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features
Book Sharing .....................................18
Promoting early literacy, helping families overcome barriers
Inclusive Literacy Lessons for All! .....26
Building a solid foundation
Looking to the Future .......................38
e promise and pitfalls of Head Start reauthorization
VOL. XXII No. 2 Back-to-School 2008
T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E N A T I O N A L H E A D S T A R T A S S O C I A T I O N
Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 1
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION 1
26
18
28

more features
Science and Preschool .......................44
A Naturally Perfect Combination
Singing Our Way Through the Day ....48
VOL. XXII No. 2 Back-to-School 2008
T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E N A T I O N A L H E A D S T A R T A S S O C I A T I O N
Cover photograph by Julie Antoniou
2 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
48
departments
VOL. XXII No. 2 Back-to-School 2008
News You Can Use ................................. 6
Nourishing Young Minds
and Bodies ........................................ 8
Men and Children ............................... 12
Leading the Way ................................. 16
Young Ones ......................................... 56
Science for Young Explorers .............. 60
Write On! ............................................. 64
also inside
Child Health Talk ........................................... 33
Advertisers Index .......................................... 67
Meetings and Events ..................................... 68
8

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eceiving Children and Families VOl. XXi no. 2 Back-to-school 2008
To receive your individual copy of
the magazine, go to www.nhsa.org and
print a membership application or call
(703) 739-0875 to have a membership
application sent to you. Mail the completed
application with a check to NHSA, P.O. Box
890080, Charlotte, NC 28289-0080. In addition
to Children and Families, you’ll also
receive the following benefits: membership to the National Head
Start Association; discounts on NHSA publications, products, and
conferences; representation in NHSA’s advocacy efforts; NHSA
News; Legislative Update; Linking the Pieces Together; and more.
sharing the information
Articles may be photocopied or reprinted
in nonprofit publications without written
permission from NHSA. All reprints must
credit the magazine as follows: “Reprinted
from the issue of Children and
Families with permission from the National
Head Start Association.” Send copies of all
reprints to Children and Families, Reprint Samples, 1651 Prince St.,
Alexandria, VA 22314.
Taking Us with You
If you’re moving and want to continue receiving Children and
Families, be sure to cut out and correct the mailing address printed
on the back of the magazine. Send your correct address to the
National Head Start Association, Membership Change of Address,
1651 Prince St., Alexandria, VA 22314. Include any new phone and
fax numbers, too.
Contacting nhsa
For general information about the National Head Start Association, visit
us at www.nhsa.org or call (703) 739-0875 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. EST,
Monday through Friday. For help in a specific area, refer to the following
phone list:
Topic Contact Direct phone number
Children and Families (advertising) Julie Antoniou (703) 739-7561
Children and Families (editorial) Julie Antoniou (703) 739-7561
Conferences Lori Burke (703) 739-7557
Legislative Hotline (703) 739-0879
Legislative issues Luis Burguillo (703) 739-7560
Membership questions or renewal (703) 739-0875
NHSA News Julie Antoniou (703) 739-7561
Partnerships Michael McGrady (703) 739-7553
Publications or products (information) (703) 739-0875
Publications or products (to order) Toll free service (800) 687-5044
Research Ben Allen (703) 739-7558
Scholarships and awards (703) 739-0875
Web site Gregg Porter (703) 739-7556
Children and Families is printed using soy inks on recycled paper.
Children and Families Back-to-School 2008
Children and Families (ISSN 1091-7578) is published three times a year by the
National Head Start Association (NHSA) to support Head Start programs, directors,
staff, parents, and volunteers.
A nonprofit membership organization, NHSA is the only national association
dedicated exclusively to promoting and protecting the Head Start program. The association
advocates on behalf of America’s low-income children and families; holds national
training conferences; publishes books, periodicals, and resource guides; maintains a
legislative hotline; and offers training programs through the National Head Start Association
Academy and the HeadsUp! satellite network.
NHSA does not accept responsibility for statements of fact or opinion that appear in
Children and Families. Nor does it endorse products or services advertised herein.
Advertisers and advertising agencies assume liability for all content of advertisements.
nhsa Officers
Ron Herndon
Chair
Janis Santos
Vice Chairperson
Joan Scales
Secretary
Karen Jones
Treasurer
National Head Start Association
1651 Prince Street • Alexandria, VA 22314
Phone: (703) 739-0875 • Fax: (703) 739-0878
www.nhsa.org
Editor Julie Antoniou
Design Estasi Design Associates
Submissions. Children and Families encourages members of the Head Start community
and experts from relevant fields to submit articles. Download a copy of the
editorial guidelines at www.nhsa.org in the Children and Families section of the
Web site, or request a copy by calling (703) 739-7561 or sending an e-mail to
julie@nhsa.org.
Advertising. Children and Families offers a full range of advertising services.
To obtain a media kit, call Julie Antoniou at (703) 739-7561 or visit www.nhsa.org.
nhsa staff
Michael McGrady
Interim Executive Director
Ben Allen
Director, Research
and Evaluation
Julie Antoniou
Editor, Children and
Families
Luis Burguillo
Director, Government
Affairs
Lori Burke
Director, Professional
Development
Dariel Creshaw
Director, Office Operations
Patty Gray
Deputy Fiscal Director
Charlene Hutchinson
Receptionist
Charisse Lassiter
Information Specialist
Ruby Lewis
Meeting Manager
Tiereny Lloyd
Special Project Coordinator
Gregg Porter
Director, Technology
Angela Smith
Associate Director,
Research and Evaluation
Carleen Wallington-
Kinlock
Program Development
Specialist
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
Building a Brighter Future for Children...
One Leader at a Time
The components of high-quality early care and education...
well-educated teachers, knowledgeable about child development
adequate and consistent staffing to ensure continuity in care
ongoing supervision, providing continuous support for professional development
clear educational goals that address children’s individual strengths and needs
a family focus, stressing involvement both within and beyond the center
a comprehensive curriculum geared to the developmental needs of young children
systematic evaluation and benchmarking of progress to improve practice
...all depend on strong program leadership.
The go-to source for training, resources, and technical assistance.
6310 Capitol Drive Wheeling, Illinois 60090 (800) 443-5522, ext. 5056
cecl@nl.edu http://cecl.nl.edu
Back-to-School 2008 Children and Families

6
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
• Real discretionary spending on children has declined by more than 6
percent since 2004, while at the same time all other non-defense
discretionary spending has increased by more than 8 percent.
To view or download a copy of Children’s Budget 2008, go to
http:// rstfocus.net/pages/3391/.
Policy Brief: Challenging
Behaviors and the Role of
Preschool Education
Find out if there a rise in challenging behaviors
among young children in early care
and education, and whether preschool can
provide positive experiences that can reduce
the rates of challenging behaviors by
reading the new NIEER policy brief, written
by Lisa A. McCabe and Ellen C. Frede.
To view the policy brief, go to http://nieer.
org/resources/policybriefs/16.pdf.
The O ce of the Surgeon
General Launches
New Web Page
e O ce of the Surgeon General,
under the leadership of Rear Admiral
Steven K. Galson, M.D., M.P.H., has
launched a new Web resource to
89 Percent of Children’s
help adults improve children’s eat-
Food Products Provide Poor
ing and physical activity habits. e
Nutritional Quality, Study
resource on the Surgeon General’s
Finds
Web site highlights “Healthy Youth for a
Most children’s foods provide poor
Healthy Future,” the U.S. Department of Health
nutritional quality despite packaging
and Human Services’ (HHS) childhood overweight and obesity preven-
claims and healthy images, which can be
tion initiative. e initiative addresses childhood overweight and obesity prevention misleading to parents, according to a Ca-
by helping kids stay active, encouraging healthy eating habits, and promoting healthy nadian study. Professor Charlene Elliott
choices.
reviewed 367 products. 70 percent of the
e Web site is located at www.surgeongeneral.gov/obesityprevention/. e site products had higher than recommended
also includes information on all of the other HHS obesity prevention programs and sugar levels, 23 percent had high fat
initiatives.
levels and 17 percent had high salt levels.
Elliott found that nine out of 10 regular
U.S. Bancorp Foundation New First Focus Report Shows food items aimed speci cally at children
Grants
Kids Getting a Mere One Penny have a poor nutritional content because
U.S. Bancorp makes grants available to of Every New Federal Dollar
of high levels of sugar, fat or sodium. e
support community programs that re- First Focus recently released Children’s Budget study was published in the July issue of
spect the diversity of local communities 2008, a comprehensive guide to federal spending the journal Obesity Reviews.
and help nonpro ts organizations meet on children. e book includes information on
Source: ScienceDaily (www.sciencedaily.com)
speci c needs within each community. the more than 180 federally funded programs
e Foundation’s funding priorities aimed at enhancing the well-being of our nation’s children.
include initiatives aimed at increasing
Key ndings published in Children’s Budget 2008 include the following:
or supporting self-su ciency, economic • For the past ve years, only one penny of every new, real non-defense
development, human services, educa- dollar spent by the federal government has gone to children and children’s
tional opportunities for low-income programs.
and at-risk students, and access to affordable
housing. Applications accepted
on an ongoing basis. For more information,
including application guidelines,
visit www.usbank.com/about/community_relations/grant_guidelines_print.
html.
• Spending on children makes up only 10 percent of the entire non-defense
budget.
• e overall share of federal, non-defense spending going to children’s
programs has dropped by 10 percent over the past ve years.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

New on the Bookshelf
Early Literacy in Action, by Betty H. Bunce
List price: $54.95
Publisher: Brookes Publishing Company
ISBN: 978-1-55766-922-3
Designed to enhance young children’s
language skills with a proven play-focused
preschool curriculum that’s drawn from more
than 20 years of eld testing and outcomes.
is exible program is a practical and signi
cantly expanded follow-up to the bestselling
Building a Language Focused Curriculum
for the Preschool Classroom.
Child Well-Being Index Special Focus Report
e Foundation for Child Development
has initiated the development of the rst
comprehensive report on the overall health,
education, well-being, and quality of life
of America’s youngest children — from
birth through 11 years old. e report titled
Trends in Infancy/Early Childhood and
Middle Childhood Well-Being, 1994-2006
was released on April 25. It presents a wideranging
picture of how children in their
rst decade of life are faring in the United
States and is the rst to track and compare
child well-being across three primary stages
of development — early childhood, middle
childhood, and adolescence using the Child
Well-Being Index (CWI). Here are a few
conclusions highlighted in the report:
• Overall improvements in the well-being
index are re ected across all age groups.
Each age group follows very similar
positive trends from 1994-2002.
• e Health Domain overall is on a dramatic
decline, dragged down by rising
obesity rates and the number of babies
born at low birth weight. Research has
linked the latter to an increase in delayed
childbearing among women and the
use of fertility drugs that make multiple
births with lower birth weights more
likely. e prevalence of obesity among
children ages 6-11 is nearly four times
what it was in the 1960s; for children
ages 2-5, it is three times more.
• Some areas of health show steady improvement,
driven by declining infant
and child death rates (attributed to better
prenatal and health care, nutrition, and
seat-belt laws), rates of mothers smoking
during pregnancy, blood lead poisoning
and increased vaccinations.
• Safety is on the rise. e rate of children
from birth to 11 who are victims of
homicide has decreased dramatically; for
children ages 6-11, that number has been
cut in half.
• Educational attainment is also on the
rise. is domain is showing good
progress driven by the dramatic increase
in the number of children ages 4-6 enrolling
in full-day kindergarten. What’s
more, the report found that more parents
are reading to their children daily and
setting rules for TV watching.
• Family economic well-being is likely to
decline in years ahead. While this indicator
has been holding steady, if trends in
job loss, the housing nance crisis, and
rising in ation that have characterized
2007 to the present day persist, they are
likely to drive down this key economic
indicator for children of all ages.
To view the report in its entirety, go
to www.newamerica.net and type in the
report’s title in the search option.
Preschool Kids Do Better
When They Talk To Themselves,
Research Shows
Parents should not worry when their preschoolers
talk to themselves; in fact, they
should encourage it, says Adam Winsler, an
associate professor of psychology at George
Mason University. His recent study Private
Speech and Executive Functioning among
High-Functioning Children with Autistic
Spectrum Disorders, published in Early
Childhood Research Quarterly, showed that
5-year-olds do better on motor tasks when
they talk to themselves out loud (either
spontaneously or when told to do so by an
adult) than when they are silent.
Young children o en talk to themselves
as they go about their daily activities,
and parents and teachers shouldn’t think of
this as weird or bad,” says Winsler. “On the
contrary, they should listen to the private
speech of kids. It’s a fantastic window into
the minds of children.”
e study also showed that children
with behavioral problems (such as those
diagnosed with Attention De cit Hyperactivity
Disorder, or ADHD) tend to talk
to themselves more o en than children
without signs of behavior problems. “Given
that kids with behavior concerns need more
direction and control from adults, teachers
may unnecessarily ask children to be quiet
in classrooms out of fear that such speech
coming from di cult-to-manage kids will
lead to problem behavior,” says Winsler.
“Yet non-disruptive private speech would
actually help these children as they develop.
erefore, teacher training and professional
development e orts should suggest that
teachers increase their tolerance level for
this kind of private speech.”
Winsler says that private speech is
very common and perfectly normal among
children between the ages of 2 and 5. As
children begin talking to themselves, their
communication skills with the outside
world improve.
Source: ScienceDaily (www.sciencedaily.com)
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 7

Nourishing Nourishing Young Young
Minds Minds and Bodies Bodies
INFORMATION AND IDEAS FOR ESTABLISHING HEALTHY EATING HABITS
A World of Di erence
How family meals a ect the health and well-being of children
by Jennifer Brosnahan
I am thrilled to present to you a new
addition to Children and Families — a
column focused entirely on addressing
nutrition matters for young children.
The main purpose of this new column
will be to help keep you informed on
the latest healthy eating guidelines
for little ones and to provide practical
tips, age-appropriate meal and snack
activities, and fun, inexpensive recipes
that can be used in the classroom and
shared with families.
Proper nutrition really does make a
world of di erence — and not just because
childhood obesity rates have soared
to record-highs or because low-income
individuals and minorities tend to have a
higher incidence of diabetes, hypertension,
and cardiovascular disease. Consuming
adequate energy and nutrients is vital for
infants, toddlers, and preschoolers because
it enhances their attention and ability to
learn and allows them to achieve their full
developmental potential.
Head Start’s role in enhancing the
nutritional health of children can’t be overstated.
Daily meals and snacks provided
by Head Start supply essential energy and
nutrients that children may not otherwise
receive at home because of a family’s
nancial constraints or other factors. Head
Start also supports the nutritional well-being
of children in another important but
o en overlooked way: through the o ering
of family-style meals. Life-long food
habits are formed during the toddler and
preschool years. erefore by providing a
consistent, nurturing meal environment,
Head Start programs are helping children
across the nation develop healthy attitudes
toward food and eating. And the formation
of positive eating attitudes, in turn, lowers
risk of future weight and health problems.
The fundamentals of nutrition
Because Head Start programs are encouraged
to follow best practices for the ideal
family meal setting, I thought we’d start
by reviewing some important guidelines
for creating a nurturing atmosphere — one
that enhances feeding and social skills, fos-
8 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Meal preparation jobs for young children
Remember to have children wash their hands before working with or eating food,
and be sure to provide positive supervision at all times. Here is a list of ageappropriate
meal preparation activities for children. (These activities may need
to be modi ed for children with special needs.)
2-year-olds can…
• Wipe tables with a wet sponge.
• Tear salad greens/place greens in
a bowl.
• Break o pieces of cauli ower.
• Snap green beans.
• Play with utensils.
• Bring ingredients from one place
to another.
3-year-olds can …
• Wipe tables with wet cloth.
• Pour liquids (mark drinking glass with
rubber band to indicate when to stop
pouring).
• Mix and stir ingredients. (Tip: Place
a damp cloth under the bowl to prevent
it from slipping.)
• Shake liquids in a covered container.
ters positive relationships with food, and
encourages healthful eating in children.
• Recipe for success: Make meals an important
part of the program day. Be sure
to help children settle down for eating
and then allow plenty of time for meals.
• Boost skills and food acceptance:
Whenever possible, involve little helpers
in the preparation of meals and snacks.
Involving children in meal preparation
gives them the opportunity to develop
useful skills, increase their knowledge
about food and nutrition, and helps
them develop a sense of responsibility.
Children also enjoy being able to help
4-year-old can …
• Peel hard-cooked eggs.
• Shuck corn.
• Manually juice oranges or other citrus
fruits.
• Spread peanut butter and other soft
spreads.
• Set the table.
5-year-olds can …
• Measure ingredients.
• Slice a banana with a dull plastic knife.
• Crack raw eggs.
• Use an eggbeater.
• Grate carrots with an adult’s help.
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others. Another bonus: they are more
likely to taste and eat the fruits of their
labor. (See examples of age-appropriate
food preparation jobs in the sidebar.)
• All you need is one: Just one grown-up
sitting with children at the table during
meals embodies a true family atmosphere
that many children do not receive
at home on a regular basis. When parents
do come in for a visit, however, be sure to
invite them to stay through mealtime.
• Encourage good manners: Use meals
as an opportunity to work on etiquette
skills. Allow children to pass food to
others and to say please or yes, and
Fun food books for young children
An Orange in January, by Dianna H.
Aston (Penguin Books, 2007).
Banana! by Jonathan Allen (Sterling
Publishing, 2006).
Breakfast Time! by Lisa Campbell-Ernst
(Blue Apple Books, 2006).
Eating the Alphabet, by Lois Ehlert
(Harcourt Children’s Books, 1996).
Just Enough Carrots, by Stuart J. Murphy
(HarperCollins, Publisher, 1997).
Let’s Eat! What Children Eat Around the
World, by Beatrice Hollyer (Henry Holt
and Company, 2004).
Lunch, by Denise Fleming (Henry Holt
and Company, 1992).
Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! by Candace
Fleming (Simon & Schuster Children’s
Publishing, 2002).
My Very First Book of Food, by Eric Carle
(Penguin Young Readers Group, 2007).
The Talking Vegetables, by Won-Ldy Paye
and Margaret H. Lippert (Henry Holt &
Company, 2006).
The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle
(Penguin Young Readers Group, 1994).
Too Many Pears, by Jackie French and
Bruce Whatley (Star Bright Books, 2003)
Watermelon Wishes, by Lisa Moser
(Houghton Mi in Company, 2006).
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 9

