IDEA schools expanding pre-K program to close learning gaps

Submitted by Judy Hanning on Mon, 2017-07-31 12:00
A half-day IDEA program, commenced at the Pharr campus three years ago, is showing great results for kindergartners and first-graders who attend. The program immerses the students in language skills. For the kindergartners, who are getting this up-the-ladder boost a whole year before starting school, the benefits are particularly notable. This is all the more true, as many of the new students hail from Spanish-speaking households.

“The language leap that many of these kindergartners and first graders have experienced at IDEA is being attributed to a half-day pre-kindergarten program piloted at the Pharr campus in 2014.”

IDEA participants in Pharr were not only ready for school, once it started, they were able to amaze their new teachers, with many of the kindergartners showing an ability to read whole words. First grade participants showed a readiness to begin reading books. Principal Sonia Aguilar notes that the students involved in the half-day program exhibit more phonemic awareness and their oral skills is so much better.
“The language leap that many of these kindergartners and first graders have experienced at IDEA is being attributed to a half-day pre-kindergarten program piloted at the Pharr campus in 2014.”
~ The Monitor (McAllen, TX)

Key Takeaways:

1
Kindergartners at IDEA Pharr are reading at a first-grade level.
2
IDEA improves speech and literacy as well as comprehension.
3
The earlier English is mastered, the sooner a student can learn and retain another language.
Read the full article here:
http://www.readingrockets.org/news/idea-schools-expanding-pre-k-program-close-learning-gaps