August 15, 2016
  In July, 26 Providence kindergarten teachers, assistant teachers and resource staff participated in Mind in the Making. See what they said about the experience below.
Mind in the Making
Teachers applaud MITM for highlighting social and emotional development

"This workshop is absolutely the best training I have attended," said one of the 26 Providence educators who completed Mind in the Making in July. "The life skills are essential to all interactions ... I love that parents will have the opportunity to experience this training and its valuable information."

Since 2014 Ready to Learn has brought Mind in the Making to more than 225 Providence teachers, assistant teachers and other school personnel who work with children grades K to 3. Meanwhile, it has provided this same training to more than 2,000 families with young children in the city schools. The 16-hour workshop, a program of the Bezos Family Foundation, covers the life skills that successful children possess, such as being able to focus, communicate and think critically.

"The information shared is essential for teaching children at young ages," said another teacher in the July session. "Too many times we are focused on curriculum without focusing on the development of the child."

This year we'll be bringing Mind in the Making to families and educators at the following Providence schools: Reservoir Avenue, Veazie Street, Robert Kennedy, Mary A. Fogarty, Harry Kizirian, Broad Street Elementary, and the Leviton Annex.  

Providence Talks
Early childhood educators seek to close the word gap

At workshops we offered this summer, home- and center-based providers who work with infants and toddlers learned strategies for closing the word gap between low- and high-income children. The curriculum is based on the model Providence Talks initially developed for parents of young children after the city won the Bloomberg Philanthropies' Mayors Challenge in 2012.

We'll be offering this training again in the fall, with two sessions in Spanish for family care providers, and one session in English for center-based providers. Participants must work in programs that operate in Providence and that serve infants and toddlers. For more information, home child-care providers can contact Tania Quezada at (401) 443-2911 or at tquezada@provplan.org, and center-based providers should contact Ashleigh Bickerstaff at (401) 443-2930 or at abickerstaff@provplan.org. Participants receive 20 hours of professional development, which has been approved by the state's Center for Early Learning Professionals.
 
Prekindergarten
Ready to welcome 54 children

At the end of the month, our three prekindergarten classrooms (one at CCRI in Providence and two at Heritage Park YMCA Early Learning Center in Pawtucket) will welcome 54 four-year-olds who were chosen by lottery in July. The three classrooms are part of the state prekindergarten program, which is offered at no cost to parents and now has sites in 11 RI cities and towns. Shown at right are the teachers, assistant teachers and supervisor who make up Ready to Learn's Pre-K team. Two members of our 2016-2017 AmeriCorps team will be assisting them. 
 
 
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