Nourishing Nourishing Young Young
Minds Minds and Bodies Bodies
thank you or no, thank you. (Quick
tip: Keep a towel tucked in your pocket
during every meal for quick clean-up
when spills do occur. By being prepared,
messes will be less stressful and cause
less of an interruption or distraction.)
• Walk the walk: Model healthy habits
by consuming nutritious foods with the
children. Young children are amazingly
observant, and although this strategy
might not seem to work right away, it
will help shape their attitudes and habits
in the long-run. Ideally, teachers should
eat the same foods that’s made available
Fun snack and meal activities
Kabobs
What you need:
1. Sliced soft fruit (strawberries,
grapes, bananas, blueberries,
melon)
2. Cheese cubes (mozzarella and
cheddar)
3. Blunt toothpicks
4. Bowl for each child
Let children slide three or four pieces
of fruit and cheese in any combination
they choose onto toothpicks. Watch
the delight of your little chefs as they
assemble and eat their own tasty
creations.
Do you have an idea for a future nutrition topic? Is there a
particular issue pertaining to nutrition that you would like to
learn more about? If so, please e-mail your suggestions to
jbrosnahan@rippelifestyle.com.
to the children for snacks and lunch. If
that is not possible, however, they are
encouraged to at least include a piece of
fruit or vegetable with their own lunch
and milk or water to drink.
• Perfect timing: Schedule enough time
between snacks and meals (about two to
three hours) to allow children to work up
an appetite. But also keep in mind that
young children will still eat less on some
days and more on others. Remember that
appetites usually coincide with growth
patterns, which tend to slow down a bit
during the preschool years.
Mini Pizzas
What you need:
1. English mu ns
2. Pizza sauce
3. Grated part-skim mozzarella cheese
4. Turkey pepperoni
5. Chopped and sliced green pepper
6. Large cookie sheet
7. Paper plates
Toast the English mu ns. Place toasted
“pizza crusts” on paper plate and let the
children top them with the toppings of
their choice. Then broil the mini pizzas
in the oven on a large cookie sheet until
the cheese is melted. Cool for ve minutes.
Have the children rewash hands
and help set table while the pizzas cook
and cool.
• Respect children’s satiety signals.
Research reveals that as long as regular
meals and snacks are provided each day,
small children are born with the ability
to know how much to eat to grow into
the body that is right for them. is
natural ability to sense when they’ve
eaten enough food is undermined when
a caregiver or teacher regularly pressures
a child to eat more or less than the child
wants to. e risk of weight problems
and eating disorders may increase
as a result. Respond appropriately to
children’s internal cues by allowing them
to decide how much to eat from the food
that is made available. Examples of outside
pressures include persuading children
to eat ve more bites or withholding
dessert until they nish their vegetables.
• Try, try again — but don’t pressure:
Most children are naturally reluctant to
try new foods. While many programs
o er a healthy variety of good-tasting
fare, children may grow up eating different
cuisine at home. Children should
be encouraged to eat at least one bite,
but if they continue to decline, respect
their decision and be patient. It’s normal
for children to be cautious, and it may
take at least 10 exposures before they are
ready to even try a new food.
• Keep it simple: Refrain from referring
to foods as either good or bad, and
avoid nutrition rules such as “you must
eat three vegetable servings each day.”
10 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Toddlers and preschoolers just aren’t
able to fully understand nutrition “laws,”
so these rules only make mealtimes
less enjoyable. Instead, focus on giving
children plenty of other opportunities
to learn about food during story time
and through hands-on food preparation
activities.
By implementing the guidelines
above in your the Head Start classroom,
you will help promote a mutual respect
between you and the children in your class,
make meals more enjoyable, and, above
all, encourage the development of life-long
healthful eating.
Jennifer Brosnahan, MPH, RD, has extensive
experience counseling families on raising healthy
eaters and addressing feeding issues and concerns in
children. She also has previous experience improving
the nutritional status of mothers and children
participating in the Women, Infants, and Children
(WIC) program. Brosnahan currently works as
senior research dietitian for Rippe Lifestyle Institute
in Celebration, Florida, where she conducts research
related to chronic disease prevention and lifestyle
medicine. Most of all, she enjoys spending time with
her husband, Brian, and her very active children,
Alex and Emory. To contact Brosnahan, e-mail
jbrosnahan@rippelifestyle.com.
Resources for early
childhood professionals
Nourishing NNourishing ishi g Y ng
g
Minds Minds dds s
s an
an Bo Bodies Bod Bo Bodies Bo Bod d es
g
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No No Nou No No No No No No No Nou ou ou ou
ou o ou
ou ou ou ou ou ou our ou ou ou ou ou ou ou ou our ur
ur urishi ur
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di di di di di di di di die di di di di die di di di di di die ie ie ie ie ie ie ie i ie i ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ie ies
g
Bo g
Bo g
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Bo g
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Bo g
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Bod g
g
g
g
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d
d
g
Bo g
Bo g
Bo g
Bo g
Bo g
Bo g
Bo g
Bod g ng ng ng ng ng g
g
g
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Bo d
d
d
g
Bo g
Bo g
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Bod g
Nourishing Nourishing Young Young
g
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Minds Minds and Bodies Bodies d
• Building Mealtime Environments and
Relationships: An Inventory for Feeding
Young Children in Group Settings,
available online at www.ag.uidaho.
edu/feeding/buildingpdf.htm.
• Ellyn Satter Associates’ Child Care
Feeding Policy, available online at
www.ellynsatter.com/$spindb.
query.memo.kelcyview.25.9.
• Family Fun Super Snacks, by Deanna
F. Cook (Disney Press, 2004).
• Food ABC: An Alphabet Book, by
Amanda Doering Tourville (Coughlan
Publishing, 2004).
• Meals without Squeals: Child Care
Feeding Guide & Cookbook, 3rd Edition,
by Christine Berman and Jackie
Fromer (Bull Publishing Company,
2006)
• Pretend Soup and Other Real Recipes,
by Mollie Katzen and Ann Henderson
(Ten Speed Press, 1994).
References
“Appetite and Eating Behavior in
Children,” by L.L. Birch and J.A. Fisher
(Pediatric Clinic North American, 42,
1995).
Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and
Good Sense, by Ellyn Satter (Bull Publishing
Company, 2000).
“Food Intake Regulation in Children,
Fat, and Sugar substitutes, and Intake,”
by L.L. Birch, J.O. Fisher (Annals
of the NY Academy of Sciences, 819,
1997).
“Preschoolers’ Food Handling Skills
Motor Development,” by Ann A.
Hertzler, (Virginia Cooperative Extension,
1996).
Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family,
by Ellyn Satter (Kelsey Press, 1999).
“Toddler and Preschooler Nutrition,”
written by N.H. Wooldridge and published
in Nutrition Through the Life
Cycle (Wadsworth Group, 2002).
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 11

Men
Children
and
Reauthorizing Head Start
Father Involvement
by J. Michael Hall
Over the past several years, there has been a great push to involve fathers in Head
Start programs. I’ve been fortunate enough to have been involved in this work almost
since it began as an initiative. During that time, I’ve seen — and been a part
of — some great programs as well as a few mis res. While our past e orts were
certainly noble and sincere, we need to continue to assess what we’ve been doing,
what’s worked, and where we can improve.
Changing our mentality
As we started working with fathers, we all knew that many men, particularly men in lowincome
environments, had some personal issues that needed to be addressed. Unemployment,
criminal records, lack of education, and other concerns, led us to try to help men
become better men. While this is a good endeavor, our focus on these concerns led us to
build many of our fatherhood e orts from a de cit-based mentality. In other words, we
felt like we had to completely “ x” a man before he could become a good father. Addressing
the issues that can hinder a father’s involvement should be part of the process, but not
all of those issues are present in all of our Head Start fathers and not all of those issues
keep men from helping their children. Many men have resisted our e orts because men,
as a group, tend to be more competency-based and if you continue to tell a man what he is
doing wrong, he will not stay around long enough for you tell him what he can do and is
doing right.
It’s time for us to re-focus our programs
and create a strength-based model
in which we spend most of our time working
with men on what they should do or
already do that bene t their children. I’ve
found from my work with thousands of
fathers that once we tell men what they can
do for their children, they not only understand
what they are doing right but they
also become more motivated to change the
de cits in their lives. Focusing heavily on
de cits can be defeating and rarely motivates
fathers to work on their strengths,
however.
Changing our measurement
Typically when you ask Head Start grantees
about their fatherhood programs, they im-
12
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
mediately begin talking about numbers and
events. However, attendance numbers should
not be our focal point. Our earliest e orts
were about getting more and more men to
attend, but once that became our goal, we
lost our place in this work. By o ering door
prizes, trying to appeal to what we thought
men wanted, and allowing our own bias to
stereotype what men would and would not
want to do, we built programs that focused
on getting men to attend. Unfortunately,
this was a great adventure in missing the
point. Getting men to attend is easy. Just ask
any business that is trying to appeal to men.
When we entice men with “sports, tools,
and barbecues” we may experience success
in terms of attendance but not in terms of
outcomes. Basketball tournaments, major
A FORUM FOR ISSUES CONCERNING
AND RELATING TO THE IMPORTANT ROLE
MEN PLAY IN CHILDREN’S LIVES
sporting events, door prizes, and mounds of
food are not only unnecessary, these things
do little to help men become better fathers.
Fellowship is the easy part — it’s father
development that takes some work.
We must begin to develop fatherhood
program goals that can be measured in
terms of child outcomes. While I think it is
noble to help men become better men and
I think fun events are terri c, Head Start’s
mission isn’t going to be accomplished by
primarily focusing on attracting or helping
men. e primary focus needs to be on
improving child outcomes, period. Head
Start programs do a great job of strengthening
families and helping parents and other
caregivers acquire important skills. But the
fundamental purpose behind those e orts
is to improve child outcomes. If we are
helping men nd employment or develop
job skills, it should be as a way of improving
child outcomes. If our father involvement
e orts are not helping children cognitively,
behaviorally, or socially, we need to change
our e orts. is can be di cult — particularly
considering the many challenges a
lot of these fathers face. However, we must
stay true to Head Start’s mission in all of
our e orts. Father involvement is not an
exception.
Changing our methods
As we’ve seen over the past 10 years, the
families in Head Start are becoming
increasingly diverse. Many programs are
doing an outstanding job of weaving all of
the cultures and ethnicities into the fabric
of Head Start. We must make sure that

we’re also doing the same with our father
involvement e orts.
rough my work, I’ve concluded that
programs must have separate, stand-alone
father-child programs in order to work
with fathers. Initially, family and parent
programs are attended almost exclusively
by mothers. By having father-speci c
programs, we have more men attend and
we can then work with them in a more
e ective manner. ese father-speci c programs
should not only have positive child
outcomes as their goal but must also be
structured in a way that helps weave men
and fathers back into the regular fabric of
the Head Start program. We need the entire
family to support their children and their
outcomes.
I’ve seen many programs that have
been very successful with their father
involvement e orts, but then they either
begin to focus almost all of their resources
and e orts on fathers, inadvertently ne-
What do we do?
I am always being asked the same
questions during father involvement
workshops:
• How do we get fathers to attend?
• What do we do with them once
we get them?
• How do we keep them?
Here is what we’ve found works
in Head Start.
How do we get fathers?
Use the children to help you
attract fathers.
The best way to involve fathers in the lives
of the children is to involve them in the
lives of their children. Everything that we
do with fathers is a father-child event. All
of your activities should be focused on
building a stronger relationship between
the father and the child. By making it a “kid
event,” the children will do most of your
promotional work and the fathers are more
apt to attend if they know they’ll be spending
time with their child.
Give them time.
Fathers need advance notice so they can
schedule time o from work and make
other arrangements. We suggest giving at
least one month’s notice to inform fathers
of an upcoming event and then providing
them with all of the information they
need (date, time, location, and so on) two
weeks before the event. The day before
a morning event, we also place stickers
on every child as they leave for the day to
remind fathers and mothers of the event.
We’ve found that fathers will attend if we
communicate well with them.
Men
and Children
What do we do with fathers?
Focus on fun.
Anyone who’s attended a Strong Fathers-
Strong Families fatherhood training knows
that we believe in fun! We also have the
following three the three rules for e ective
father involvement programs. Programs
must be…
1. Interactive: Interactive between the
father and child and between all of
the fathers in attendance.
2. Relational: Fathers need to be able to
relate to their child and other fathers.
3. Relevant: Because they are fathers,
they have limited time and resources.
Do not waste either. Make sure that
your event has a clear purpose and
provides information that helps a man
be a better father.
Speak to them as men and fathers.
When a father attends a father involvement
program with their child, they’re
there because they love their child, they
want to learn more about being a father or
more about their own child, or they attend
out of duty. Celebrate all of those reasons
and then work with them. Many men have
never had anyone recognize and talk to
them about their value; often just by telling
them, they can make great strides in their
e orts to be more involved.
How do we keep them?
Remain focused on the child.
Men attend programs because their
children invite them. They attend programs
because they feel safe and honored
for their e orts (not their perfection). By
always staying focused on child outcomes,
your fathers will see the purpose in attending
and participating. Be careful not to veer
into “repair mode” where you begin to
stray back into a de cit model.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 13

Men
and Children
Y LEARNING
DIVISION
Families
de
806EL
14
glecting the mothers, or they do not try to
bring the fathers into “regular” Head Start
programming (parent meetings, policy
councils, and so on). Programs should keep
in mind that a major goal of father involvement
should be to better involve fathers in
all aspects of the Head Start program.
I’ve seen what can be accomplished
for children when father involvement
programs are strength-based, focused on
outcome, and planned with the bigger
picture of whole family involvement in
mind. Because of the incredibly positive
outcomes that can result, this work must be
done — and it must be done using the most
e ective and successful strategies. We’ve
learned a lot of important lessons along
the way and we’ve a ected a lot of young
lives, so let’s continue to improve on those
e orts.
FREE
CATALOG!
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
J. Michael Hall, M.Ed., executive director of
Strong Fathers-Strong Families, is the father
of two sons and the husband to a wonderful
third-grade teacher. He has worked as a special
education teacher, a teacher of the gi ed and
talented, and an intermediate and middle school
principal. A er realizing that he was spending
more time raising other people children than his
own, he le the principalship and soon became
an advocate for stronger parent and father
involvement in public education. As an educator,
speaker and founder of Strong Fathers-Strong
Families, he has presented to more than 30,000
fathers and parents at local schools, Head Starts,
and regional and national conferences.
Strong Fathers-Strong Families works with
Head Start programs, public schools, churches,
and other organizations to improve the educational
environment in order that men may
become more involved in the lives of their children.
Strong Fathers-Strong Families plans and
facilitates events at the campus, organizational,
and community level to bring men together with
their children in the presence of other men to
discover their true strength as fathers. To learn
more, go to www.strongfathers.com.
Phone: 1.800.558.9595 / www.eNasco.com/earlylearning
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 15

Leading
the Way
the TIPS AND TOOLS FOR EFFECTIVE
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
Building Connections between Cultures
by Barbara Volpe
Whether they are located in a small rural
community or a big city, Head Start
program directors are seeking culturally,
linguistically, and racially diverse
sta to work with children and families.
In the past decade, Head Start programs
have seen a signi cant increase
in culturally and linguistically diverse
families enroll in their programs. This
shift in population re ects what is happening
across the nation.
Hiring sta who re ect the racial, cultural,
and linguistic makeup of the families
in your program supports children’s
healthy development, strengthens connections
with families, and ful lls the Head
Start program performance standards.
But hiring diverse sta is just the rst step.
As a director you also want to ensure that
the diverse sta members you hire remain
committed to your program. Implementing
practices that ensure sta retention
is a crucial step in this e ort.
Extra thought and care need to be
given when helping new sta members
acclimate to your center. is is particularly
important when your new teachers or
support sta members are from a di erent
racial or cultural background than
your current sta . Misunderstandings and
con ict can occur when people interact
with cultures that are di erent from their
own. Teachers and support sta members
whose cultural background align with
the dominant U.S. culture (middle class,
European-American descent) may not realize
the role culture plays in shaping values,
beliefs, practices, and behaviors in their
everyday life. As a leader in your program,
it is important that you also develop an
understanding of your own and of others’
culture in order to work e ectively with the
diverse sta in your program.
What is culture?
Culture encompasses the full range of
learned human behavior patterns that are
passed down from generation to generation.
Values, belief systems, everyday activities,
and goals are de ned by our culture. Our
cultural background a ects our interactions
with the sta , children, and families
in our programs. It a ects our ability to
work as a team and our reactions when differences
of opinion occur or con ict arises.
Understanding the nuances of di erent cultural
backgrounds helps us understand that
our viewpoint is not the only valid perspective
that exists. Rather, there are multiple
viewpoints, and each one is a ected by the
cultural lens one is looking through.
Even though our cultural beliefs are
a powerful in uence in our lives, they are
o en invisible to others until a cultural
clash occurs. e in uence of culture has
been compared to the tip of an iceberg
where only 5 percent of the ice is visible.
While the remaining 95 percent may not be
as visible, it is as signi cant and should not
be discounted.
Think about your own culture
When you take time to re ect on your
own culture, you quickly realize how it
has shaped your beliefs, values, and expectations
of childrearing practices.
It determines how you de ne family and
what your expectations are for families.
Identifying your own culturally based
beliefs, values, and behaviors will help
you determine when a misunderstanding
is more than just the result of miscommunication
and is instead due to a deeper
cultural con ict. Here are some things to
think about:
• What celebrations, rituals, and holidays
did you celebrate with your family?
• What were some traditional foods that
your family prepares?
• What language was spoken at home?
What language was spoken with other
relatives?
• What words, wisdom, or advice was
passed down from previous generations?
• How did your family view con ict?
• How would your family have de ned
family?
• What was your family’s view regarding
time? Were they relaxed in terms of time
expectations or did they reinforce the
importance of being prompt?
• What messages did you receive about
your own and other racial, ethic, or
cultural groups while growing up?
• In your family, were children encouraged
to be self-reliant and independent
or was emphasis placed the importance
of the family or group unit?
• In what ways did your family background
in uence your life choices,
identity, and views about education?
16 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

