ASHLAND —
In her mind’s eye, Shannon Hankins sees a young mother with her child at the breakfast table.
The mother shakes cereal into a bowl and sets the box down beside it.
Look at the box, she says. What shape is it? What colors do you see? Can you tell me what letter that is?
The everyday act of eating breakfast has just become a learning activity suitable for any preschooler, Hankins said.
Embedding learning into everyday life is at the heart of a new learning program called the Toyota bornlearning Academy. Crabbe Elementary School, where Hankins is the math, English and language arts enhancement teacher, is one of 10 Kentucky schools to receive $11,500 grants from the auto manufacturer to conduct the program.
Toyota officials joined Ashland educators and United Way representatives Thursday to applaud the launch of the program, which will have its first session early next month.
The program teaches parents to take charge of their preschoolers’ early learning, according to family resource center coordinator Geri Willis. “Parents are children’s first and most important teachers,” Willis said.
When they attend academy sessions, which are free, they will learn about brain development, nutrition, health, daily routines and reading readiness and how all those are important in getting children ready for kindergarten, she said.
Kindergarten readiness is a hot-button issue in Kentucky education circles. Recent studies show 75 percent of children in the state start kindergarten without the skills they need, according to Hankins.
When children start from behind, catching up is difficult. “The academy will give parents the tools they need to help their children be ready for kindergarten,” Hankins said.
A pilot program in three northern Kentucky schools showed dramatic results, said Doug Eberhart, president and CEO of United Way of Kentucky. The bornlearning Academy materials were created by United Way Worldwide and retired school Superintendent Tim Hanner, who is a Russell native and once taught in that district.
Pretest and post-test results showed a typical 80 percent improvement in parents’ grasp of early education concepts, Eberhart said. Similar data from Kentucky and other schools in the program will yield important information for making improvements.
The sessions start Nov. 8 at Crabbe and continue once a month through May. They are open to anyone in the community, not just Crabbe parents. The sessions also would be appropriate for day care and church child care workers, who could use the skills with children in their charge, Willis said.
Each session will include simple age-appropriate activities for babies, toddlers and prekindergarten children.
The sessions include dinner, which is also free. Children are welcome, and there will be craft sessions for them while parents are in the workshops. Parents who want to know more may call (606) 327-2748.
Toyota plans to follow up with another $450,000 in grants to expand the program to more schools during the next five years, said company spokesman Rick Hesterberg.
MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2652.
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