ACE News
ACE Offers a "Taste of School" Through Play and Learn
March 2010
ACE Play and Learn classes target young children (ages 2-4) and their parents from our project school communities. The program's goal is to empower parents with the information, confidence, and skills they need to support learning at home. This innovative program is the result of a collaboration among ACE, United Way Success by 6, and Communities in Schools.
Each of the 20 weekly Play and Learn sessions is divided into two parts. For the first 45 minutes, the parents learn the week’s lessons and activities while the children spend this time having a “taste of preschool” in an early childhood classroom. For the second 45-minute period, parents and children practice the activities together.
The Play and Learn curriculum was designed by ACE program coordinator and experienced early childhood teacher Chetan Makan and is taught by ACE training specialist Carolina Guajardo.
After only five weeks, participating parents report significant changes in how they spend time with their children at home, and children consistently ask their parents, “Is today when I go to my class?” The curriculum is aligned with the state and district pre-K guidelines, the school-readiness goals of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, and the E3 Alliance school-readiness benchmarks.
Stay tuned for more stories about how Play and Learn is helping Austin families prepare children for school.