• What were your family’s views on
childrearing practices such as feeding,
toileting, dressing, playing, and nighttime
routines?
• What were your family’s views on acceptable
and unacceptable children’s
behavior and appropriate methods of
discipline?
When cultural con ict occurs
ere are many areas of potential con-
ict that can result from di erences in
cultural beliefs, especially in the area
childrearing practices and expectations
for daily routines in the classroom. How
an individual views the teacher’s role,
di erent approaches to discipline, and the
appropriate emphasis that should be placed
on di erent curriculum areas can be quite
di erent based on that person’s cultural
background. If a Head Start director hires a
teacher who is from a culture that emphasizes
respect for authority, complete
obedience to parents, and high levels of
achievement in school, that teacher is likely
to clash with another teacher whose culture
values independence in children, the ability
to solve problems collaboratively, and the
importance of children’s social/emotional
development.
Resolving di erences that arise from
di ering cultural beliefs is not easy; rst
and foremost, it requires an open mind.
Secondly, learning the reason behind a
particular cultural clash can help expand
our understanding and appreciation for
other people’s perspectives. Here are some
ideas to help you get started in expanding
your own level of tolerance and respect for
others:
• Examine your personal attitudes, values,
and beliefs. Ask yourself: Am I able to
identify what makes me uncomfortable?
Can I accept someone else’s right to hold
beliefs, values, and ideas that are di erent
from my own?
• Learn about other cultures. ere are
many ways you can expand your understanding
of di erent cultures. Read
ctional and non ctional books about
other cultures. Get to know community
leaders from other cultures and
ask plenty of questions to deepen your
understanding about their background,
traditions, and beliefs. Being observant
and asking questions respectfully with a
genuine desire to learn is the best way to
become more knowledgeable and form
connections with others.
• Avoid making inferences. Try to catch
yourself whenever you start to think in
stereotypes: All Muslims do… Asians
think… Hispanics are… Remember
that each individual comes from a
unique family, and cultural characteristics
associated with their particular
culture may or may not be a part of their
family’s culture.
• Create a space that welcomes everyone.
Take a look around your center. Does it
truly re ect the people who work there,
the families in your program, the community?
Is your o ce welcoming to
sta and parents — do they feel comfortable
entering and having a conversation
with you?
• Establish a foundation for open communication.
e time and e ort you put into
relationship building and establishing
and encouraging open communication
are critical to helping sta members feel
as though they are part of your Head
Start family. Do you have regular sta
meetings? How do sta members feel
about contributing during sta meetings?
Is the environment one in which
your sta members feel safe providing
Leading
the Way
input and expressing their thoughts
and concerns? Consider using some of
the self-re ective questions earlier in
this article to stimulate an open discussion
about cultural preferences. All sta
members bene t from being able to have
open discussions about di erent aspects
of each other’s culture.
Building cultural sensitivity
takes patience
Head Start programs face a lot of pressure
to be in compliance with outcomes,
standards, initiatives, and deadlines.
Building relationships that bridge di erent
cultures takes time and patience. You may
sense only small incremental changes as
you work toward a partnership based on
respect, acknowledgement of di erent perspectives,
and the desire to view diversity
as an asset.
A diverse sta brings many bene ts to
your program. It enhances your ability to
better meet the needs of children and families
from di erent cultural traditions, and
it adds to your own and others’ professional
development. When you make a commitment
to understand and embrace the
diversity among the sta and families in
your program, you are taking the rst step
toward building a work environment that is
supportive and culturally competent.
Barbara Volpe is a training and technical assistance
specialist at the McCormick Tribune Center
for Early Childhood Leadership. She works as an
assessor in the Centers Quality Counts initiative.
e McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood
Leadership is dedicated to enhancing the
management skills, professional orientation, and
leadership capacity of early childhood administrators.
To nd out more about the Center’s training,
technical assistance, evaluation, research,
and public awareness activities, log onto http://
cecl.nl.edu or call (800) 443-5522, ext. 5056.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 17

Book
18 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Sharing
Julianne Zvalo Martyn
Program Manager
Raising A Reader
Silicon Valley Community Foundation
San Mateo, California
Promoting early literacy,
helping families
overcome barriers
“Hector doesn’t like me to read to him; he is always wiggling and running around.”
“I don’t know how to read English very well; my children will learn my mistakes.”
“I have three other children besides Stephanie. I don’t have time, and, anyways,
she’ll learn to read in school.”
Have you heard these or similar comments from the families in your program? As
Head Start professionals, you undoubtedly are aware of the value of parents or caregivers
sharing books with their children and of their involvement in their children’s education.
But as you also know, engaging families in book reading can be much more complicated
than just letting families know that reading with their young children is a simple yet e ective
way of improving their children’s listening and comprehension skills as well as their vocabulary
— all of which are integral to the development of literacy and cognitive skills. While
this is certainly important for families to know, you can’t stop here. If you want to boost
parental involvement in book reading, you’ll need to be aware of the obstacles that prevent
families from sharing books with their children and then develop strategies for overcoming
these obstacles.
Book sharing
Book sharing is a term used to refer to an interactive, one-on-one or small-group read-aloud
experience that occurs between caring adults and young children. I use the term book sharing
as a way of emphasizing that the experience is not always about reading the words. As
mentioned, book sharing promotes healthy brain development and increases early literacy
skills in children. In addition to these important outcomes, book sharing also facilitates parent-child
bonding.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 19

In my previous work as a parent educator
and preschool teacher, I was continually
involved in nding ways to reach and
support parents. ese days, in my current
position with Raising A Reader, a national
early literacy non-pro t organization, I’m
engaged in supporting agencies in their efforts
to involve and engage parents in early
literacy activities. One thing has become
very clear to me: Telling parents what they
should do simply isn’t enough — just like
knowing that we should oss our teeth
every day, eat more fresh vegetables, and
exercise regularly because it’s good for us is
rarely enough incentive to make us do these
things. Unfortunately, knowing these things
are important o en isn’t enough motivation.
So how do you motivate parents to read
to their young children and to participate in
the wonderful literacy activities that you’ve
planned for them? How do you overcome
some of the barriers that are currently keeping
them sharing books with their children?
Barriers parents face
I recently had the privilege of speaking to a
group of Head Start parents at a Head Start
conference in California. I came prepared
for anything because I didn’t know what
would be most on the minds of these parents.
Would they want to know about early
brain development, research, reading to
children? Did they want to know about our
program? I came ready with enough material
for several workshops!
What I found was that parents really
wanted to know how to share books with
their children, and they were hungry to understand
early brain development. ey had
many questions and many challenges, and
they didn’t have a lot of con dence. It can be
easy to forget that many parents simply don’t
20 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
know how important and easy it is to share
books with children! And parents o en have
to overcome several barriers and common
misconceptions about sharing books with
their children before they become comfortable
with the activity.
Let’s take a look at some of the common
barriers and mistaken beliefs. is isn’t
meant to be a comprehensive or scienti c
list; instead, the following list is based on
the combined experience of teachers and
administrators throughout the country.
• When I read to my children, they must
be quiet and listen.
• I must be a good reader to read to
my children.
• My child is too young to learn to read.
Reading is learned in school.
• I don’t have time to read to my child. I’m
too stressed out to even think about this.
• I don’t have access to books.
Sound familiar? Now let’s look at some
strategies that address these barriers.
Addressing the barriers
and reaching parents
Barrier #1: When I read to my children,
they must be quiet and listen attentively.
is is a simple misunderstanding that trips
up a lot of parents. Teachers and directors
understand interactive, or dialogic, reading,
and naturally use a book as a means
to develop meaningful interchanges with
young children. We understand that a child’s
brain development is highly in uenced by
social interactions using rich language and
that cognitive, higher-order thinking gets its
start from the social/emotional development
of the brain.
Setting the stage:
Tips for sharing books
with your child
• Get close and snuggle up.
• Make plenty of eye contact.
• Ask questions about the pictures, ideas,
and events in the story using a clear and
consistent style.
• Bring your own sense of fun and drama
to play — gesture, make faces, or move
your body in ways that help to convey
the story.
• Have your child tell you what is happen-
ing in the story.
• Share your own feelings and ideas.
• Accept the children’s fears, ideas, and
feelings as real, not exaggerated.
• Ask more questions after the story is
nished. It is this interaction that really
counts!
Parents, on the other hand, are o en
coming from a perspective of wanting to “do
it right.” ey may erroneously believe that
they need to read didactically, with their role
being that of the “reader” while their child’s
role is to listen attentively — making it possible,
as parents see it — for them to learn.
Parents may think they need to read straight
through a book, from beginning to end, and
that their child should sit still, be silent, and
listen carefully. Perhaps this is what they
remember from their own experience in
school, or maybe they never experienced intimate
one-on-one book sharing as children.
Many of the parents with whom we work
did not have books in their homes when
they were growing up.
Parents are also naturally concerned
about their children’s behavior. ey have
an idea of what ideal behavior looks like and
may feel frustrated and inadequate when
their children do not behave in this way.
Parents who have not been taught what interactive,
language-rich book sharing looks
like may have an unrealistic idea of what it
should be. As you know, trying to get a 2year-old
to sit quietly and listen can be very

frustrating. It isn’t surprising that parents
who think they aren’t capable of reading “the
right way” with their children or that their
children refuse to “behave” would resist or
avoid reading with their children.
Strategies
Once parents understand that it is both
good and expected for their children to
interact, interrupt, dance around, and talk
during book sharing, they can relax a little
and enjoy this time with their children. Here
are a few suggestions or tips you can share
with families:
• When sharing books with children, it’s
perfectly OK to “read” the pictures, start
in the back of the book, or only look at
one page.
• To get your child involved in the story, ask
questions about the pictures and story.
• Allow your child to take the lead.
When we convey to parents that it is
best to let the child take the lead and to
even tell a story by reading just the pictures,
parents visibly relax. A young mother in one
of my recent workshops looked as though a
ton of bricks had been li ed from her shoulders
and said, “I am so relieved. It’s always
been so stressful to read to my son, and I
feel guilty about not doing it, but I always
thought I was doing something wrong. I
think I get it now.”
John is very active. It takes a lot for
him to sit down and be still. So when
I introduce a book to him, I do it
really slowly. I read through a couple
pages or just ip through it a little bit
to get him interested. It takes about a
week for us to get through the whole
book. A er that, though, it instantly
becomes one of his favorite books
and we can read it over and over.
— A father in a book sharing
program
About Raising A Reader
RAR is a program designed to encourage low-income parents
with limited literacy and English skills to read and to share the
book experience with their young children by establishing
a reading routine that enhances their children’s vocabulary,
pre-literacy skills, and family bonding time. Headquartered
at Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Raising A Reader is
operated through a diverse national network of community
a liates (such as Head Start, school systems, libraries, or local
United Ways). These a liates reach out to low-income families
through preschools, home visiting programs, adult education
centers, family childcare homes — any place where parents and children routinely gather. Each
week, Raising A Reader children (or parents) bring home a sturdy red bag lled with four high-
quality, developmentally-appropriate, multi-cultural children’s books. Over the course of several
months, they are exposed to a wide range of titles, providing them with both a mirror re ecting
their own world and a window to the world beyond. Through initial training and ongoing support,
Raising A Reader parents — including those with limited English pro ciency or low literacy skills
— learn how to engage their children in storytelling with picture books. The program includes an
introduction to the public library, setting up families for a lifetime of book enjoyment.
Sixteen independent evaluations demonstrate that Raising A Reader makes a positive and
lasting impact, signi cantly improving both family reading behavior, parent-child bonding, and
kindergarten readiness across diverse culture and language demographics. Currently, researchers
from the Stanford Schools of Education and Medicine are examining the longitudinal impact of
Raising A Reader on parent-child bonding and early literacy skill development among low-income
families with children in the 9-24 month-old age range.
For more information, visit www.raisingareader.org or call (650) 581-4300.
Barrier #2: I must be a good reader
to read to my children.
Many parents with low literacy are
embarrassed about their reading ability,
or lack of it, and, as a result, don’t feel that
sharing books would be bene cial to their
children. ey worry that their children will
learn to read incorrectly. Parents who can
read well but who have an accent sometimes
worry their child will pick up that accent.
Lack of con dence is a major factor in
parents’ lack of involvement in early literacy.
If you put yourself in their shoes,
you can understand this. One of my colleagues
grew up with a single mom who
was a native Spanish speaker. Her mother
did not read to her because she was worried
about passing on her accent. She insisted
that her daughter, at a very young age, read
to her instead. At the time this was un-
Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
21

comfortable for my colleague, and she still
remains uncomfortable reading aloud to
this day. ough her mother need not have
worried, her fear was understandable. Particularly
when you consider that at that time
and in the area she lived, her accent was a
barrier to employment.
is worry includes a misunderstanding
of the reasons why reading to young
children is so bene cial. Studies show that
conversation and storytelling are both key to
early brain development and early literacy.
As such, books can be thought of as tools
for developing rich brain-building language
interactions.
Strategies
We can teach parents in a variety of ways
that a book is a wonderful tool with which
to build conversation. Here are some e ective
ways to get that point across, especially
with parents with low or no literacy skills.
Here are a few key things you can
teach parents:
• Children don’t care about mistakes and
they don’t care how well you read. What
they need is to hear a parent’s voice and
to engage in conversation.
• Children are not going to pick up your
accent, and it doesn’t matter if you can
read in English. What does matter is the
quality time you spend with your child
and the fact that you are giving your child
opportunities to use and explore language.
• Storytelling is an excellent alternative that
also helps build cognitive and language
skills, and it is a powerful and e ective
bridge from conversation to reading. It is
Quick tip
22 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
important to share stories from your own
childhood with your children. is helps
to build vocabulary and helps children
understand sentence structure and syntax.
Storytelling prompts the use of cognitive
skills and imagination in forming mental
images and making predictions, which
then enables children to form their own
stories.
• How to read interactively. e following
wordless book activity is e ective in
making this process easy to learn (without
embarrassing parents with low-literacy
skills).
Wordless book activity
Sharing books without pictures is a very
e ective way to help parents understand
that they can enjoy books without having
to read. In a group setting…
1. Model how to share a wordless book with
a group of parents. Be as interactive as
possible. You can start by role playing,
with you taking on the role of “parent”
and some parents as the “children.” If you
do this, rst model reading non-interactively,
or didactically, and watch the “children”
misbehave and become frustrated.
en model interactive reading.
2. Ask the volunteers and the group for
feedback a er each modeling exercise.
3. Now have the group get into pairs, and
pass out wordless books, one per pair.
Instruct the pairs to role play a parent
and child. e “parent” practices telling
the story by “reading” the pictures to the
“child.” ey can either switch roles a er
a few minutes, or take turns reading to
each other on every other page.
4. Get feedback from the group and discuss
the bene ts of building children’s
vocabularies, of bonding, and so forth.
Find out if they remember reading with
their parents as children. is is a great
opportunity for you to learn more about
the parents with whom you work.
O er supportive praise and encouragement to all families. Make parents feel good about what
they do in terms of rich language conversations with their children, and help them build on these
things. You’ll build their con dence if you help them recognize and build on their strengths.
Barrier #3: My child is too young
to learn to read. Reading is learned
in school.
is used to be a very common belief. In
the past, experts didn’t realize the amount
of brain development that occurs during
the rst few years of life, and they didn’t
understand how early language experiences
prepare children for reading when
they reach school age. Some parents truly
don’t see the point of reading to their child,
especially if their child is too young to speak
or to understand the story.
Strategies
Learning a little about early brain development
is o en useful in overcoming this
belief. Pictures are worth a thousand words,
and brain scans can be especially interesting
to parents. Here are some facts that might
help illustrate the importance of early childhood
experiences:
• Most growth happens early: At age 3, the
brain is 80 percent of its adult size; at age
5, it is 90 percent of its adult size
• ere are critical time periods for specialized
development associates with oral
language, especially grammar and pronunciation.
e window begins to close at 5
years of age.
• Conversation and sharing books during
this period help determine a child’s reading
and thinking ability later on.

