new image, I have to think carefully about how to break things up," the artist explains. "With stained glass, you have to design a structure that will be technically soundâthat won't weaken or jeopardize the glass." Integrating solid shapes is a valuable lesson for all artists, whether they are working with glass, wood, clay, or paintâall of the elements have to fit together to create a cohesive whole.
1997, sculpted wood
and slumped glass, 30 x 20.
Today, Poulson is fortunate to be earning his living primarily from his art, but this wasn't always the caseâhis first career was in carpentry. In the mid-1930s, however, when the intense labor of the trade began to take its toll on his body, Poulson began looking for an alternative. A friend encouraged him to look into working with stained glass, which appealed to his lifelong interest in art as well as his ongoing desire to work with his hands.
Without much formal art education, Poulson has learned to establish effective compositions by studying other artists' work. Establishing golden proportions to position his focal areas, paying attention to positive and negative space, and using aerial perspective to create the illusion of depth are just some of the principles he has learned. âThe key to learning from other artists,â says Poulson, âis to ask yourself, âHow can I adapt what they're doing to what I'm doing?ââ Some of his studies have focused on artists of the past, particularly the great Japanese woodblock printmakers, Hiroshige and Hokusai. "Back in the 1970s, when I was living in Hawaii," explains Poulson, "I met a fantastic older woman, a potter and artist, who used to say, 'If it's big, make it bigger.' I still follow that principle of exaggeration today to enhance the mood of my pieces and make them more exciting."
1998, sculpted wood
and slumped glass, 30 x 20.
Much of his work now combines his dual interests in working with glass and wood, which couldn't make Poulson happier. "I love designing pieces because it appeals to my artistic, creative side," he says, "but I also love building the screens, tables, and lamps that house my stained-glass work. That's the part of me that likes to construct things."
Color is also vital to Poulsonâs stained-glass pieces. "I usually start with the local colors found in nature," the artist notes, "but when that gets translated to glass, the colors usually become far more dramatic. I think it's the way the light comes through the glass. Color in glass is brilliant!"
A lot of Poulson's work is commissionedâsuch as two recent wall murals for a hotel in Tokyoâand his process includes some painting. "After I've come up with a concept for a commissioned piece, I like to sketch it out in watercolor," he explains. "That way, the client can see and approve the painted sketch before I start building the piece." From there, he gets to indulge in what is clearly one of his favorite parts of the process: purchasing the glass for the piece. "I'm like a kid in a candy store," he says gleefully.
2001, glass with sculpted wood, 6â x 5â. Private collection
2002, leaded art glass, 6â x 3â 6â. Private collection.
In addition to his commissioned work, Poulson makes sure he spends a few hours each day working on personal pieces. His current project is the second in a series depicting Yosemite National Park in all four seasons, the first of which is called Tissiack. This piece âdescribes the patterns and colors of nighttime,â Poulson explains, and leaves the viewer wondering exactly how Poulson puts the pieces together.
About the Artist
Primarily self-taught, William Poulson has worked in stained glass since the early 1970s, when he combined his love of woodworking with his love of glass work to create one of a kind art pieces for homes and businesses. He works out of his studio in Arnold, California.


According to children researchers there are some components that are essential to a childâs literacy development. They are listening, speaking, phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary development, comprehension, understanding concepts of book and print and phonological awareness.
The State of Texas has recognized the important of music to a childâs literacy development and has made the inclusion of musical instrument / equipment an essential requirement for Texas child care, daycare and child development centers.
Experts believe that music enhances the brainâs ability to absorb critical information.Music may alter childrenâs brain waves to make them more receptive to learning. According to Texas Minimum Standard for Child Care Centers guide, âIt appears that musicâs rhythm and harmony might stimulate vital patterns in brain growth and neurological development. Because music evokes emotion, it can heighten emotional involvement in learning. Recorded music is great, but so is impromptu singing and music-making by children and adults alike. There should be simple musical instruments in the child care setting for toddlers to create their own music.â
Playground Musical Instruments that Meets Texas child care center standards
At Playtime Playground equipment we manufacturer two musical playground equipment (xylophone and musical chime) designed to increase verbal communication. These sounding toys creates soothing music that stimulates the sensory of the brain and bring fun and excitement to any playground.


