A belated Happy New Year from the Children’s Learning Institute and your project management team here at The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston.  We are pleased to bring you this issue of the TSR! Beat with information highlighting our efforts to support oral language development in our Texas pre-kindergarten classrooms. Continue reading.

PERSPECTIVES FROM PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Increasing Oral Language Development

In order to support richer language development in the classroom, CLI Project Managers are providing Oral Language Development training to the mentors and coordinators in the field. This professional development will help them support and guide teachers to engage children in oral language development daily, use instructional strategies to teach specific words, and use assessment results to plan small group instruction. Continue reading.

Meeting the Needs of English Language Learners in Texas: Adapting the TEEM Model for the Pre-K LEP Project

The majority of children in Texas LEP classrooms speak Spanish as their home language. Entering preschool may be the first time these children are exposed to English, and teachers face special challenges in teaching these English Language Learners. In this month’s article, Dr. Emily Solari, Assistant Professor at CLI, explains how the “Pre-K LEP” project is supporting teachers in meeting the needs of bilingual learners. Mr. Roel Garza, a Pre-K LEP TEEM Mentor in McAllen ISD, shares his experience mentoring teachers in this project. Continue reading.

SUCCESS STORIES FROM THE FIELD
POSITIVE IMPACT. REAL RESULTS.

Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas first Native American tribe to achieve Texas School Ready! certification

By Alice Adams

It is a crisp morning in mid-December and a chilly wind blows over the desolate West Texas/Mexico borderlands, a few miles from Eagle Pass and a two-hour drive from San Antonio.

Inside a meeting room on the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas (KTTT) reservation, a warm welcome awaits John Gasko, Ph.D., and his colleagues from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston's Children's Learning Institute. The Houston contingent joins state lawmakers, superintendents, school board members, mayors from neighboring towns, educators, parents, children and a large contingent of tribal administrators and members, including Chairman of the Tribal Council Juan Garza, Jr. Continue reading.

MENTORING MATTERS

MENTORING: The Heart of the Matter

Teacher mentoring has been prominent on the educational scene since the early 1990’s.  One purpose for mentoring is as a teacher retention tool, especially during the difficult first year of teaching. As a critical component of the TSR Grants, mentoring of teachers cannot be underestimated as a factor in the success of the program.  The Mentoring Guide, recently created by CLI, contains invaluable information. 

What, exactly, is at the ‘heart of the matter’ of mentoring?  According to many teachers, the relationship between the teacher and mentor is the key thing.    Mentoring can be defined as a ‘helping relationship’ that includes empathy, defined as “accepting another person without making judgments.” (Carl Rogers, 1958)  The mentoring role is not a supervisory role, but a supporting role.  A mentor is not out to ‘catch’ but to ‘coach’. Continue reading.

• Pre-schoolers get a leg up on kindergarten
  Four-year-olds sit in a semicircle at a table in Ruth Barreraz’s class at the Odessa YMCA Day Care Center. The teacher places colorful plastic fruits — lemons, limes, raspberries and bananas — on the table. The children lean forward in their seats. Continue reading.
• Pre-school program earns high mark
  The pre-school students at A Plus Preparatory School in South Post Oak Boulevard are used to seeing Santa Claus in December. A holiday visit from from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston was less expected. Continue reading.

ACTIVITY CORNER

Another exciting Supplemental Activities section has been developed for this issue. We are focusing on the theme “Plants and Insects” for this issue. Please click here to access the activities.

RESOURCE RECOMMENDATIONS

• There are often questions about how we have formulated our preschool initiatives. Dr. Susan Landry, Director of the Children’s Learning Institute authored a booklet entitled Effective Early  Childhood Programs. This link will connect you to this publication which offers more insight into the research and development of high quality programs and experiences for young children. To read the booklet, click here.
• The Revised 2009-2010 List of Approved Tests for Assessment of Limited English Proficient (LEP) Students has been posted on the bilingual/ESL website. To read the document, click here.
• The Children’s Learning Institute has launched a new quarterly publication called The Learning Leader.  This newsletter highlights significant news in the field of education research, neuroscience, and the treatment of learning differences.  Each issue features articles focused on how CLI’s research and work is applied in home and school settings to create an effective environment for all children to learn and excel.  To read the latest issue, click here.

NEWSLETTER FEEDBACK

The editorial staff of the Texas School Ready Beat newsletter would like to hear from you.  Please submit your comments, suggestions, and questions to Cathy Caldwell at Cathy.J.Caldwell@uth.tmc.edu.

February 2010

Learn more about The Children's Learning Institute

Dates to Know

January 15 - Febuary 26: Progress Monitoring Deadline Extended
C-PALLS+ Phase 1 (MOY)-Administer Electronically

Febuary 15 - March 15: C-PALLS+ Phase 2 (MOY)-Administer Electronically

Febuary 15: Facility Report will go live

Mid-March: Teacher Self Report will go live

Newsletter Contributors

John Gasko, Ph.D.
State Initiatives Director
John.W.Gasko@uth.tmc.edu

Layne Waxley
TSR! Project Director
Thomas.L.Waxley@uth.tmc.edu

Cathy L. Guttentag, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics
Cathy.Guttentag@uth.tmc.edu

Cathy Caldwell
Research Associate
Cathy.J.Caldwell@uth.tmc.edu

Sonya Coffey
Project Manager
Sonya.Coffey@uth.tmc.edu

Jane Thacker
Coordinator 1 – Educational Programs
Jane.E.Thacker@uth.tmc.edu

Bang Pham
Web Developer III
Bang.N.Pham@uth.tmc.edu

Matt Skelton
Training Specialist I
Matt.Skelton@uth.tmc.edu