I used to read to Peter like how I’d
read by myself, from the beginning
all the way to the end, page by page,
making all the correct phonetic
sounds. But he wasn’t happy that
way; he doesn’t think that way — he’s
a 3-year-old. So we now read from
the end, go to the beginning, or even
start in the middle and work backwards
to the beginning. We make up
words to the story, make the sounds
we think the animal would make,
like a duck saying quack, quack,
quack. It’s interesting because he gets
more out of the story than just what
the plot of the story is.
— A mother speaking about reading
with her child
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Barrier #4: I don’t have time to read
to my child. I’m too stressed out to
even think about this.
Raising children is uniquely rewarding
and joyful, but it is also demanding, stressful,
and sometimes isolating. And there’s
just no denying that parents are busy people.
erefore, it is important that we do not
underestimate the amount of stress parents
are under. As such, shared book experiences
should be designed to alleviate stress —
and parents should feel supported in their
e orts.
Strategies
Many parents may be under the impression
that they need at least 15 minutes or longer
to sit down and read. It might be obvious
to us that reading can happen anywhere
and that it does not need to take a long
time — but parents might not realize that
book sharing and other important language
Call 800.627.7271 or visit PearsonAssessments.com for more information.
experiences don’t have to be restricted to
traditional sit-down, book-in-hand experiences.
Here are some tips you can share with
parents.
• Get your children excited! When children
are excited about books and beg their
parent to read to them, reading naturally
becomes a greater priority.
• e amount of time you spend sharing
books is not as important as keeping to a
regular schedule. Five minutes every day is
better than 30 minutes once a week.
• Keep books on hand in the car or diaper
bag. Pull out a book wherever you might
have to wait, such as the doctor’s o ce,
restaurant, or car repair shop.
Copyright © 2008 Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliate(s). All Rights Reserved. Work Sampling for Head Start and the Work Sampling Logo are trademarks of Pearson Education ALP 1651 05/08
Work sampling ad.indd 1 4/22/08 9:16:21 AM
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 23

• Share books at meal or snack time, when
the children are already sitting still. You
don’t want this to disrupt the eating routine,
so it might be wise to bring out the
book at the end of the meal.
• Share books at bedtime as a way to quiet a
child. is is a terri c way to relax as the
day winds down. Book sharing should be
thought of as a handy tool in a parenting
“bag of tricks” — one that helps keep the
child-rearing operation running smoothly.
• Limit the time children spend in front
of the television and computer. ese
activities are not recommended for young
children. Be sure to turn o the TV when
you are reading because it can be very
distracting for children.
Barrier #5: I don’t have access
to books.
is is a very real barrier. Many parents
don’t have easy access to or experience with
children’s books. e reasons for this may
be related to parents’ income or education
levels or personal experiences. Whatever the
reason, however, without access to children’s
books, there can be very little book sharing
with children!
Strategies
Despite the fact that not having access to
books is a real barrier to book sharing,
simply giving families books will not a
guarantee that they will read them. Children
must be taught to be excited about books
and families must be shown fun, e ective
read-aloud strategies and be taught about
the importance of interactive book sharing.
Here are some suggestions to help you do
just that.
1. Give or lend books to families while also
guiding them in book selection: Giving
books can be expensive and, therefore,
not something that you can do o en. Be
24 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
sure to also show parents how to select
books that work well for them and their
children. Sometimes parents are not
successful because the books they choose
are not age appropriate. Consider holding
a literacy event that highlights things to
look for when selecting books for sharing.
2. Connect parents to the library. It’s not
enough to merely give parents information
about the library. Many parents are
not familiar with their local library and
they may be intimidated to walk in on
their own. Helping families develop an
appreciation for the library is a great way
to increase the likelihood that they will
continue to share books a er they leave
your program.
3. Directors, building bridges to the library
in partnership with your local system’s
director of library services is a terri c
way to help teachers promote this public
service. Keep in mind that…
• e American Library Association’s Every
Child Ready to Read program is a parent
education program that is sure to dovetail
nicely with your program’s e orts.
• Agencies throughout the nation partner
with their libraries. ey organize
special story hours, big and small events,
tours, special waivers for library cards, or
punch-card systems in which individuals
who visit the library a set number of
times win a prize. Some libraries even
arrange special days when nes are forgiven.
• All teachers should be supported in their
e orts. Encourage sta members to introduce
parents to the library system and
model how they can do so.
4. Teachers, in order promote the library
connection, have librarians come to your
class or parent workshop, and provide
library card applications and library
General parent engagement tips
Before beginning any type of parent en-
gagement e orts, it is important to examine
your motivations and basic philosophy. Here
are a few key guidelines:
1. Treat parents respectfully. Don’t talk
down to parents or assume that you
know best or that you know more than
they do. All parents are experts and all
parents want the best for their child.
Always remember: Parents are passion-
ate about their children. Parents are very
busy people. Parents are a ected by
factors that you may be unaware of.
2. Be respectful of cultural di erences.
This is easy to say and sometimes dif-
cult to practice. Some people arrive in
this country with very di erent beliefs
about child rearing and development
than are commonly accepted here. Try to
understand where they are coming from.
3. When developing parent education
programs, ask parents what they want
to know rather than deciding what
you think they should know. Adults are
much more open to learning when they
have had a voice in both the plans and
decisions.
4. Remember that parents need social
and emotional support. Ideally, par-
ent involvement programs should be
designed to build connections and sup-
port systems between parents as well as
between the implementer and parents.
Making the environment and/or event
welcoming and conducive to social
interaction will persuade parents to par-
ticipate again and will help to de-stress
parents and open them to learning. Time
the event so that it is most convenient
for parents and respect their time and
e ort.
5. Have con dence in your ability. Early
childhood professionals need support
in order to know that what they have to
o er and what they are working toward
is worthwhile.

information (such as notices about special
events and hours of operation). You
should also arrange a family eld trip to
the library to help overcome barriers that
might otherwise prevent families from
going to the library. Keep in mind that
some parents might have transportation
issues. I’ve known many of teachers who
take parents and children on a city bus
outing to get them through the doors for
that rst time. If you live in a rural area,
nd out if there is a travelling library
program.
In a nutshell
Teaching early literacy strategies to parents
may be one of the most important things
you can do to improve a child’s chances for
success in school and life. Sharing books
is an easy, cost-e ective, and fun way to
build the parent-child relationship, encourage
healthy brain development, and
increase early literacy skills. It might take a
little — or perhaps a lot — of e ort to help
parents overcome some of the barriers to
sharing books with their children. But with
passion and commitment from teachers
and directors, book sharing can become an
exciting and enjoyable way for families to
connect with their children. You too might
nd that you have a story like the one that
follows to tell:
We had a child whose parents were
illiterate at one of our sites. e parents were
very frightened to even try to “read” to their
child and, as a result, they never did. A er
we introduced our book sharing program to
this family and their child became excited
about bringing home books, the parents
admitted their fears to their child’s teacher.
e teacher knew how to react to this
family’s issue and taught them how to tell
the story based on the pictures alone. e
teacher explained that sharing the book with
their child was the most important part, not
the actual story. e parents began telling
stories to their child from the pictures and
their con dence quickly grew. Not only did
the child bene t, the parents did as well. e
parents gained enough con dence to ask for
help; they are now enrolled in adult literacy
classes with a local agency.
— Shared by an early literacy director
in Oklahoma.
© 2008 Playworld Systems,® Inc.
Reminder: Show families that you respect
and believe in them. Maintain an atmosphere
of cooperative learning, by listening to what
they say and learning about the challenges
they face.
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of exploration, discovery and excitement.
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 25

Inclusive Literacy
26 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Lessons
Building a solid foundation
Listening, oral language development, phonological awareness, letter
knowledge and recognition, print awareness, and comprehension: These
are widely accepted as the six foundational skills that are needed by all
children — including children with special needs and those from high-risk
environments — in order to become successful readers. After we brie y
examine each one, we’ll look at some simple literacy lessons that apply
these components and how those lessons might be adapted for children
with special needs.
Listening
Listening — which is considered to be the
foundation for all literacy development and
an essential skill for building language and
enhancing overall communication — begins
in the womb. During the h month of
pregnancy, a fetus’s auditory system is developed
enough to hear sounds from outside
the womb. Generally, the more a child is
spoken to during the early years, the better
his listening skills become.
Clarissa Willis
Associate Director Center of Excellence
East Tennessee State University
Johnson City, Tennessee
Pam Schiller
Early Childhood Consultant and Author
Schiller Educational Resources
Cypress, Texas
for All!
One important factor in listening skills
is a child’s attention span. Young children
typically have the ability to focus their attention
one minute for each year of development
up to the age of 5, at which point the
child picks up an additional minute. Like
adults, children typically use their attention
spans for three rounds before becoming so
exhausted that listening becomes too di -
cult to continue. is means that a 4-yearold
can listen for about 12 minutes before
losing attention (that is, three rounds of four
minutes each) while a 5-year-old can listen
for approximately 18 minutes before losing
attention. Practice, by doing things like following
directions, listening to stories, and
participating in conversations, can also help
children increase their ability to listen. However,
this may not apply to children with
special needs, who, depending on the type
and severity of their need, may have much
shorter attention spans than their same age
peers. Even so, children with special needs
do need to learn how to listen. In fact, depending
on the type of special need, a child’s
ability to understand what is happening
might hinge on the child’s ability to listen
for cues. For example, a child with signi -
cant visual impairment will learn to depend
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 27

on her listening skills as a way to function
within a preschool classroom. A child who
has cognitive challenges might learn to
listen for a completely di erent reason: it
may serve as a cue to help him function in
the everyday world. On the other hand, a
child with a hearing loss may need to rely
on her residual (le over) hearing abilities
to understand what is being said. In short,
listening is a fundamental skill that when
properly developed enables children with
special needs to communicate e ectively
and become more independent.
Oral language development
A strong vocabulary is the next building
block that plays a key role in literacy.
e components of oral language include
vocabulary, grammar, and, ultimately, being
able to communicate e ectively in a variety
of situations. e size of a child’s vocabulary
is one of the most accurate predictors
of how successful that child will be when
she encounters formal reading instruction.
e most fertile time for language development
is from birth to age 5. Five-year-olds
typically will have acquired 60 percent of
the vocabulary they’ll build during their
lifetime. e more vocabulary-building
opportunities young children are given, the
greater the likelihood that they will increase
their word bank and learn to master the
correct usage of those words. Considering
that it is easier for teachers to communicate
using more words and complex sentences
with children who are more articulate, it is
particularly important to spend extra time
working on the vocabulary development of
a child with a speech and/or language delay.
O en, because of their delays, these children
do not have the same opportunities to develop
their language skills as their typicallydeveloping
peers.
Opportunities for children to improve
their vocabulary skills occur throughout
the day in the classroom — during group
discussions, while singing, or while listening
to a story. Constantly being alert to these
opportunities is a big part of becoming more
intentional and purposeful in our teaching.
Modeling correct sentence structure and
grammar and encouraging children to make
necessary adaptations will also help them
to develop their skills. When children hear
the correct use of grammar, they eventually
modify their own use of it to relay information
about needs, wants, ideas, and so
forth. Your role is to coach them gently by
restating their questions and responding in
a way that doesn’t embarrass them or create
too much fuss about their errors. Children
with cognitive or severe language delays
need even more help. Unlike their typically-developing
peers, they have di culty
learning from modeling and watching what
others do. Instead, they need speci c and
direct instruction on how to use language,
and they also need extra practice. For these
children, it is important to break down new
information or instructions into smaller
steps and practice each step with the child
before moving to the next one.
Phonological awareness
e third building block is phonological
awareness, or sensitivity to sound. For
preschool children, sound discrimination
activities include recognizing both sounds
that are the same and those that are different,
playing with onomatopoeia words,
matching rhyming word pairs, and identifying
the repetitive sound in an alliterative
phrase or sentence. e foundation for
sound discrimination is wired in the brain
during the rst year of life, as a neuron is
assigned to every sound in a baby’s native
language (44 phonemes in English). e
more the child is spoken to, sung to, and
read to, the more discriminate the neurons
become. During the rst year, a child’s brain
is capable of wiring sounds for as many different
languages as it experiences.
Again, some techniques to develop
phonological awareness include focusing
on alliteration (or the repetition of the same
sounds or of the same kinds of sounds at the
beginning of words or in stressed syllables,
such as Franklin and his friend frightened
poor Frieda); onomatopoeia words (or
words that imitate the sounds they denote,
such as buzz or splat); and rhyming word
patterns in songs, books, and activities.
Become more intentional and purposeful in
your instruction by watching for opportunities
to use these approaches and turning
them into lessons.
O en, children with special needs do
not develop an awareness of the sounds they
hear, because they are unable to develop a
phonological system that helps them decode
words. A child who is deaf, for example, will
not learn how to sound things out and combine
sounds in order to read words. Instead,
it is important that the child learns how to
use words in context rather than in isolation.
Children with language delays need
extra practice to develop their phonological
awareness. It is very important that these
children develop this skill because there is
a direct relationship between phonological
awareness and future success with reading.
is is also true for children with cognitive
de cits. Research has shown that breaking
down a task into small steps and allowing
the child extra time to practice each step can
help that child learn the skills necessary to
build phonological awareness.
Letter knowledge and recognition
Letter knowledge and recognition is the
ability to recognize all 26 letters of the
alphabet in both uppercase and lowercase
forms and to understand that letters are the
foundation of words. It is important to teach
the alphabet to children in such a way that
they understand that the letters can be used
in a number of combinations and orders.
28 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

is concept is o en hampered by the
fact that children learn the alphabet song
early in life and sing it over and over again,
always in the same order. e initial wiring
for letter knowledge gets connected and
reinforced in a low-functioning part of the
brain, far away from the place where it will
be needed when used in rational thought.
When children continually say or sing the
alphabet starting with A and ending with Z,
they tend to think of the alphabet as linear
— that it always starts with A and ends with
Z. is can create a challenge when they
begin to move from letters into words.
To help children understand that the
alphabet is not linear, teachers can teach
children to sing the alphabet song forward
and backward. Children also need to be
taught to think of letters as independent
components that can be organized in many
di erent ways. is is especially true for
children with special needs, who o en do
not generalize information well. In other
words, although a child might be able to
participate in singing the alphabet song, she
may not understand that letters are combined
to make individual words.
For children who cannot see letters, it is
important that they learn what letters look
like by other means, such as touching letter
cutouts. It is also imperative that children
with special needs learn new concepts in
meaningful context. So while learning letters
in isolation may have little meaning for a
child with cognitive challenges, learning the
letters in his name and the sound that each
letter makes is a meaningful and functional
skill that will help the child as he is learning
to read.
Print awareness
Print awareness is the knowledge that printed
words move from le to right and from
top to bottom. It is also the awareness that
print has many functions, including labeling
items, creating lists, conveying information
in newspapers, telling stories in books,
identifying exits and entrances, and so on.
You can see print awareness begin to emerge
when children start to identify their favorite
restaurant or store by its logo or sign. is is
referred to as environmental print. Around
this time, some children also begin to combine
letters to make words, usually starting
with their own name. Others will pretend to
write a message using pretend letters
Research has shown that children with
special needs require more visual cues (such
as pictures) to help them learn to recognize
print when they see it around them, and
they o en need additional opportunities
to practice print awareness. Group lessons
may need to be repeated and expanded, and
plenty of opportunities should be given enable
children to practice what they learn in a
variety of settings in order to reinforce their
development of print awareness.
Comprehension
Comprehension involves the internalization
of a story. It develops when children have
an opportunity to retell stories in their own
words, act out stories, and listen to stories
that are not accompanied by illustrations.
And it is through comprehension skills that
children are able to make up a story on their
own. Children who are able to understand
the concept of “story” can use language to
predict story events, cognitively organize
story ideas, and involve themselves in the
storyline while actively listening to a story
that is being told or read to them. ese
skills, in turn, strengthen their comprehension
while listening. Understanding how authors
describe settings, develop characters,
and organize the storyline also helps young
children cra their own stories.
Because children with special needs
may not have the same internalization
skills as their peers, it is important to
look for ways to help them get involved in
the storyline. Short attention spans o en
interfere with the development of critical
listening skills. In addition, children who
have a limited language repertoire need
implicit instructions as well as multiple
opportunities to understand what words
mean and how they are used in context.
Because comprehension involves both seeing
pictures and printed words and hearing
spoken words, it is especially important that
children with vision or hearing impairments
receive specialized instruction. Stories and
activities should be adapted in a way that
these children can understand, so that they
have the same opportunities as their peers to
learn through comprehension.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 29

Literacy lessons with
special needs adaptations
Now that we’ve brie y reviewed the six
foundational skills that enable children to
learn how to read, let’s take a look at some
sample literacy lessons and how they can be
adapted for children with special needs.
Yarn tales
Objective: To help children learn…
1. To use complete sentences.
2. To listen with purpose.
Vocabulary words:
• Add • Story • Tale
• Tell • Turn • Yarn
Materials:
• Crayons • Paper
• Photos from
magazines • Yarn
Literacy lesson:
• Make a partial statement, and ask a volunteer
to nish the thought. For example,
say, “ e three little pigs built homes. e
rst little pig built his home with …”
• A er the children have practiced completing
a sentence, try creating a group story
together. Ask the children to sit in a circle,
show them a ball of yarn, and explain that
the person who is holding the ball of yarn
will get to add to the group story. Now
begin the group story by making up a few
sentences. Make sure your story topic is
one that all of the children know something
about. For example, “One day, Evan
was playing in the park. He saw another
little boy sliding down the slide. Evan
walked over to the little boy and said …”
Now give the yarn to the child sitting beside
you and invite her to add to the story.
When she’s nished, have her pass the ball
of yarn to the next child. Continue passing
the yarn and adding to the story as long as
the story holds the interest of the children.
Keep in mind that learning to add on to a
story takes practice. Children will get better
at this activity each time you repeat it.
Special needs adaptations:
Special need Adaptation
Visual impairments Invite the child to hold the yarn and feel it before starting the
group story. Explain that each child will pass the yarn to the
next person after he has made up a sentence or added some-
thing to the story.
When a child passes the yarn to a child with visual impairments,
remind the child who is passing the yarn to place it in the palm
of the other child’s hand to signal that it’s time to add a sentence.
Hearing impairments Because a child with hearing impairments may not be able to
hear the other children well, place him next to you and face him
when you start the story. Then allow the child to be the rst to
add to the story.
Cognitive delays
Help the child participate by asking her a question. For example,
if the child before her says, “David missed the bus.” You might
say, “_____ (use the child’s name), how do you think David got to
school?” If the child answers, “car” you might then say, “Let’s put
that in a sentence.”
Make the sentence so that the child can ll in the blank, “David
asked his mom to take him to school in the _____.” Invite the
child to ll in the blank and then pass the yarn to the next child.
Speech/Language delays Because making a sentence without cues can be very di cult for
a child with limited vocabulary, ask the child questions that will
help him create a sentence that he can add to the group story.
Emotional/Behavior issues So that the child does not become frustrated by having to wait
Extending the learning:
too long for his turn, try making several class stories and keeping
the group size smaller, limiting the group to ve or six children at
30 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
a time.
• Cut photos from magazines (or draw pictures)
and glue them to blank index cards
to create a deck of object cards. Divide the
cards into two decks, and turn the photos
face down. Have the children take turns
drawing one photo from each stack and
then making up a sentence or a story that
connects the two images.
• Ask each child to draw a picture. Shu e
the pictures and pass them out so that
each child has one. en ask each child to
make up a sentence about the picture.
• Have the children sit in a circle. Hold a
ball in your lap. Make up a couple of sentences
for a story starter and then roll the
ball to one of the children and encourage
them to add on to the story. When they
have added a sentence or two, have that
child roll the ball to a friend to continue
the story. Continue for as long as the story
holds the interest of the children
Re ect:
Ask the children the following questions:
• Which part of the story did you like best?
• Do you think stories are better when a lot
of people add parts to them?

