june 28, 2011
News Release
Date: Tuesday June 28, 2011
From: Twin County United Way
Subject: Children's Project focused on Kindergarten Readiness
Release: For Immediate Release
Twin County United Way is again sponsoring & leading a collaborative effort with its second annual Children's Project Initiative, which kicked off yesterday at both Highland Elementary & McGhee Elementary.
The mission of the Children's Project is to bring the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley together and ensure every child has the opportunity to thrive physically, mentally, and socially. The project helps ready children so they can be successful in kindergarten and develop ongoing strategies to keep them ahead of the curve.
Twin County United Way has partnered with the Lewiston and Clarkston School Districts, Community Action Partnership, Lewis-Clark Early Head Start, Lewiston City Library, Asotin County Library, and the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Lewis-Clark Valley.
The Children's Project Initiative is broken down into three areas - the Parenting Project, Childcare Project, and Kindergarten Project. Research shows that children who have quality early learning opportunities and experience are 49 percent more likely to be reading at grade level & graduate from high school. The same research also shows that early learning is an investment in reducing juvenile crime, poverty, and more. After the first year, follow-up data was collected and revealed that the Children’s Project was a huge success.
The Kindergarten Project begins its 6 week “Kindergarten Bootcamp” today at Highland Elementary in Clarkston & McGhee Elementary in Lewiston. This “Bootcamp” focuses on kindergarten readiness. Twin County United Way’s goal is to surpass the achieved outcomes from last year which resulted in 80 percent of the participating children increasing their letter recognition, 75 percent successfully learning and following school routines, and 50 percent of the participants achieving an increase in positive behavior. Certified teachers at McGhee & Highland Elementary are the instructors for the Kindergarten Bootcamp and are paid by stipends.
The Kindergarten Project will run from June 28 – August 4, 2011. Classroom instruction takes place from 8:30am – 12:00pm, Monday – Thursday.
Anyone wanting to Give, Advocate, or Volunteer time to the Children's Project Initiative can do so by contacting the Twin County United Way office at (208) 743-6594 or www.tcuw.org.
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