Coaching for School Readiness

Overview

Coaching in the Early Achievers Model

Coaches as agents embedding science into practice

Links from early learning to K-12

Bringing it all together through Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge Grant

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Framework for Effective Practice

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Coaching Framework

Designed to help providers access all of the supports of the house Cultural Competency

Practice Based Coaching

Adult Resiliency

Classroom Assessment Scoring System

School Readiness

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Cultural Competency

Screen ensure that trainings and supports meet specific cultural competence standards that are aligned with those named in the Early Learning Professional Core Competencies and Early Learning and Development Guidelines

Promoting Inclusion - Coaches will gain tools to facilitate culturally inclusive dialogue among providers in child care facilities and communities of practice

Addressing language diversity in the coaching context will help coaches understand the importance of supporting home languages of providers and children, and engage in discussion about challenges and solutions to coaching across languages.

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Practice Based Coaching Model Goal Setting and Action Plans

Clearly defined, measurable, achievable within a defined timeframe

Focused Observation Guided by goals

Reflection and Feedback Variety of ways that this can occur

Collaborative Partnership Safe, productive space, nonjudgmental

Culturally competent

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Adult Resiliency

Gives coaches a positive and helpful language to use with providers as they work through every day stressors and challenges.

Gives coaches and providers the freedom to recognize challenges and then move on towards the goal of preparing kids for school.

Begins a parallel process of promoting positive skills and abilities in everyone.

Recognizes and honors cultural differences in communication and methods of staying calm and positive

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CLASS

Highly trained coaches are able to identify and enhance best practices for: Engaging environments and well organized classrooms

Instructional Support

Social and Emotional Support

CLASS gives providers and coaches a shared language to use when developing goals

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School Readiness

Support for effective practices Engaging interactions and environments

Research-based curricula and teaching practices

Ongoing child assessment

Highly individualized teaching and learning

Goals will vary depending on the needs of the provider and community

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An “Air Traffic Control System” in the Brain

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Executive functioning is group of skills that help us to focus on multiple streams of information at the same time, set goals and make plans, make decisions in light of available information, revise plans, and resist hasty actions.

*A key biological foundation of school readiness

Inhibitory (“Effortful”) Control — filter thoughts and impulses to resist temptations and distractions

Mental flexibility — adjust to changed demands, priorities, or perspectives

Working Memory — hold and manipulate information in our heads over short periods of time

What are Executive Function Skills?

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Extended Development of EF Maps onto Development of Prefrontal Cortex

Weintraub, et al., (2011)

Birth

Age (Years)

50 70 80

Skill

pro

ficie

ncy

3 5 15 25 3010

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Outcomes at Age 32

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EF in childhood predicts outcomes at age 32:

Physical healthDrug dependenceSESCriminal convictions

Controlling for SES, IQ when a child

Moffitt et al. (2011)

Effectiveness Factors for Building Executive Function

• Address stresses in their lives Stress reduction practices Deal with external causes

• Foster social interactions • Progressively increase demand on EF skills • Include repeated practice throughout the day• Encourage vigorous physical exercise

"The most effective way to improve EFs and academic achievement is probably not to focus narrowly on those alone but to also address children’s emotional and social development … and children’s physical development."

Source: Diamond, et al. (2011)

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Supporting Executive Function – Link to Early AchieversScaffolding Learning

Turn-taking: listening and talking

Use of cues to learn new skills

Making plans and following-through, especially with peers (reflection)

Building language as a regulatory tool

Practice, practice, practice

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Supporting Executive Function Development - Link to Early Achievers Environments of Relationship (CLASS and ERS)

Scaffolding of pertinent skills Sustained joint attention

Support for emotion regulation

Give and take interactions

Ordered and predictable environments Routines

People

Rules and consequences

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RTT-ELC Core Strategies

Supports

Children Parents Professionals

All early learning programs are built on

child development guidelines; child

progress is monitored; accountability for

progress

Parents are engaged and have access to information about quality standards,

child outcomes, and parenting supports

Professional development is

consistent throughout ALL programs, high-quality, and built on child development

guidelines

Professional Development

Washington Early AchieversWaKIDS

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