Sensory letter makers
Objectives: To help children learn…
1. To recognize letters of the alphabet.
2. To use their senses to recognize letters.
Vocabulary:
• Alphabet • Curved • Draw • Feel
• First • Letters • Mold • Shape
• Straight • Touch • Write
Materials:
• 4" x 8" sheets of tag board
• Sandpaper letters
(sandpaper and magnetic letters)
• Scissors
• Tactile letter cards
(glue and sandpaper letters)
• Tactile play dough
(play dough and sand)
• Wikki Stix
Preparation: Make letter cards by printing
the alphabet onto 4" x 8" sheets of tag board.
Make sandpaper letters by tracing magnetic
letters onto sandpaper and then cutting out
the letters. Make tactile letter cards by gluing
the sandpaper letters onto small index
cards. Make tactile play dough by mixing
two teaspoons of sand in a traditional play
dough recipe.
Literacy lesson:
• Sing the alphabet song.
• Tell the children that they will be using
their senses to make letters.
• Have the children pretend to write letters
in the air. Show letter cards for each letter
of the alphabet. Turn your back to the
children and demonstrate writing the
letter in the air. Encourage the children
to copy your movements.
• Have the children practice “air writing”
the rst letter of their names.
• Invite the children to stand in a circle with
their back to the person behind them (so
all of the children will be facing the back
of the child in front of them in the circle).
Have the children practice writing a letter
that you select on their classmate’s back.
• Invite the children to shape the rst letter
of their name using the tactile play dough.
• Give the children the sandpaper letter
cards. See if they can nd the letters in
their name with their eyes closed.
• Provide Wikki Stix. Encourage the children
to shape the rst letter of their name.
Special needs adaptations:
Special need Adaptation
Visual impairments When standing in a circle, encourage the child to put his hand
on the shoulder of the child in front of him before he writes a
letter on his back.
Remind peers that children with visual impairments often need
to use “soft touches” to help them explore the world around
Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
31
them.
Hearing impairments Make sure that you direct the child’s attention to you when you
are letter writing, so he can watch what you are doing. For the
“back writing” activity, it may be necessary to demonstrate what
you will be doing by writing rst on the child’s back.
Cognitive delays If a child does not know how to make a letter, encourage him
to try. You might also have the children work in pairs, making
sure to pair a child with cognitive delays with a peer who can
successfully form a letter.
Select letters to “write” on a peer’s back that the child knows
how to write.
Motor delays If a child can’t participate in the back-writing activity, let her
be the leader and pick the letters the children will write.
Speech/Language delays Provide extra practice for the child and help him identify other
Emotional/
words that also start with the rst letter of his name.
Remember to include the child’s family by encouraging them
to practice these activities with him at home.
Behavior issues
Keep in mind that children with autism often do not do well in
activities that involve touching other people or art mediums
(such as clay, paint, Wikki Stix, etc.). If the child has a preferred
art medium, encourage her to use that one to write the rst
letter of her name.

Extending the learning:
• Make gel bags by lling a quart-size
re-sealable plastic bag half full with hair
gel. Print alphabet letters on 4" x 6" index
cards. Invite the children to pick a letter,
place the gel bag over the letter (it will
show through the bag), and trace the letter
with their nger.
• Print letters on 4" x 6" index cards. Instruct
the children to use a bottle of glue
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to make glue drops over the shapes of the
letters. When the glue dries, you will have
a set of tactile alphabet cards.
32 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
Re ect:
Ask the children the following questions:
• Was it easier to shape the rst letter of
your name with play dough or with wikki
sticks?
• Does the rst letter of your name have
straight lines, curved lines, or both types
of lines?
Clarissa Willis, Ph.D., is currently the associate
director of the Center of Excellence in Early Childhood
Learning and Development and associate
professor of Special Education at East Tennessee
State University. Willis is a frequent keynote
speaker and presenter at regional and national
early childhood conferences. Her articles on child
development and early childhood special education
have been published both nationally and
internationally.
Pam Schiller, Ph.D., is a freelance early childhood
consultant and author. Schiller has been a child
care administrator for several years and has also
taught in the public schools as a kindergarten
teacher. She served as head of the Early Childhood
Department at the University of Houston where
she also directed the Lab School. Schiller shares
her extensive knowledge in workshops, radio, and
television interviews, and as a popular keynote
speaker and author. She is senior author of the
DLM Early Childhood Express, a full curriculum
for 4-year-olds; the DLM Early Childhood
Program, a full curriculum for Kindergarten; and
Early Impressions: Start Smart Edition, a full curriculum
for infants and toddlers.
This article was adapted from Inclusive Literacy
Lessons For Early Childhood, by Pam Schiller and
Clarissa Willis (Gryphon House, 2008).

Back-to-School 2008 Insert #53
Getting a Head Start on Oral Health
Resources for better oral health
for educators, caregivers, and
children
Contributed by Delta Dental
Few things can distract a child and take
away the joy of learning faster than a
painful cavity. As American children enter
kindergarten, 40 percent of them will have
already experienced this pain. It’s a problem
that Head Start educators and sta see
all too often.
“Access to oral health services is the
number one health issue a ecting Head
Start programs,” said Robin Brocato, health
specialist at the O ce of Head Start, in a
recent presentation made at the Delta Dental
Plans Association Community Bene t
Conference. According to Head Start’s own
Program Information Report (PIR) data,
25 percent of all Head Start children need
dental care — a gure that has remained
virtually unchanged over the years.
The case for oral health is indisputable.
Good oral health supports children’s ability
to learn and grow by giving them freedom
from pain and infection. It contributes to
normal, healthy facial and speech development,
allows for them to eat nourishing
food, and promotes good self-esteem. In
contrast, the consequences for children
of poor oral health include chronic pain,
poor self-esteem, missed opportunities for
learning because of absence from school,
di culty eating and sleeping, and health
complications resulting from untreated
disease. In addition, problems with spacing
as permanent teeth grow in can also result
when baby teeth are damaged by decay.
Getting children the care they need,
however, has proven to be a challenge
that leaves many children with unmet
dental needs. While 82 percent of children
enrolled in Head Start are also enrolled
in Medicaid, SCHIP, or a combination
program, many face additional barriers,
ranging from transportation to the availability
of dentists who accept Medicaid.
Fortunately for Head Start children, there
are resources and services that can help.
Getting a Head Start on oral care
One of Head Start’s goals is to identify
children’s health and developmental
concerns and to help meet children’s basic
health needs; prevention plays a pivotal
role in this. Within 90 days of entering
Head Start programs, sta members
determine if children are up to date on
a schedule of well child care, including
dental care, as determined by states’ Early
Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, Treatment
(EPSDT) schedules. Head Start programs
are required to work with parents to bring
children up to date as soon as possible. If
any treatment is required, the treatment
plans must begin (although don’t need to
be completed) within 90 days of entry.
In the classroom, children get a daily
oral health boost from tooth brushing sessions.
As part of Head Start’s program performance
standards, teachers or classroom
volunteers are required once a day, after a
meal, to assist children aged 2 and older in
brushing their teeth using a small dab of
toothpaste containing uoride. Younger
children must receive more hands-on
brushing assistance, and infants under
the age of 1 must have their gums gently
wiped with a gauze pad.
Head Start also provides a variety of
other services to help families understand
and access dental care. Some programs
work with families to educate them about
the importance of care. They can help
families nd resources to access a ordable
care, including identifying dentists who accept
Medicaid or provide free or low-cost
services. Some programs work with families
to arrange transportation to participat-
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 33

Back-to-School 2008
34
ing dentists’ o ces (with written consent)
or partner with other local services to bring
mobile clinics to Head Start locations.
Finding a dental home
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry
and Head Start recently teamed up to
create the Head Start Dental Home Initiative,
a new program intended to ensure
that the dental needs of young children
are met. A dental home is a primary dental
care provider who delivers for a broad
range of dental care over time, resulting
in professional oral health care that is
comprehensive, continuously accessible,
coordinated, culturally e ective, and family-centered.
The goal of the initiative is to
develop a national network of dentists to
link Head Start children with dental homes.
Strategies include training dentists and
Head Start personnel in optimal oral health
care practices, as well as providing parents,
caregivers, and Head Start sta with the
latest information about oral health.
The Dental Home Initiative launches
this September in six states, with an additional
eleven states added each year for the
following four years.
Partnership for prevention
The National Head Start Association also
works with other organizations to improve
the oral health of young children. As one
of its partners, Delta Dental has worked
with Head Start in speci c areas of the
nation over the years and is now expanding
its relationship to broaden the reach of
its programs. Some Delta Dental member
companies have developed curriculum to
educate Head Start sta , children, and their
caregivers about oral health. Washington
Dental Service (the Delta Dental member
company serving Washington State), for
example, developed Cavity Free Kids, a curriculum
that is free of charge to residents of
Washington state and includes classroom
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
activities, parent meetings, sta training
and agendas, and home visitor “tooth kits.”
(Go to www.CavityFreeKids.org for more
information.)
Others programs are working to
bring care closer to children. Delta Dental
of South Dakota, for instance, funds and
manages two mobile dental clinics that
include Head Start programs on their travel
itineraries. In Kansas, Delta Dental is providing
six portable and one permanent dental
operatory in seven of the 28 Head Start
communities. Delta Dental of Massachusetts
has a large-scale initiative underway
that began with an initial assessment of
the challenges within the state. An e ort
was then launched to bring together Head
Start grantees and dental care providers to
improve access to care and dental homes
for Head Start families; there is also an ongoing
program to assess the impact of the
program as well as its e ciency, e ectiveness,
and quality of care.
Still others, like Delta Dental of Michigan
are using the latest research to prevent
Oral health resources
American Academy of Pediatrics
Dentistry www.aapd.org
American Association for Community
Dental Programs www.aacdp.com
Children’s Dental Health Project
www.cdhp.org
Delta Dental www.deltadental.com
Health Teeth, Healthy Smiles
www.dent.umich.edu/teachoral
health/parents
National Maternal and Child Oral
Health Resource Center
www.mchoralhealth.org
dental disease from occurring in the rst
place by funding state-wide uoride varnish
programs that can reduce the disease
in children by 40 to 60 percent.
Delta Dental Plans Association and
NHSA have recently expanded their partnership
to provide additional resources and
tools to improve the oral health of more
Head Start children. To learn more about
this partnership and the resources available
in your state, check out the members’
section of the NHSA Web site, located at
www.nhsa.org, or contact your local Delta
Dental member company through www.
deltadental.com.
Delta Dental Plans Association, based in Oak
Brook, Illinois, is a national network of independent
not-for-pro t dental service corporations
specializing in providing dental bene ts programs
to 50 million Americans in more than 88,000 employee
groups throughout the country. For more
information, visit www.deltadental.com.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Vamos a Escuela 2008 Insercíon #53
Como conseguir una ventaja en la salud bucal
Recursos para los educadores,
los proveedores de cuidado y
los niños para conseguir una
mejor salud bucal
Contribuido por Delta Dental
Pocas cosas pueden distraer a un niño
y robarle el deseo de aprender más
rápidamente que una carie dolorosa. Al
llegar al kindergarten, un 40 por ciento de
los niños americanos ya habrán sufrido este
dolor. Es un problema que los educadores
y el personal de Head Start ven demasiado
frecuentemente.
“El acceso a los servicios de salud bucal
es el principal tema de salud que afecta a
los programas de Head Start”, dijo Robin
Brocato, especialista de la salud de la O cina
de Head Start, durante una presentación
reciente en la Conferencia de Bene cios
Comunitarios de la Asociación de Planes
Dentales Delta. Según los datos del Informe
del Programa de Head Start (PIR), un 25
por ciento de todos los niños en Head Start
necesitan cuidado dental — una gura que
ha permanecido prácticamente sin cambiar
a través de los años.
La razón para la salud bucal es indisputable.
La buena salud bucal ayuda a los niños
a aprender y crecer mejor, liberándolos del
dolor y la infección. Además, contribuye al
desarrollo normal y saludable de los rasgos
faciales y del habla, les permite comer
alimentos nutritivos, y promueve la autoestima
positiva. En cambio, las consecuencias
de una salud bucal pobre en los niños incluye
el dolor crónico, una autoestima pobre,
oportunidades de aprendizaje perdidas
debido a la ausencia escolar, di cultades
comiendo y durmiendo, y complicaciones
de salud resultando de enfermedades sin
tratar. Además, problemas relacionados al
espacio bucal cuando los dientes permanentes
comienzan a crecer pueden resultar
cuando los dientes de leche están dañados
por el deterioro y las caries.
Sin embargo, obtener para los niños el
cuidado que necesitan ha demostrado ser un
desafío que deja a muchos niños sin cuidado
dental. Aunque un 82 por ciento de los niños
matriculados en Head Start también están inscritos
en Medicaid, SCHIP, o en un programa
combinado, muchos enfrentan otras barreras,
desde el transporte hasta la disponibilidad de
dentistas que acepten Medicaid. Afortunadamente
para los niños de Head Start, existen
recursos y servicios que pueden ayudar.
Como conseguir una ventaja en la
salud bucal
Una de las metas de Head Start es identi car
las preocupaciones de salud y desarrollo infantil
y ayudar a cumplir con las necesidades
de salud básicas; la prevención juega un
papel primordial en esto. Después de 90 días
de ingresar en los programas de Head Start,
los miembros del personal determinan si los
niños están al día con su cuidado médico,
incluyendo el cuidado dental, de acuerdo con
el programa de Examen Periódico Temprano,
Diagnostico, y Tratamiento (EPSDT) estatal.
Se requiere que los programas de Head Start
trabajen con los padres para que los niños estén
al día lo más pronto posible. Si se requiere
un tratamiento, los planes de tratamiento
deben comenzar (aunque no tienen que ser
completados) 90 días después de la entrada
en el programa.
En la clase, los niños tienen un empuje
diario hacia la salud bucal con sesiones
para aprender a cepillarse los dientes. Como
parte de los estándares de actuación del
programa de Head Start, se requiere que
una vez al día los maestros o los voluntarios
en la clase, después de la comida, ayuden a
los niños de 2 años de edad y mayores a cepillarse
los dientes utilizando una cantidad
mínima de pasta dental conteniendo uoro.
Los niños más pequeños deben recibir
más ayuda para cepillarse los dientes, y a
los bebes menores del año de edad se les
deben limpiar suavemente las encías con
una gasa.
Head Start también debe proveer una
variedad de otros servicios para ayudar a
las familias a entender y tener acceso al cuidado
dental. Algunos programas trabajan
con las familias para educarlos sobre la importancia
del cuidado. Ellos pueden ayudar
a las familias a encontrar recursos para tener
acceso a cuidado asequible, incluyendo
la identi cación de dentistas que aceptan
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 35

Vamos a Escuela 2008
36
Medicaid o proveen servicios gratuitos o a
muy bajo costo. Algunos programas trabajan
con las familias para tramitar transporte a
las o cinas de dentistas participantes (con
consentimiento por escrito) o en asociación
con otros servicios locales para llevar clínicas
móviles a los centros de Head Start.
Como encontrar un hogar dental
La Academia Americana de Odontología
Pediátrica y Head Start se unieron recientemente
para crear la Iniciativa de Hogares
Dentales de Head Start, un programa nuevo
para asegurar que se cumpla con las necesidades
dentales de los niños pequeños. Un
hogar dental es un proveedor de cuidado
dental primario que ofrece una amplia gama
de cuidado dental, resultando en el cuidado
de la salud bucal profesional y completo,
continuamente accesible, coordinado,
culturalmente e caz, y centrado en la familia.
La meta de la iniciativa es desarrollar una
red nacional de dentistas para vincular a los
niños de Head Start con hogares dentales.
Las estrategias incluyen capacitar a los
dentistas y al personal de Head Start sobre
las prácticas para el cuidado de salud bucal
óptimo, así como proveer a los padres, a los
proveedores de cuidado, y al personal de
Head Start con la información más actualizada
sobre la salud bucal.
La Iniciativa de Hogares Dentales
comienza en septiembre de éste año en seis
estados, con once estados siendo añadidos
cada año durante los próximos cuatro años.
La asociación para la prevención
La Asociación Nacional Head Start también
trabaja con otras organizaciones para mejorar
la salud bucal de los niños pequeños.
Delta Dental ha trabajado con Head Start en
áreas especí cas de la nación a través de los
años y ahora está expandiendo su relación
para ampliar el alcance de sus programas.
Algunas de las compañías miembro de Delta
Dental han desarrollado un currículo para
educar al personal de Head Start, a los niños,
y a los proveedores de cuidado sobre la
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
salud bucal. Por ejemplo, el Servicio Washington
Dental (la compañía miembro de
Delta Dental que sirve al Estado de Washington),
desarrolló Cavity Free Kids, un currículo
gratuito para los residentes del estado de
Washington que incluye actividades en la
clase, reuniones con los padres, capacitación
del personal y agendas, y “paquetes de herramientas”
para el hogar”. (Para obtener más
información visite www.CavityFreeKids.org).
Otros programas están trabajando para
acercar el cuidado a los niños. Por ejemplo,
Delta Dental de Dakota del Sur, provee
fondos y administra dos clínicas dentales
móviles que incluyen a centros de Head
Start en sus itinerarios de viaje. En Kansas,
Delta Dental está proveyendo seis operatorios
dentales portátiles y uno permanente
en siete de las 28 comunidades de Head
Start. Delta Dental de Massachussets está
llevando a cabo una iniciativa en gran escala
que comenzó con una evaluación inicial de
los desafíos dentro del estado. Después se
lanzó un esfuerzo para juntar a los becarios
de Head Start con proveedores de cuidado
dental para mejorar el acceso al cuidado
dental y a los hogares dentales para las
familias de Head Start; también existe un
programa continuo para evaluar el impacto
del programa así como su e ciencia, e cacia,
y la calidad de cuidado.
Recursos para la salud bucal
La Academia Americana de Odontología
Pediátrica www.aapd.org
La Asociación Americana de Programas
Dentales Comunitarios
www.aacdp.com
El Proyecto para la Salud Dental Infantil
www.cdhp.org
Delta Dental www.deltadental.com
Dientes Sanos, Sonrisas Sanas
(Healthy Teeth, Healthy Smiles)
www.dent.umich.edu/teachoral
health/parents
El National Maternal and Child Oral
Health Resource Center
www.mchoralhealth.org
Y otros, como Delta Dental de Michigan
están utilizando los últimos estudios para
prevenir que ocurran las enfermedades
dentales proveyendo fondos a nivel estatal
para programas de uoro que pueden
reducir la enfermedad en los niños por un
40 a un 60 por ciento. Recientemente la
Asociación de Planes Dentales Delta y el
NHSA han expandido su asociación para
proveer recursos y herramientas adicionales
para mejorar la salud dental de más niños
de Head Start. Para aprender más sobre esta
asociación y los recursos disponibles en su
estado, visite la sección para miembros del
Sitio Web del NHSA, localizado en el www.
nhsa.org, o comuníquese con la compañía
miembro de Delta Dental local a través de
www.deltadental.com.
La Asociación de Planes Dentales Delta, con
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 37
Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking Looking to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the
Je rey Capizzano
Vice President of Public Policy
and Research
Teaching Strategies Inc.
Bethesda, Maryland
The promise and pitfalls of Head Start reauthorization
Late last year — after years of debate, countless hearings, and thousands of
hours of advocacy by the early childhood community — Congress passed new
Head Start legislation. The Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007
was celebrated on Capitol Hill as a shining example of bipartisan policymaking.
The celebration culminated with a ceremony in the Capitol that concluded with a
spirited rendition of Itsy-Bitsy Spider sung by Nancy Pelosi, Ted Kennedy, George
Miller, and other architects of the law. After four years of contentious debate over
block grants and religious discrimination in hiring, it was no surprise that those
who had worked for years on the new law broke out in song.
But is the law something that Head
Start programs can sing about? What, in
practice, do the changes in the law mean
for Head Start programs, and what should
the Head Start community be mindful of
as the O ce of Head Start implements the
new law? What new advocacy e orts will be
necessary now that the bill was passed?
To begin to address these questions,
I’ll rst summarize some of the major policy
themes of Head Start reauthorization, lay
out the potential implications for Head Start
programs, and then suggest where the Head
Start community needs to focus its next
round of advocacy e orts.
Do Head Start programs have
good reason to sing?
e impact of the Head Start reauthorization
will be determined largely by two components
of the law that are inherent in every
piece of legislation passed by Congress.
e rst is the authorizing language of the
bill. In the case of Head Start, the authorizing
language de nes what the Head Start
program is and provides the parameters
for what programs may and may not do.
Redetermination, eligibility, performance
standards, sta ng and sta quali cations,
collaboration with other programs, curriculum
and assessment requirements, and
professional development, among other
elements, are de ned by the authorizing
language. e second component is the appropriation
for the program, or the amount
of money Congress allocates to pay for
the various elements of Head Start,
including facilities, sta salaries, and
the host of other expenses a program must
cover so its doors can open each day.
Taken together these two components
have a profound e ect on whether any
legislation — including the recent reauthorization
of the Head Start — is ultimately
successful. e components are also tightly
interrelated. Authorizing language o en
provides appropriators with a ceiling for
how much may be spent on the program,
and it can be very speci c about how
funding may be spent across the di erent
program elements. On the ip side, appropriations
enable programs to do what is
asked of them by the authorizing language.
As the Head Start community is fully aware,
however, appropriations can o en fall short
of what is necessary in order to enable programs
to do what is expected of them and to
do it well.
Accordingly, when examining the
implications of the new legislation for the
Head Start community, it is important to
examine both the authorizing language and
the anticipated appropriations. In doing this
with the Head Start reauthorization, both
positive themes and some serious causes for
concern emerge. Let’s take a closer look at
some of these themes.
eme 1: e law strikes a fair balance
between program resources and expected
outcomes; if appropriations are inadequate,
however, this balance will be undermined.
38 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