ELA is the heart of the kindergarten curriculum. Our map encompasses literacy, foundational skills, and writing to meet the goals set for kindergarten. We use Wilson Fundations and Collins writing to introduce early reading skills to foster lifelong readers and writers. We progress from letter recognition, letter sounds, and building sight words, to reading and writing full sentences. Using a variety of literature, the students are able to apply comprehension skills such as summarizing, comparing, and contrasting, and making inferences. They also learn the basic elements of literature including characters, setting, plot, and solution. After introducing these skills, our students are capable readers and independent writers.
The kindergarten math curriculum encourages students to manipulate, model, and reason with mathematics to build number sense. Though the emphasis is on number sense (composing and decomposing), students are encouraged to share their ideas and use math vocabulary to express their own understandings. The EnVision Math program builds a foundation that will spiral into the subsequent grade levels.
Social studies instruction utilizes a cross-curricular approach. We use Time for Kids as an emergent non-fiction source for reading news. As stated in the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, "at the preschool and kindergarten level, learning in history and social science is built on childrenâs experiences in their families, school, community, state, and country." We focus on special people, special celebrations, and holidays in the lives of our students. The purpose of the pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten curriculums is to build a foundation for studentsâ civic awareness while also strengthening our Catholic identity.
Our Catholic identity is a crucial part of our learning and growth during the year. The religion curriculum is outlined by Sadlier Religion in our We Believe text. Students learn the roles of the Holy Family, Jesusâ teachings, the Saints, and Godâs gifts which are imparted in our lessons through text and teachings. We prepare our students to be prayerful, caring, and appreciative children of Godâs world in how they act in and out of the classroom. Students also share their talents in our annual Nativity performance, which is one of the longstanding traditions in our school community
Students transform into scientists through a variety of hands-on activities and experiments that help them to gain a better understanding of their surroundings. The theme of Kindergarten Science standards, as stated in the Massachusetts Frameworks, focus on patterns and why changes occur in our world. We collect observations from changing weather patterns, states of matter, and what living organisms need


All West Virginia children deserve the opportunity to become immersed in a culture supportive of their ongoing literacy development. The West Virginia Department of Education, under the auspices of the West Virginia Board of Education, is well-poised to elevate the importance of literacy development in the state to close the reading achievement gap by third grade.
Growing literate, competent children today will result in positive impacts on career and college readiness tomorrow. The West Virginia Leaders of Literacy: Campaign for Grade Level Reading serves as the organizing body to help achieve this work. To yield long term gains in student achievement, partnerships between stakeholders at the national, state, and local levels will help ensure all young children in West Virginia are provided ample opportunities to establish positive dispositions toward literacy learning.


Spelling and reading are mirror sides of each other. The spelling side is the encoding of words. The reading side is the decoding of words. These sides work hand in hand. In order to spell a word, you need to pull the word apart, a sound, pattern, or syllable at a time and retrieve the letters that represent those sounds, patterns, and syllables. You then either write them down or say them. The auditory, visual and tactile/kinesthetic memory systems are involved in this process. Think about it, how many times have you spelled a word out-loud and then write it down to double-check your spelling?
Researchers Brenda Rapp and Kate Lipka state, âWe find clear evidence of shared substrates for reading and spelling. The results specifically provide strong support for a shared lexical orthographic function in reading and spelling in the left mid-fusiform region.â In other words, there are specific shared areas of the brain that build links between the visual forms and auditory forms of whole words. Further studies by (Shahar-Yames and Share, 2008; Ouellette, 2010) conclude that practice writing your words brings an advantage to the long-term encoding-retrieval match (memory system retrieving the spelling of words).
So, how do you develop and improve both spelling and reading skills?
Spelling and reading need to be taught in an explicit manner made up of phonics instruction, the structural analysis including prefixes, suffixes, and root words, and comprehension strategies. You also can be taught to increase your rate of rapidly naming objects with specific exercises designed specifically with that in mind. However, you do not want to only do that. Any skill taught in isolation remains that, an improved skill in isolation unless you make the bridge to bring the skill from the isolated practice to real-life practice.
With spelling, you need to be taught in an explicit manner the sounds of the words and how to pull them together to make words. This is part of phonics and structural analysis referred to in the above paragraph. The Summer Reading Program teaches the sounds of the letters, how to put the sounds together to make words, and the several of the 8 structural vowel patterns in the English language. This addresses both encoding and decoding of words. This helps to cement, so to speak, your ability to both encode and decode thousands of words. Additionally, since best practices say these skills should not be taught in isolation, we work on the fluency of decoding words through the fluency portion of the program and comprehension through additional written techniques and games.
Who is Bonnie Terry?
Bonnie Terry, M. Ed., BCET is the author of Five Minutes To Better Reading Skills, Ten Minutes To Better Study Skills and numerous others books, reading games, and guides and the Awaken the Scholar Within Programs. She is a Board Certified Educational Therapist and internationally recognized as Americaâs Leading Learning Specialist and the founder of BonnieTerryLearning.com. Terry is an expert in identifying studentsâ learning disabilities. Ms. Terry coaches teachers and parents so they can give their child a 2 to 4-year learning advantage in just 45-60 minutes a day. She is a frequent media guest and speaker.


