It has been a month of firsts for Knox County’s kindergarten students.
Participation in the first ever KinderCamp at the end of July, the first day of school in early August, and now preparing for their first assessment: The Brigance.
Kindergarten students in Knox, and across the state, are administered the Brigance during the first two to four weeks of school to measure early childhood and kindergarten readiness. The test provides a screening of skills that are critical predictors of student success, including physical development, language, academic/cognitive, self-help, and social-emotional skills.
The Brigance assessment will be administered in Knox County the week of August 29 – September 2. Each school will be setting their own test schedule during the one week time frame.
This year school leaders in Knox hope that KinderCamp, held before the start of school, will make a significant impact on readiness scores.
KinderCamp allowed students adjust to the school environment, learn expectations of their new teachers, meet their new classmates and friends, and to participate in kindergarten learning activities which targeted the necessary readiness skills.
“Approximately 30% of the students entering kindergarten in Knox County have never been in a preschool or kindergarten classroom,” shared Charlotte McCoy, Director of Special Populations for the Knox County Public Schools.
Each school in the district held KinderCamp for their students, with each family choosing whether or not to participate. The transition to school before the actual first day helped ease the fears of many students. In kindergarten rooms across the district, teachers reported students who were better prepared to attend school.
While attendance at KinderCamp showed that the pilot year was a success, the true measure of success will be whether the district sees an increase in readiness scores. A checklist was also developed for the five day camp to measure growth for each student.
The checklist included the student stating his or her full name, making marks, symbols and words, identifying words, sounds, and colors.
A copy of the checklist is provided on the KCPS website as a tool that families of early childhood, preschool, and kindergarten students can use at home to measure their child’s progress towards kindergarten readiness.
Families that have questions about the Brigance, or the skills measured as part of kindergarten readiness, may contact their child’s school for more information.
[divider]KINDERGARTEN SKILLS CHECKLIST[/divider]
[otw_shortcode_button href=”http://knoxkyschools.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Kindergarten-Skills-Checklist.pdf” size=”medium” icon_type=”general foundicon-page” icon_position=”left” shape=”square” target=”_blank”]Download Kindergarten Skills Checklist (PDF)[/otw_shortcode_button]
[divider]KinderCamp Photos[/divider]
Additional photos from KinderCamp 2016 are available in the KCPS Photo Gallery