When No Child Le Behind was
passed, it created a debate within the
educational community about the proper
balance that policymakers should strike
between improving “inputs” to the educational
system (like workforce development,
training opportunities, and teacher compensation)
and measuring outcomes from that
system (speci cally those related to child
outcomes). ose in the educational community
who focus on inputs share the sentiment
expressed by John Edwards during the
Iowa presidential primary: “You don’t make
a hog fatter by weighing it.” Instead, you
improve outcomes for children by recruiting
and training high-quality teachers, providing
them with the appropriate supports, and
paying them adequately. Conversely, those
with a more outcomes-focused perspective
believe that carefully de ning what
goals should be accomplished and holding
programs accountable creates pressure for
programs to establish practices that work
to meet these goals. Ultimately, the mission
of any education-related policy is to
balance these two perspectives: de ning
fair, measurable, and achievable objectives,
and providing the resources necessary for
programs to meet them.
e new Head Start legislation goes
a long way in striking the appropriate balance.
On the input side, the law de nes
professional development and speci es the
minimum number of hours of professional
development Head Start education coordinators
should obtain each year. e law also
articulates new quali cations for Head Start
sta , including that 50 percent of Head Start
teachers in center-based programs have a
baccalaureate degree or higher by September
30, 2013. Most importantly, the law authorizes
the resources to help programs pay
sta members to obtain these new quali cations.
e authorizing language allocates a
substantial portion of any new Head Start
funding for compensation that is adequate
to attract and retain quali ed sta , promote
career development, and provide assistance
for postsecondary education.
At the same time, the bill moves the
focus of accountability away from child
outcomes to what are commonly called
process outcomes. In other words, the new
law emphasizes improving those elements of
Head Start programs that are most likely to
produce positive child outcomes rather than
emphasize the child outcomes, themselves.
For example, the bill suspended and terminated
the implementation of the National
Reporting System and asks the National
Academy of Sciences to study and make
recommendations about the appropriate way
of measuring the developmental outcomes
of Head Start children. At the same time,
the law includes new ways of measuring and
holding programs accountable for internal
processes, such as the quality of teacher-children
interactions. e new law requires that
Head Start programs use an instrument to
measure classroom quality that includes assessing
aspects of teacher-child interactions
that are linked to positive child development
and later achievement. e results from this
assessment will then be used, along with
other measures, to determine the overall
quality of the program.
e accountability measures are in
no way weakened by this change in focus.
Instruments used to measure teacher-child
interactions like the Classroom Assessment
Scoring System (CLASS) have strong predictive
validity, meaning that classrooms that
score well on the instrument produce stronger
outcomes for children than classrooms
that do not. In addition, the new law limits
the duration of the designation of Head Start
programs to 5 years, and the results of the
classroom quality instrument will be used
as one of the measures to assess whether a
program will be redesignated. is creates a
serious incentive for Head Start programs to
focus on meaningful teacher-child interactions
— an e ort that will result in improved
child outcomes.
However, a key area of concern regarding
this new balance is whether appropriations
will provide the nancial support to assist
Head Start teachers in their professional
growth and to help programs pay to attract
and retain sta . According to the authoriz-
ing language of the new law, funding for this
purpose must come from new Head Start
money above and beyond what is already
appropriated. e Center for Law and Social
Policy estimates that billions of dollars are
needed to achieve the national goal of 50
percent of Head Start teachers with a baccalaureate
degree or higher by 2013 (Hart
and Schumacher, 2005). Without additional
appropriations for Head Start, the new
law’s promise to strengthen the Head Start
workforce instead becomes a debilitating
mandate for programs and their teachers.
e Head Start community also needs
to be mindful of how the O ce of Head
Start (OHS) interprets the provisions of
the new law. For example, how will OHS
measure the progress of programs toward
the national degree-requirement goals? In
addition, which classroom-quality instruments
will be chosen, and how will OHS use
data from the instrument and other sources
in the redesignation process? As the new
law requires, the O ce of Head Start has
convened an expert panel to make recommendations
about a system for the renewal
of an agency’s designation as a Head Start
provider, and the panel has started its work.
It will be critical for the Head Start community
to be engaged in the process in order to
ensure that the resulting system is fair and
that it provides an accurate assessment of
whether a Head Start program is providing
high-quality, comprehensive services.
eme 2: e new law signi cantly
improves the ability of programs to serve
children younger than age 3 through Early
Head Start; if appropriations are inadequate,
however, it will undermine this e ort.
Researchers who measure trends in
early childhood education nd that achievement
gaps between low- and higher-income
children — particularly in vocabulary
— emerge even before the age of 3 (Hart
and Risley, 1995). Moreover, economists,
including Nobel prizewinner James Heckman,
make a convincing case that the rate
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 39

of return on early childhood investments
increases as these investments are directed
toward younger and younger children
(Heckman and Masterov, 2007).
e new Head Start law includes a
series of provisions designed to improve and
expand Early Head Start. e law removes
the cap on Early Head Start funding and
allocates a signi cant portion of Head Start
expansion dollars to fund additional Early
Head Start slots. It also allows Head Start
programs to convert Head Start grants into
Early Head Start grants on the basis of the
needs of the local community and the ability
of Head Start programs to serve infants and
toddlers. Finally, the new law signi -
cantly improves the quali cations of
Early Head Start teachers and home
visitors, reserves a substantial percentage of
training and technical assistance dollars for
Early Head Start (20 percent), and requires
a specialist in infant and toddler development
be a part of a state-based training and
technical assistance network.
However, similar to the changes to
improve the quali cations of the Head Start
workforce discussed above, many of the
changes in the new law that are designed
to improve and expand Early Head Start
depend on additional appropriations. Furthermore,
while Early Head Start teachers
will be required to earn their Child Development
Associate credential by 2010, the
money necessary to support Early Head
Start teachers in earning that credential, and
any additional compensation for earning
it, will also depend on additional funding.
Without this funding, the promise the law
holds for expanding Early Head Start will
not be realized.
Moreover there are also several regulatory
issues — particularly around the
conversion of Head Start slots to Early Head
Start — that could undermine the ability of
programs to serve children younger than
age 3. For example, the conversion of Head
Start slots to Early Head Start will involve
many logistical adjustments, including ap-
propriate changes to the program space, sta
and licensure, and other adjustments. e
Head Start community will need to watch
OHS closely as it makes decisions regarding
the criteria necessary to convert slots.
Equally important, given that the cost
of caring for infants and toddlers is signi -
cantly greater than for 3- and 4-year-olds,
the Head Start community must engage in
a dialogue with OHS about the extent to
which it will allow programs to reduce their
enrollment on the basis of the number of
slots that are converted. If the reduction in
enrollment does not allow for the conversion
of slots to be cost neutral, it will create
a disincentive for Head Start programs to
convert these slots.
eme 3: e new law promotes the
school readiness of Head Start children
while supporting developmentally appropriate
practice in Head Start classrooms.
As the name implies, the fundamental
purpose of the Improving Head Start for
School Readiness Act is to enhance Head
Start’s ability to promote the school readiness
of low-income children. One concern
of the early childhood community during
reauthorization was that the legislation
would take a narrow view of school readiness
and make it di cult for Head Start
teachers to adhere to the principles of developmentally
appropriate practice. Indeed, the
distinct focus on cognitive development and
early literacy skills in earlier versions of the
legislation, coupled with the administration’s
emphasis on child outcomes, led many to
worry that Head Start would lose its comprehensive
focus and that teachers would
feel compelled to work with children in rote,
rather than meaningful, ways. If this were
allowed to happen, it was feared that Head
Start would actually work to the detriment
of children, negatively a ecting their longterm
success.
In contrast, the nal version of the
legislation strengthens the school-readiness
components of Head Start without impeding
the ability of Head Start teachers to
adhere to the principles of developmentally
appropriate practice. In addition to the
distinct emphasis on workforce and professional
development discussed above, the
law promotes school readiness by requiring
that the curriculum used in Head Start be
based on scienti cally valid research and
by emphasizing that Head Start curricula
be comprehensive and linked to ongoing
assessment. e law also requires that the
Head Start Program Performance Standards
be updated to re ect the latest science on
early childhood development and that the
process for reviewing programs be improved
and standardized. e law also mandates
that Head Start programs conduct self-assessments
that include a goal-setting process
for improving school readiness.
At the same time, the new law protects
the principles of developmentally appropriate
practice. ese principles consist of
those outlined by the National Association
for the Education of Young Children
(NAEYC) in its position paper on the topic
(published in 1996), including the following:
• An understanding that the various domains
of child development are related,
and that early childhood programs should
address all domains of development.
• Children are active learners.
• Development and learning are in uenced
by multiple social and cultural contexts.
• Early childhood education programs
should establish reciprocal relationships
with families.
ese and other elements of developmentally
appropriate practice are protected
by the new legislation. For example, the language
guiding the revision of the Head Start
Program Performance Standards related
to school readiness cites a comprehensive
set of skills that incorporates approaches to
learning, social and emotional development,
and physical development, in addition to
language, literacy, and cognitive development.
Equally important, the revisions to
the standards must be developed with the
consultation of experts on culturally and lin-
40 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

guistically appropriate services and instruction
for English-language learners. Finally,
the language regarding curriculum requires
that programs use a developmentally appropriate,
comprehensive curriculum that
includes a focus on improving the learning
environment, teaching practices, and family
involvement.
Regardless of the changes of the
new law, the extent to which appropriate
practices are implemented in Head Start
classrooms will ultimately depend on Head
Start teachers. As the NAEYC position paper
makes clear, early childhood educators
have an obligation to implement appropriate
practices to the best of their ability regardless
of the policy environment. However,
the paper also makes clear that two crucial
elements in supporting developmentally appropriate
practice include “a comprehensive
professional preparation and development
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system” and “salaries and bene ts commensurate
with the skills and quali cations” of
sta (NAEYC, 1996). Again, the promise
that the Head Start law holds for supporting
developmentally appropriate practice hinges
in part on appropriations that are allocated
for workforce development and adequate
compensation.
eme 4: e new law mandates
coordination and collaboration
with other early childhood programs
and the K–12 system while protecting the
autonomy of the Head Start program.
Since Head Start was last reauthorized,
investments in early childhood education
by states and other federal sources have
increased dramatically. According to e
State of Preschool, published by the National
Institute for Early Education Research in
2007, 38 states have created or expanded
pre-kindergarten programs, and new federal
early childhood initiatives, like the Early
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To improve the availability and quality
of services to Head Start children, a set of
changes in the new law focuses on increasing
collaboration between the Head Start
program and local early education agencies
funded by non-Head Start sources, as well
as promoting an e ective transition of Head
Start children into the K-12 system.
e new law takes a number of steps to
formalize the coordination between Head
Start and other programs serving preschool
children. At the state level, the new law
funds collaboration grants to be used to assess
the degree of collaboration among early
childhood programs within a state and to
develop a strategic plan to enhance collaboration
and coordination. At the agency level,
the bill requires that Head Start agencies
enter into a memorandum of understanding
with the local entity responsible for managing
publicly funded preschool programs.
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 41

is memorandum must cover a host of
coordination issues related to educational
activities, service areas, training and technical
assistance, and outreach to parents. e
new law also encourages that, where appropriate,
various aspects of the Head Start
program be aligned with state early learning
standards, in addition to the Head Start
Child Outcomes Framework.
e new law also includes language to
support an e ective transition of children
into the K–12 system. e bill requires the
Head Start program to take steps to develop
a continuity of curricular objectives between
the Head Start program and the local education
agency, conduct outreach to kindergarten
teachers, and conduct joint trainings
for Head Start and school sta , including
training speci c to transition.
At the same time, the law protects the
autonomy of Head Start programs, especially
their use of a curriculum or program of
instruction. e law speci cally states that
the O ce of Head Start may not mandate,
direct, or control the selection of curricula
or programs of instruction, nor may the local
education agency require the Head Start
program to select or implement a speci c
curriculum.
Just as the Head Start community must
be mindful of how the O ce of Head Start
will proceed with other aspects of the law,
it also will be important to watch how these
provisions for coordination and collaboration
are interpreted.
Next steps for the
Head Start community
e new Head Start legislation holds signi -
cant promise for the future of Head Start.
In order for this promise to be realized,
however, the law’s authorizing language
must be supported by adequate appropriations,
and the regulations interpreting
the law must stay true to the intent of the
legislation. Indeed, not only do the strongest
provisions of the new law rely on an expansion
of Head Start funding, but the lack of
additional funds could turn the new law into
a signi cant nancial burden for Head Start
programs.
e FY 2008 appropriation for the
Head Start program is a worrisome indicator
of whether the promise of the new Head
Start law will be ful lled. e new Head
Start legislation authorized $7.35 billion
for the program for FY 2008, which is an
increase of $461 million for the program.
However, Congress only appropriated
$6.88 billion for FY 2008 — far short of the
authorized amount and a decrease of $10.6
million from FY 2007. is appropriation
continues a trend of at funding for the program
that in real dollars has meant, according
to the National Head Start Association,
an 11 percent cut in funding between FYs
2002 and 2007. In fact, adjusted for in a-
42 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