Teachers have known for years that music plays an important role in the development of children. Research is now backing it up.
Researchers have found the first evidence that young children who take music lessons show different brain development and improved memory over the course of a year compared to children who do not receive musical training.
Not only do the brains of musically-trained children respond to music in a different way to those of the untrained children, but the training improves their memory as well. After one year the musically trained children performed better in a memory test that was correlated with general intelligence skills such as literacy, verbal memory, visuo-spatial processing, mathematics and standardised IQ scores. This research also found that the verbal intelligence of 4 to 6 year-olds rises after only one month of musical training!
In a similar study, research indicated that during the early developmental years, children's brain neurons are being "wired". This provides a window of opportunity which must not be missed if children are to achieve their full potential. Circuits in different regions of the brain mature at different times. As a result, different circuits are most sensitive to life's experiences at different ages.
Neurological studies have also shown that early music training, on any instrument, is correlated with greater verbal IQ and language acquisition. This echoes the results of a recent study of second graders, which found the reading skills of those who received structured musical training were superior to those of their peers. Such research suggests cutting music education to concentrate on âthe basicsâ is based on a misunderstanding of the way young minds work.
Children between the ages of 6 and 12 who had years of experience reading music were also found to have greater mathematical ability than non-musical children. This is no surprise, as the temporal lobe of the brain, responsible for memory and rapid problem solving, is actively engaged when solving a formula AND when playing an instrument. Musical training encourages plasticity and the growth of neural pathways in the brain that affect a childâs life in almost every way.
Aside from brain function and intelligence, learning an instrument can be a great way to improve your childâs social skills and communication with their peers, while also providing them with a positive creative outlet and a way of dealing with their emotions.
The result of all these studies? Used positively and therapeutically, music is extremely beneficial in the regulation of emotions (mood, affect), physiology (blood pressure, heart rate) and can even re-pattern the neurological structure of the brain to improve general and verbal IQ, mathematical ability, memory and performance.
The research is clear - Start them on an instrument today!
MacLachlan, S. (2009). Memory for the Recall of Popular Songs: A Comparative Study of Musicians and Nonmusicians.
Trainor, L., & Fujioka, T. (2006). First Evidence hat Musical Training Affects Brain Development in Young Children.
Aiello, R., & Sloboda, A. (1994). Music performance: Expression and the Development of Excellence.


As you may know by now, sleep position is a very important issue for me and I write about it quite often. When I recently came across this article in Slate magazine, I just had to comment. The gist of the article is that since the start of the back to sleep campaign in 1992, the rate of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) has been cut 50%. But there seems to be a downside: Parents are being overly cautious and not allowing enough tummy time when their children are awake. As a result, itâs been suggested that motor skill development such as lifting the head or rolling over, has been significantly delayed.
The arguments in this article are plausible, but a more immediate issue thatâs completely being ignored is the fact then when babies are forced to sleep on their backs, by definition, youâre preventing them from staying in deep sleep. The thinking is that supine sleep allows infants to wake up easier if they ever obstruct. There are tomes of data that show that lack of deep sleep can have significant detrimental effects on your memory consolidation, affect, executive functioning, and motor skills. Imagine what can happen if you force this on an infantâs developing brain. Itâs no wonder thereâs been an epidemic of pediatric developmental, behavioral, and medical problems in the past few decades. Itâs even been suggested that the incidence of autism spiked just after the back to sleep campaign was implemented.
Honestly, I donât know what the right answer is. Iâm not saying that we should place all our infants on their stomachs. However, this is an important issue that needs to be discussed, even if it means that the medical profession has to admit this was not the best thing to do.
Whatâs your opinion on this issue? How well was your baby able to sleep on his or her back?


In the classroom and community
For teachers, daycare providers and community programmers, here are some freely accessible resources to bring music into your classes!
Ontario Music Educatorsâ Association
Music Education Resources, Memorial University
Music for Youth (UK)
In your home
Here are some tips and tricks for parents and caregivers to turn your home into a symphony of sound!
From PBS Parents:
What music should my child listen to?
From Common Sense Media:
Music recommendations for families
Here is an introduction to the importance of music in healthy child development!
The importance of music in early childhood development
Music and your childâs mood
The effect of music on cognition in children