Ready for kindergarten? New tool will gauge children's school readiness
The Chicago Public Schools is about to debut a kindergarten readiness assessment tool to be taken by preschoolers
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Duncan: Michigan will get at least $150M in Race to the Top funds, Detroit should be at front of line
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan says Michigan stands to receive at least $150 million in Race to the Top funds and thinks Detroit Public Schools should be at the front of the line. MLive.com
Friday, February 19, 2010
Budget calls for hiring to handle food aid
Governor Jennifer Granholm's latest budget proposal calls for hiring hundreds of workers to deal with rising demand for food assistance and other services, along with beefed-up child welfare staffing in Michigan. It won't be easy to find the extra money needed to hire the workers given the state's budget problems. Lawmakers are trying to erase a projected $1.7 billion overall shortfall for the budget year that starts October 1, 2010, and most would prefer to do it without tax increases. Lawmakers on Thursday began hearings on the proposed Department of Human Services budget. Granholm's proposal would increase the department's spending by more than $100 million from the state's general fund for the fiscal year starting October 1, 2010. The Lansing State Journal
Friday, February 19, 2010
Detroit mother fights school promotion of daughter, 7: Mother wants daughter to progress at her own rate
One mother's struggle to keep her daughter from being promoted to the next grade before the child is ready illustrates the tough decisions Detroit Public Schools will face in enforcing its new ban on social promotion. Sonya Cook has battled the district since September to keep her daughter in kindergarten, but the district insisted on promoting the girl to first grade last week despite her teacher's report saying the girl lags academically behind most of her classmates. The Detroit News
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Later introduction of baby foods related to lower risk of obesity later in life
Benjamin Franklin's advice that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" can easily be applied to today's most pressing health issue: obesity. Because taking off extra weight is an almost insurmountable challenge, preventing the progression of weight gain throughout life, especially childhood, is crucial to realizing optimal long-term health. One area of great interest is the possibility that being breast fed might predispose a person to being lean, and the longer the better. Extended breastfeeding, however, is usually associated with delayed introduction of complementary "baby" foods, and it is possible that this (gain rather than breastfeeding) might influence weight. Science Daily
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Will Obama help you get decent child care?
Child care is a subject we debate endlessly in exactly the wrong ways: Should moms work? Are nannies evil? The truth is, child care is a fact, and what we should be talking about is that most people cannot afford it and get no help. Obama is the first president in decades to pay serious attention to the issue as a matter of policy. With an increase in subsidies to help low-income families pay for child care, new funding for improving infant and toddler care, and bigger tax breaks for child-and-dependent care for middle-class families, the Obama budget is an overdue acknowledgement of working parents' pain. But is it a true solution to their problems? Because families are truly desperate for help, the mere policy gesture is something, especially coming on the heels of years of complete presidential indifference. Yet even assuming his proposals get funded in full, they won't come close to alleviating the child care problems that slam poor and middle-class families. In this case, though, they would help the poor more than the middle class. Slate
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Bringing science to Pre-K: Rutgers researchers write the book
“What do you predict we will find inside here?” Kimberly Brenneman asks the preschoolers gathered around her as they consider the coconut she is holding. This isn’t your everyday show and tell. Dr. Brenneman, an assistant research professor at Rutgers’ Department of Psychology, as well as NIEER, is engaging the kids in a line of scientific inquiry that illustrates a teaching approach known as Preschool Pathways to Science. Called PrePS for short, it contributed to the teaching method used in the popular PBS show Sid the Science Kid. It’s also the title of a new book just out from Brookes Publishing that serves as a guide for implementing science in preschool classrooms Brenneman and her co-authors are receiving national attention for Preschool Pathways to Science because it enables teachers to facilitate preschool-age children’s ability to expand their tendencies to explore, ask questions, and think in ways that follow the scientific method. Preschool Matters...Today!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Mothers influence how children develop executive functioning
A new longitudinal study finds that the way mothers act when they are playing and solving puzzles with their babies can explain some of the differences in how their children develop executive functions such as controlling impulses and showing mental flexibility. Children of moms who answered their children's requests for help quickly and accurately, and talked to the kids about their thoughts and memories during play performed better on tasks requiring executive function. Science Daily
Monday, February 8, 2010
Macomb Daily, Recession takes toll on children
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Press Release, Great Start Needed Now More Than Ever
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Detroit Free Press, Child abuse, poverty are rising, report says
Bright spot is drop in Michigan in teen birth rates
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Detroit News, Child poverty, neglect on rise in Michigan
Tuesday, Januar y 12, 2010
Detroit News, editorial: Painful consequences
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Detroit Free Press, editorial: Heirs of bad budgeting
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Detroit News: Cornelia Grumman defends spending on early childhood programs
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Detroit Free Press, editorial: A budget plan at last
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009