tion, it is estimated that funding for Head
Start has decreased by nearly $900 million.
e Head Start community can play a
signi cant role in helping the legislation live
up to its potential in three ways. e rst
is to get involved in the upcoming election.
Research the candidates’ positions on
early childhood, attend campaign events,
ask tough questions, and make sure the
candidates know that his or her position on
early childhood education matters to how
you will vote. e second is to advocate
for increased federal appropriations for
the Head Start program. Sign up for action
alerts from a national or state advocacy organization,
and when you receive an e-mail
asking you to call your congress member to
urge them to increase Head Start funding,
be sure to make the call and to encourage
your colleagues to do the same. Finally,
closely follow how the O ce of Head Start
is revising the Head Start regulations. When
o ered a chance to comment on a new Head
Start rule, take the opportunity to provide
your perspective.
Together, through these e orts, we can
ensure that the new Head Start legislation is
implemented as intended and that the children
served are truly ready for school. Now
that will be something to sing about!
Je rey Capizzano is vice president of Public Policy
and Research at Teaching Strategies Inc., publisher
of e Creative Curriculum®. He is an expert
in the eld of early childhood education and has
worked extensively with other early childhood
advocates on Head Start reauthorization. Prior
to joining Teaching Strategies, Capizzano was a
research associate at the Urban Institute, where he
published many reports and papers on early childhood
education. His research ndings have been
cited in numerous media outlets, including The
Washington Post, e Wall Street Journal, and
e Christian Science Monitor.
A draft compilation of the amended Head Start
Act is now available on the Early Childhood
Learning and Knowledge Center Web site,
located at www.eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc.
References
Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early
Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth
through Age 8, a position statement published
by the National Association for the Education
of Young Children (1996).
Making the case: Improving Head Start Teaching
Quali cations Requires Increased Investment, by
Katherine Hart and Rachel Schumacher (Center
for Law and Social Policy, 2005).
Meaningful Di erences in the Everyday Experience
of Young American Children, by Betty Hart and
Todd Risley (Brookes Publishing, 1995).
The Productivity Argument for Investing in Young
Children, by James Heckman and Dimitriy Masterov
(IZA Discussion Paper No. 2725, April 2007).
Retrieved from http://ssrn.com/abstract=982117.
The State of Preschool, by Steven Barnett,
Jason T. Hustedt, Allison H. Friedman, Judi
Stevenson Boyd, and Pat Ainsworth, (National
Institute for Early Education Research, 2007).
The author thanks Diane Trister Dodge, Kelly Boyle,
Danielle Ewen, Laurie Taub, and Ben Allen for their
comments on earlier drafts of this article.
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Science
The Zula Patrol
www.zula.com
&
Preschool
A Naturally Perfect Combination
We all know that preschool children are naturally inquisitive. If you ever attempt to
count the number of times you hear the word why in one day, you’ll almost certainly
hit double digits long before snack time. Young children can’t help themselves
— to them, every day is an exciting medley of new sights, sounds, and experiences.
As teachers, we need to support this inquisitiveness and encourage children to
investigate, discuss, and interact with others in order to learn and to solve problems.
Science is the perfect catalyst to make all of this happen. It naturally encourages
children to observe, question, experiment, and make deductions — all skills
needed to succeed both in school and in rapidly changing work environments.
While the thought of making science an integral part of your curriculum — particularly
at a time when your classroom schedule is already hectic — may seem like an impossible
task, keep in mind that science doesn’t need to be taught as a separate subject. Without
much e ort, science can be seamlessly incorporated into your existing curriculum.
Starting with science
Science is a natural partner for everything that happens in your classroom, on the playground,
and even in the lunchroom. One of the best parts of adding science to your classroom
is that you don’t need to spend a lot of extra money or set aside a lot of time to prepare
materials — you just need an open mind and a little creative brainstorming. Here’s one
example of how easy it is to turn a simple science activity into a complete cross-curricular
activity.
44 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Begin a discussion about weather. Ask
children to look outside and describe the
weather using familiar words such as sunny,
cloudy, and windy. Write the children’s
responses on the board. en give each
child a paper and show them how to cut out
a basic leaf shape. Next, have the children
take their leaves outside and ask them again
to describe what the weather is like. Is it still
or windy? If the air is still, what will happen
when they let go of their leaves? If it’s windy,
show the children how they can release
their leaves into the wind. What happened?
Which direction did the leaves blow? How
fast did they move? If you’re in a safe and
open space, let the children chase and try
to catch their paper leaves. (Now you’ve
introduced a physical component to this
inquiry-based activity.) At this point, you’ll
also want to reinforce the importance of
protecting the environment by not littering.
Later, return to the classroom and read a
book about the weather, recite a poem about
the wind, or watch a science program on
video or TV (such as an episode of e Zula
Patrol, which airs on public television, that
focuses on weather or wind).
More than ever, the right time for science is now
As early as grade 3, our children will be tested in science. The No Child Left Behind Act
requires that government and schools cultivate young children’s interest and awareness in
science, starting them on a path toward lifelong learning, investigation, and discovery.
So pat yourself on the back for enriching your early childhood curriculum with science
— you’re helping to reverse a troubling trend. The U.S. is losing its dominance in science. In fact,
the U.S. currently ranks 23rd out of 30 countries in science and math. Just 30 years ago, we were
number one! But there is some good news, too: Research shows that preschool and early elemen-
tary students are at ideal developmental stages for introducing basic science concepts because
young children natural scientists. Moreover, research also shows that science concepts introduced
to children at an early age do provide lifelong learning skills.
Simple suggestions for fitting science into the daily program
Suggestions o ered by Susan Wood, executive director of the Children’s Center at Caltech
and educational consultant to Zula.
1. The rst step for any teacher is to slow down. “Busy” teachers are usually busy because they’re
moving from topic to topic. Children will actually spend long periods of time over a single topic
because they’re really trying to understand it.
2. Keep the topics simple! Science experiments don’t need to be complex. There’s a lot to under-
stand about the properties of a simple thing like water, and spending long periods of time and
engaging in di erent methods of exploration is really a good thing.
3. Take a good look at your environment. In your daily program, is science relegated to some
abandoned table with a gold sh, a rock, a magnifying glass, and maybe a pinecone? Or has
it been integrated into everything you do? Are there stories about things around us such as
planting seeds and the weather? Are there measuring tools in all the areas so the children can
learn how to measure and how to use data?
4. Take full advantage of everything you are doing. I see a lot of programs that rush through a
mealtime even though they typically have a captive audience during that time! If we’re talk-
ing about seeds, it’s the perfect opportunity to bring an apple to the table and cut it open.
Maximize every piece of your day. Outside time is often thought of as the elementary model of
recess. It’s actually a fantastic time to be talking about things that are happening outside.
5. Hands-on means you have to have the real experience. If we’re talking about farm animals, we
have to have the real thing. O ering children plastic farms animals is not hands-on learning. By
focusing on what’s in your children’s natural environment, it’s much easier to keep everything
hands-on.
Be sure to look for ways to continue
building on these science activities. For example,
you might select key words, such as
wind, autumn, seasons, and so on, and then
read books on these or topics, write a class
poem, create collages, or try to create wind
sound using musical instruments. Be sure
to take note of what else the children are
curious about and then wonder your way to
the next investigation together. at’s it. See
how easy it is to incorporate science?
Follow your interests
What if leaves blowing in the wind leave
you feeling uninspired? No problem. Kick
o science in your classroom by focusing on
an activity that you enjoy. If you like plants
and gardening, try sprouting ower or bean
seeds. If you’re interested in wildlife, lead
the children on a nature walk. Even in the
most urban settings you’re bound to spot
birds such as pigeons, starlings, or crows.
Talk about where they nest and what they
eat. Is the sun your favorite star? Head
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 45

outside to chase and trace shadows. Or
maybe the children in your class are extreme
wigglers. Talk about how their bodies move,
and describe the di erent parts of the body.
Take a class poll: How many of the children
are le ies? Take it a step further and graph
the results.
Use science to help students understand
the wonder and excitement that lies in
even the most ordinary, every-day objects
and actions. Encourage their questions and
applaud their responses, even if they are
wildly o base. Like young children, science
thrives on interaction and good company.
e more your science activities overlap
with language arts, math, art, and physical
education, the better!
Because science encourages inquisitiveness,
you’re bound to be hit with dozens of
questions you can’t answer. What do you
do? Don’t sweat it. In fact, Susan Wood,
executive director of the Children’s Center
at Caltech and educational consultant to
Zula, says, “If you don’t know the answer,
that’s actually kind of ideal, because if you
do know the answer, you’re very likely to
just say it. It’s always appropriate to respond,
‘ at’s a really good question; how do you
think we can nd that out?’ I really encourage
adults, including parents, not to give
the answer. Instead, ask other questions that
lead the child to greater understanding. Give
a child a cue or a clue, such as ‘I think we
might be able to nd that out at the library.’
It’s less important what children are thinking
about than how they’re thinking about
it.” And there is no better way to model the
importance of learning new things than to
demonstrate how even you, a teacher, are
always learning too.
Activity extension for The Zula Patrol’s
“Look to the Rainbow” episode
What do you know about rainbows?
Finding out what the children already know about
a subject is as easy as 1, 2, 3!
1. Shine a ashlight and ask questions
• What do you know about light?
• What color is light?
2. Now shine the light through a prism or onto
a compact disc. Call attention to the colors
that are visible. Draw the connection between
the ashlight as a light source and the sun and
sunlight.
• What do you think makes light outside?
• What does a rainbow look like?
3. Then share some pictures of rainbows.
• Have you ever seen a rainbow outside?
• What time of day did you see it?
• What was the weather like when you saw it?
• Did the outside rainbow look like the
one we just made inside?
• What do you think a rainbow is made of?
Tip: Focus on exploring questions rather than
answering them.
Tool: Record initial investigations on a KWL chart
(which you can download and print at www.edu-
place.com/graphicorganizer/pdf/kwl.pdf).
Researching rainbows
Nothing beats hands-on, heads-together
investigation and experimentation.
1. Organize the children into small groups.
Give each group plastic bowls of soapy water
and straws. Demonstrate how to use the straw
to blow large bubbles. The children should
take turns blowing bubbles, observing, and
recording.
2. When the sunlight hits the top and bottom
of the bubbles, the light is split and sepa-
rates into colors. Remind children what they
said during the previous activity about the color
of light. How does this experiment change that
thinking? What color is light?
3. Give each group a prism to compare the
spectrum made by the prism with the one
made by the bubbles. Or remind children
about the inside rainbow and note how it com-
pares to these outside rainbows. Reinforce that
in both cases, two things were needed to create
the rainbows: a light source and a medium that
breaks the light into colors such as raindrops,
bubbles, or prisms.
Tip: For true experimentation and exploration to
take hold, let the focus be on fun, not on the mess.
Reinforcing rainbows
Don’t move on too quickly to the next theme or
subject. Create deeper experiences by revisiting
key concepts again and again.
1. Set up tubs of water outside or on inside on
a sun-drenched windowsill.
2. Place white cardboard between the tub and
the window.
3. Place compact-size mirrors inside of the tubs
so that sunlight travels into the water, hits the
mirror, and re ects onto the cardboard. (The
water in the tub will separate the sunlight into a
rainbow of colors!) What happened? Why? How
are the room rainbows similar to the rainbows
we’ve seen elsewhere? How are they di erent?
Rainbow of resources
Family and community participation is a
sure re way to engage children and encourage
exploration.
• Inform families about your study of light,
color, and rainbows. Encourage parents to
help their children go on an indoor and outdoor
“rainbow hunt.” Can they nd rainbows outside
in puddles after a rain; in fountains, waterfalls,
or sprinklers?
• Provide children with red, blue, and yellow
paint. Invite them to paint. Point out when
children have mixed pairs of colors resulting
in di erent colors. You can also invite a local
painter to your classroom, or arrange to visit a
local paint or store to watch paint being mixed.
• On a sunny day, go outside and turn on the
hose and select a “mister” setting. Have stu-
dents stand so that the sun is shining on their
backs. Move the hose around until the children
spot rainbows in the water. Discuss what is
needed in order to have a rainbow.
46 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

The Zula Patrol’s Head Start Teacher Award!
Look for details about The Zula Patrol’s Teacher Award program to be released soon! Head Start
lead teachers may apply for this award — which is sponsored by The Zula Patrol and will be
o cially awarded at the 2009 National Science Teachers Association conference in New Orleans.
The winner will receive a small cash prize, a colorful Zula Patrol plaque, a one-year NSTA mem-
bership, a stipend toward travel to the New Orleans conference, and local press coverage (news
stories and announcements). The primary goal of the award is to support early science literacy
by highlighting innovative practices in the eld. A key criterion for the award is the inclusion of
parents or families in the Head Start science program. More information about this and other
Head Start-Zula Patrol collaborations will be released in the coming months, so stay tuned!
Planting the seeds of success
It can sometimes seem hard to believe
because they have so much learning and
growing ahead of them, but what happens to
the children in your program now really can
a ect their future success. If we can capture
preschoolers’ sense of wonder while they
are young, however, we can plant the seeds
that will help them succeed beyond our
classrooms. Once the seed has been planted,
it must then be nurtured. And when this
happens, children grow and blossom into
life-long learners.
For Head Start teachers who are already
pressed for time trying to meet national,
state, and district goals, remember that,
rather than adding a whole new component,
the key is understanding how to incorporate
science into an existing curriculum.
Our goal as educators is to create life-long
learners, and the best way to do this is to
instill in children the desire to learn. Science
accomplishes this by making learning an
adventure!
is article is presented by e Zula Patrol — a
national educational series on public television
designed to support science inquiry, Earth/physical
science/astronomy standards for children from preschool
to grade 2. For information on Zula’s teacher
and family workshops, e-mail andrea@zula.com.
Or visit www.carolinacurriculum.com/zula/index.
asp for details about Zula science kits and formal
science curriculum (with special discounts for
Head Start programs).
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 47

our way
through the day
48 THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
Using music with young
children during daily routines
By Petra Kern
You’ve most likely noticed that young children often accompany their play with
singing, chanting, rhyming, dancing, listening to music, or playing their favorite
instruments. For instance, young children can often be heard making loud motor
noises while playing with toy cars, making up rhymes while dressing dolls, or
inventing songs while playing in the bathtub. Music is a natural way for children
to explore the world and to interact with their social environment. As such, music
is an exceptional medium and motivator for encouraging and supporting young
children’s learning and development during daily transitions and routines.
Music can also encourage and facilitate inclusion. It can be used to create opportunities
for children with disabilities to successfully participate in daily life. It should be noted
that children with disabilities are not necessarily disabled in their musicality. Children with
autism, for example, o en demonstrate musical aptitudes that are equal to or higher than
those of children with other disabilities or their typically developing peers.
Because of children’s natural a nity for music, adults o en incorporate music when
they are spending time or working with children. Parents hum lullabies while rocking their
babies, many early childhood educators use music to structure classroom activities and
enhance learning, and, as a music therapist, I o en plan musical experiences for speci c
purposes such as prompting through routines or cuing transitions from one activity to the
next. Music can be used in countless ways to capture children’s attention and guide them
through the day.

Daily transitions and routines
e school day is lled with transitions,
routines, and activities, many of which are
repeated throughout the day. For many
children — both those with and without
disabilities — transitioning from one activity
to the next can be a challenge. One of
the most obvious transitions is the transition
from home to the Head Start center. In
addition, children and teachers also need
to follow routines such as cleaning up a er
free play, hand washing before breakfast,
settling down for circle time, and getting
ready for outdoor play. ese routines
require children to memorize and follow a
sequence of steps. In order to help manage
daily transitions and routines successfully,
children need structure, predictability and
consistency. Expectations should be clearly
conveyed to them and ideally repeated by
all of the adults in the same manner.
Music and sounds are excellent cues
that can be used to signal and structure
transitions and routines. Music can also
be used to convey a message or a sequence
of steps that needs to be memorized and
recalled in di erent situations. In general,
music can be used during daily transitions
and routines to…
• Cue an activity or event.
• Prompt a sequence of steps.
• Stimulate learning in all developmental
areas.
• Distract from undesired behaviors.
• Reinforce positive behavior.
• Create a stimulating or relaxing
environment.
Now let’s take a look at some evidencebased
musical activities and strategies that
can be used throughout the day. For the
examples in this article, I’ve used a typical
classroom schedule followed by children
and teachers at the FPG Child Care Pro-
gram at the University of North Carolina
in Chapel Hill. You may, of course, need to
adapt the ideas presented here to suit your
classroom schedule and individual situation.
To provide consistency and help ease
transitions at home, parents should also be
encouraged to use these strategies with their
children.
7:30-9 a.m. — Arrival time
Scenario: Ben, a 3-year-old boy with autism,
holds onto his caregiver every morning
when entering his inclusive classroom.
While his peers play with toys and each
other, Ben ignores the warm welcome of his
classroom teacher and cries.
Musical strategy: Using music as a prompt
and distraction — in this example to ease
the transition from home to school.
Musical activity: To ease Ben’s morning
arrival time, I composed a simple song that
includes the ve desirable steps of greeting
indicated by the classroom teachers and
caregiver (see Song for Ben above). When
Ben arrives in the morning, the teachers and
caregiver sing the song and act out the lyrics.
Ben then uses a picture symbol of a stick
gure waving “Hello,” which he hands over
to an adult or peer, as a greeting. e classroom
teachers encourage Ben to accomplish
the ve steps of greeting independently; a
prompt is only used when necessary.
9-9:15 a.m. — Clean up time
Scenario: Andy, a 3-year-old boy with
autism, is playing alongside six of his classmates,
some of who also have special needs.
When it is time for the class to clean up before
circle time, Andy does not put away his
toys. When his teacher tries to assist him in
ful lling the task, Andy has a slight tantrum.
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Musical strategy: Using music as a cue;
in this case, music is used to signal that it’s
time to put away toys.
Musical activity: To improve Andy’s participation
in putting away his toys, the classroom
teacher sings the Barney and Friends
“Clean Up” tune:
Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere.
Clean up, clean up, everybody do your share.
9:15-9:30 a.m. — Circle time
Scenario: is school year, Maggie and her
teaching team decided to include new strategies
to further enhance pre-literary skills
of the 4- to 5-year-olds in their classroom.
Looking into the research literature, she discovered
that music can enhance pre-reading
and writings skills in young children. Maggie
consults with the music therapist and
asked for musical pre-literacy activities that
are easy to implement.
Musical strategy: Using music as a prompt
and also as a way of stimulating academic
learning, such as enhancing pre-literacy
skills illustrated in this example.
Musical activity: e music therapist prepares
the following list of musical activities
and o ers to demonstrate them during the
classroom’s circle time:
Pre-reading
• Have children tap out syllables on di erent
body parts or a drum when practicing new
names or vocabulary. For example: Mo-nica
or lem-on-ade.
• Teach phonemic awareness by placing the
loudest drum beat on the emphasized letter
of the word. For example: For A-na-belle,
the loudest drum beat would be on A.
• Identify letters of the alphabet by singing
the alphabet song paired with large
print letters. Sca old the song activity by
pausing at di erent letters and letting the
children nd the corresponding printed
letter placed on the oor.
• Provide picture books based on songs or
rhythmical text (for example, e Jazz Fly,
Philadelphia Chickens, Chicka ChickaBoom
Boom, or Five Little Monkeys). Ask children
to put their index nger on the rst
word and follow along with their nger
under the words as you sing the song.
• Work on comprehension skills by singing
a song and discussing the content of the
song or letting children act out the content
of the song with props. Ask the children to
guess what might happen in the following
verses of the song.
Pre-writing
• Engage children in free painting or drawing
while listening to recorded music.
Ask them to match the style (for example,
classical, pop, blues, or jazz) and pace, or
tempo, of the music when drawing.
• Have children copy a drawing of a letter.
Sound out the letter while drawing the
lines with a crayon.
• Ask children to make up a song about
“putting your pencil to the le and
scribble to the right” while making marks
or “writing” from le to right on a piece
of paper.
• Ask children to listen carefully to the
lyrics of a song, and then have them
illustrate the song.
9:30-10 a.m. — Breakfast
Scenario: Andy, who has learned to put his
toys away when his teacher sings to him,
now learns how to wash hands using a song
about washing hands.
Musical strategy: Using music as a prompt,
in this instance to teach the washing of
hands as part of the breakfast routine.
Musical activity: To teach Andy the seven
steps of hand washing practiced by all
children in the class, his teacher sings the
familiar tune “Row Your Boat” except with
the following new lyrics:
Turn, turn, turn it on, turn the water on.
Lalala lalala lalala la, turn the water on.
Wet, wet, wet your hands, wet your hands
right now.
Lalala lalala lalala la, wet your hands
right now.
Get, get, get the soap, get the soap right now.
Lalala lalala lalala lala la, get the soap
right now.
Rub, rub, rub your hands, rub your
hands right now.
Lalala lalala lalala la, wet your hands
right now.
Rinse, rinse, rinse them o , rinse them
o right now,
Lalala lalala lalala la, rinse your hands
right now.
Turn, turn, turn it o , turn the water o .
Lalala lalala lalala la, turn the water o .
e teacher then gives Andy a paper
towel and praises him for following the
musical directions during the hand washing
routine.
10-11:30 a.m. — Free choice
and structured activities
Scenario: Four-year-old Fred seeks frequent,
intense, and varied sensory experiences.
He likes to actively explore the world
by touching, hearing, tasting, seeing, and
smelling. To address Fred’s needs for frequent
sensory experiences and active exploration
of his environment, his teachers o en
build in sensory play, which all children in
the class seem to enjoy. One of Fred’s teachers
observed that he likes to explore di erent
sounds, so he set up a table at which the
children could build an ocean drum.
Musical strategy: Using music to stimulate
children’s senses.
Musical activity: To provide Fred and his
classmates with a variety of sensory stimuli,
the teacher incorporates an activity she
learned during an in-service training on
50 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
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how to build small instruments and use
them during circle time (see the instructions
for making an ocean drum).
11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. —
Playground time
Scenario: Lucas is a 3-year-old boy with
autism who likes to run and spin objects
such as balls on the playground. While other
children engage in pretend play and act out
di erent roles in a re ghter game, Lucas
runs into some children and takes their toys
away. e other children are upset; Lucas is
also upset because he does not yet understand
how to play and share toys with his
peers. Lucas does, however, like to engage
in music and dance activities with his peers
during circle time.
Musical strategy: Using music both as a
prompt and to reinforce positive behavior,
namely engaging in positive peer interactions
during outdoor play.
Building an ocean drum
By Petra Kern
Materials:
• Two blue transparent interlocking plastic
plates, at least 9.4” x 8.6” in diameter.
• Colored plastic beads
• Blue duct tape
Construction:
• Place two small handfuls of plastic beads
on one plate.
• Flip the second plate upside down and place
it over the plate that has beads on it.
• Align latches and press the rims together
to close.
• Duct tape the rim of the plates so the beads
are carefully sealed for safety.
How to play the instrument:
Activate the ocean drum by circling the beads
slowly inside the plates.
Activities:
• Explore di erent ways of playing the ocean
drum; for example, shake it, tap it, role the
beads from one side to the other. Listen to
the di erent sounds.
• Play slow and fast, soft and loud.
• Watch the beads roll and swirl.
• Imitate the ocean sound using your voice.
• Ask children if they have seen the ocean before
and what images and stories come to mind
when they think of the ocean.
• Orchestrate the di erent sounds and conduct
an “ocean music” piece. Have children take
turns conducting.
• Play the ocean drum along with guided imagery
as part of a meditation or relaxation exercise.
Adaptations:
• Assist children with disabilities in building
their own ocean drum.
• Prompt children with disabilities to explore
the instrument.
• Interact with children with disabilities by
playing the ocean drum together.
Musical activity: To support Lucas’ peer
interaction and teach him and other
children how to play with each other, the
early childhood education team decides to
bring music to the outdoor environment.
e Music Hut, which includes a gong, six
drums, a cymbal, sound tubes, an ocean
drum, and a marching drum, is a big attraction
for all the children. To structure Lucas’
peer interaction through music, I composed
a song called “Lucas’ Dance” (see sidebar)
that taps into his interests and strengths. e
classroom teacher sings the song with Lucas
and all children in the Music Hut, and acts
out the lyrics of the song.
12:30-1 p.m. — Lunch
Scenario: Susie is 3 years old and has multiple
developmental delays associated with
Cornelia de Lange Syndrome, a congenital
syndrome characterized by slow growth and
small stature, cognitive delays that are usually
severe to profound, digestive problems,
and hearing and/or visual impairment. Susie
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51

does not use words or gestures to communicate
her needs. During lunch time, her
teachers o er her choices for beverages and
food. Because Susie has not yet learned to
respond to simple yes and no questions, her
teachers are increasingly frustrated and are
very eager to nd an intervention that will
help Susie indicate or say yes and no. Realizing
that Susie participates enthusiastically
during music activities at circle time, her
classroom teachers consulted with me to
nd out if a song intervention might assist
Susie in learning to make and communicate
choices.
Musical strategy: Using music as a prompt
and also to stimulate learning — in this case
to facilitate making choices.
Musical activity: To assist Susie in learning
gestures for yes (for example, nodding
your head) and no (for example, shaking
our head) and also to say yes and no when
“I was pleasantly surprised to see the direct application
of learning to my career. Each and every aspect of
the reading, discussion, and homework assignments
directly related to what I do with children and families!”
Erin Hanson
o ered a choice, I composed a Yes and No
song and introduced it to Susie, her classmates,
and her teachers during circle time.
A er three rounds of singing and posing
both serious and silly questions to all of the
children, everyone had learned the song. I
encourage the children and classmates to
use the “Yes and No” song whenever they
ask Susie a question. As soon as Susie demonstrates
that she understands the concept
of nodding for yes and shaking her head for
no, the teachers will gradually fade out parts
of the song until Susie no longer needs the
song as a prompt to respond.
1:30-3:30 p.m. — Naptime
Scenario: Sarah is a typically developing
4-year-old who, like many of her classmates,
becomes quite tired a er an eventful morning
at the center. Because she’s usually busy
thinks about the many exciting things she
could be doing, Sarah o en has a hard time
settling onto her cot for naptime.
Musical strategy: Using music to enhance
relaxation.
Musical activity: To help calm Sarah and
her classmates, the teacher invites all of
the children to lie down on their cots, get
comfortable, and listen to guided imagery
supported by music (for example, Pachelbel:
Forever by the Sea) from the classroom’s
relaxation CD collection. As soon as the
music starts, the classroom teacher says the
following in a soothing voice:
Find your cot and stretch out on your back.
Take a deep breath in and squeeze all your
muscles tight.
Now relax all your muscles and let all
your energy out with a long aaahhhh.
Close your eyes and let your body relax.
Count to 10, slowly and silently.
Keep your eyes closed, and pretend you are
lying on the beach, on a warm sunny day.
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Pretend you can see the waves, coming up
over the sand and going back out to the
ocean again.
Listen to the waves, coming up on the shore
and then going back to the ocean.
Breathe in and out, in and out, just like the
waves coming in and going out, over and
over again.
(Repeat, more quietly) Breathe in and out,
in and out, just like the waves coming in
and going out, over and over again.
Now, listen quietly to the music, and rest….
4-4:30 p.m. — Snack time
Scenario: A er naptime, 5-year-old Frederick
can’t wait for his snack. When no one is
paying attention, his little hands grab at the
bowls lled with fruits and cookies. When
his teacher tells him to wait and share the
snack with his friends, he gets frustrated
and slaps at the table.
Musical strategy: Using music as a cue as
well as to reinforce positive behavior, such
as self-control in this example.
Musical activity: To assist Frederick in
developing self-control and delaying grati-
cation, his teacher engages him and his
classroom peers in the following song, using
sign language for the word wait. Later, she
encourages the children to initiate the song
with each other during lunchtime and other
situations during which there might be
some waiting time.
4:30-5:30 p.m. — Playground
time and family pick up
Scenario: It’s the end of an eventful day
at the center. Rebecca, a classroom teacher,
and her class are going on the playground
where children will engage in free play until
they are picked up by their families. Some
of the children are simply too tired to run
around and aren’t quite sure what to do
with the remaining time.
Musical strategy: Music as a cue, for
example, when it’s time to say good-bye
and re ect upon the day.
Musical activity: To involve children who
are less engaged in free play, Rebecca o ers
to sing a good-bye song about the things
that each child enjoyed during the day. To
encourage parents to sing along as they pick
up their children, Rebecca uses the familiar
song “Old McDonald had a Farm” and
improvises the following lyrics:
Now it’s time to say good-bye,
I had a happy day.
When mommy or daddy picks me up,
this is what I say…
e teacher then prompts the child verbally.
For example: “What are you going to tell
your mom or dad you did today?” e children
then call out favorite activities such as
painting, playing on the playground, eating
a snack. e teacher then builds in activities
in the second part of the song.
For example…
With a paint, paint here and a
playground there.
Here a lunch, there a snack,
everywhere a snack, snack.
Go to www.songsforteaching.com/transitions.htm
to nd songs for classroom transitions.
Now it’s time to say good-bye,
I had a happy day.
Musical transitions
Looking more closely at the classroom
schedule, we can identify many times during
the day when transition must occur. For
example, transitioning from home to school,
free play to circle time, circle time to breakfast,
breakfast to group activities, group
activities to outdoor play, outdoor play to
lunch, lunch to naptime, naptime to outdoor
play, and outdoor play to departure. ese
are all wonderful opportunities to incorpo-
rate music and to use the musical strategies
discussed earlier. Again, this might entail
singing transition songs that are commercially
available, making up new lyrics to a
familiar tune, or using an instrument to cue
a certain behavior or response, for instance,
using a triangle to let the children know that
it’s time to go outside or nger cymbals to
cue listening during circle time.
Songs are a good way to announce
changes and help prepare children for an
upcoming activity. Because children learn
through repetition, transition songs should
be sung repeatedly until the transition is
completed. When singing a transition song,
sing directly to the children and model the
task at hand. If needed, give children some
physical prompts until they learn what is
expected from them during the speci c
transition. To ensure successful transitions,
it is important that you have the next
activity ready or arrive at the appropriate
location as soon as the transition song ends.
And the same transition songs should be
used across di erent environments and by
everyone who works with the children. Be
sure to share songs with parents and other
caregivers so they can also use the song for
transitions outside of the center.
Steps in creating your own
transition song
1. Choose a speci c transition (for example,
transitioning from hand washing to
breakfast).
2. Pick a familiar tune (for example,
If You’re Happy and You Know It).
3. Identify keywords (for example, breakfast,
seat, eat, juice, fruit)
4. Fit the words to the familiar tune. If you
want your song to rhyme, you could use
a songwriter’s rhyming dictionary to
help you create the lyrics.
5. Modify the song by including objects
or pictures symbols when working with
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 53

children who have special needs (for
example, a piece of fruit or a picture
symbol from Mayer-Johnson’s Boardmaker
indicating breakfast).
Sample song:
Tune: If You’re Happy and You Know It
If you’re ready for your breakfast,
nd your seat.
If you’re ready for your breakfast,
come let’s eat.
We will have some juice and fruit,
Toast and jelly which tastes so good.
If you’re ready for your breakfast,
nd your seat.
Sound cues
We all hear sound cues throughout the day.
Perhaps we hear church bells that let us
know it’s noon or a repeated dinging as we
exit the car lets us know we le the car lights
on. Sound cues can also be embedded into
children’s daily routines as a way to cue transitions
(such as transitioning from outdoor
to indoor). When the signal is immediately
and repeatedly paired with the action,
children quickly learn to anticipate what
comes next when they hear the sound cue.
Children o en enjoy taking an active part
in activating the sound cue themselves. For
example, each day a di erent child might
be assigned the task of ringing of a triangle
when it’s time for the children to go inside
for lunch. When working with children with
special needs who use picture symbols, be
sure to pair sound cues with visuals.
Summing it up
When applied intentionally and used in
a systematic manner, music can be a
Evidence of effi ciency
Research indicates that music can be e ectively used to enhance socialization, self-expression,
communication, motor development, and cognitive functioning of young children with and
without disabilities. In keeping with recommended practices in early childhood education, music
interventions may be embedded into children’s daily routines to support individual learning goals.
A series of single-case studies conducted at the FPG Child Care Program demonstrated
that…
• Individual song interventions may be e ective in increasing the independent performance of
young children with autism during the morning transition and multi-step self-care routines.
• Music may help expand children’s level of peer interactions on the playground.
• Teachers can implement musical intervention strategies successfully when training and monitoring
by a music therapist are provided.
A summary of the single case studies can be downloaded on the FPG Web site, www.fpg.unc.
edu (see snapshot #35, #39, and #45). The songs used in the playground study are published in the
songbook noted below, along with project descriptions and guidelines for writing and measuring
IEP goals using a song.
The ideas and strategies proposed in the musical transitions section of this article represent
common practices used by music therapists when working with young children. They also stem
in part from a presentation and an informal pilot study conducted by Humpal and Register (2004,
2007). Results of the three case examples from this pilot study indicated that transition songs…
• Helped children respond more quickly to
directives.
References
• Elicited a greater level of calmness among
Best Practices in Music Therapy Monograph:
children during times of transition.
Early Childhood and School Age, edited by
• Facilitated a sense of group cohesiveness. M Humpal and C. Colwell (American Music
• Were well received by teachers as a way to Therapy Association, 2006).
manage the classroom.
Fact sheet: Music Therapy and the Young Child,
wonderful tool for helping you manage the
classroom and enhance children’s learning.
Song interventions can easily be embedded
into daily routines with minimal time
and e ort but with tremendous results.
As an early childhood professionals, allow
yourself the freedom to tap into your natural
a nity for music and add a little harmony
to the day!
Petra Kern, MT-BVM, MT-BC, MTA, is a
clinician, educator, and researcher in music
therapy. Her work focuses on young children,
inclusion, autism, and visual impairments. She
currently is a visiting scholar at the FPG Child
Development Institute, UNC at Chapel Hill and
serves on faculty at SUNY New Paltz. Kern is
passionate about bringing music to the daily
lives of children and families.
Additional information about music therapy for early childhood education settings (including a
comprehensive review of the research literature addressing all of the topics mentioned in this article)
can be found in the American Music Therapy Association’s Fact sheet: Music Therapy and the Young
Child. Go to www.musictherapy.org for more information.
published by the American Music Therapy
Association (2001).
“Improving the Performance of a Young Child
with Autism during Self-Care Tasks Using
Embedded Song Interventions: A Case Study,”
by P. Kern, L. Wakeford, and D. Aldridge, [Music
Therapy Perspectives, 25 (1), 2007].
Songbook Vol. 1: Songs and Laughter on the
Playground, by P. Kern and M. A. Snell (De La
Vista Publisher, 2007).
Tips for Tuneful Transitions, by M. Humpal and
D. Register, presented at the 6th Annual AMTA
Conference (2004).
“Use of Songs to Promote Independence in
Morning Greeting Routines for Young Children
with Autism,” by P. Kern, M. Wolery, and D. Al-
dridge, (Journal of Autism and Developmental
Disorders, 37, 2007).
“Using Embedded Music Therapy Interventions
to Support Outdoor Play of Young Children with
Autism in an Inclusive Community-Based Child
Care Program,” by P. Kern and D. Aldridge,
[Journal of Music Therapy, 43 (4), 2006].
“Using Musical Transitions in Early Childhood
Classrooms: Three Case Examples,” by D.
Register, and M. Humpal, [Music Therapy
Perspectives, 25 (1), 2007].
54 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

N A T I O N A L H E A D S T A R T A S S O C I A T I O N
Save the Date!
NHSA is proud to offer a variety of professional
development and training opportunities to
help the Head Start community continue to
lead the way in delivering exceptional early
childhood education and care.
For more information
about these events
and our Webinars and
other resources, go
to www.nhsa.org.
Upcoming Events
3 rd Annual Director’s Training
St. Louis, Missouri
October 26-30, 2008
Collaborative Governance:
The Roles of Governing Bodies
and the Policy Council
An NHSA Audioconference
November 18, 2008
3-4:30 p.m. ET
Examples of Unwise Gifts:
Learn to Stay Compliant
An NHSA Audioconference
December 2, 2008
3-4:30 p.m. ET
25 th Annual Parent Training
Conference
Atlanta, Georgia
December 14-18, 2008
January Leadership Institute
Arlington, Virginia
January 26-29, 2009
36 th Annual Training Conference
Orlando, Florida
April 27-May 2, 2009
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 55

Young
Ones
56
by Georgina Peacock and Amanda Perez
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
Autism Spectrum Disorders
in Very Young Children
Andrew is 20 months old. For the past two months, he has been enrolled in a local
Early Head Start program. Carolyn, Andrew’s Head Start caregiver, is impressed
at how Andrew’s mother has learned to understand his needs. Andrew’s mother
talks about how independent he is, always wanting to do things himself. When he
is hungry, he goes to the refrigerator and gets his milk. If he can’t reach something
he wants, he uses his mom’s hand as a tool to get it. While he makes a variety of
sounds and babbled “mama” and “dada” at around 11 months, Andrew does not
use words to express his needs or to communicate.
Jaden, now 22 months old, is also new to his home-based Early Head Start
program. In initial home visits, his parents reported that he was an “early talker.”
Jaden’s favorite toy is a eece dog that sings when you press its belly. Jaden sings
the song over and over again and has pressed the dog’s belly so much that the
eece is worn and shiny there. Jaden takes his dog everywhere and gets very
upset if he can’t nd it. In describing this, Jaden’s parents tell their home visitor,
Khadija, that Jaden “knows what he wants.” Khadija agrees but notices that,
despite “talking” a lot, Jaden rarely makes eye contact and doesn’t seem to use
language to get what he needs. When he isn’t able to communicate, he cries or
screams out of frustration. He isn’t able to follow simple commands. Even when
Jaden’s mother points to his sneakers and says “bring me your shoes,” Jaden
does not respond.
Carolyn and Khadija are both concerned
about these two di erent little boys,
and rightly so. Screenings for Andrew and
Jaden reveal concerns about communication
and social-emotional development.
In keeping with the Head Start Program
Performance Standards, both boys are
promptly referred to their local early intervention
programs for further evaluation.
Eventually, with the input from family,
sta , and early interventionists, doctors
diagnose Andrew and Jaden with Autism
Spectrum Disorders (ASDs).
A GUIDE FOR YOUR EARLY HEAD START
AND INFANT AND TODDLER NEEDS
What you need to know and how you can help
ASDs have become a “hot topic” in the
media in the past few years. e Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention’s Autism
and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring
(ADDM) Network released data
in 2007 that showed that about 1 in 150
children in selected communities across
the United States had an ASD. Sta in Head
Start programs working with infants and
toddlers likely serve young children with
ASDs and may, in fact, be the professionals
who identify developmental concerns and
link families with crucial early intervention
services. While there is no cure for ASDs,
early intervention can greatly improve a
child’s development. In your role, what do
you need to know about ASDs? And how
can you help?
Autism Spectrum Disorders
ASDs are a group of complex developmental
disabilities that cause substantial
impairments in social interaction and
communication. e symptoms of
ASDs are present during early childhood
and last throughout a person’s life.
Scientists do not yet know the cause, but it
is thought that both genetics and environmental
factors are likely to play a role. ASDs
a ect children’s language, social-emotional,
and/or cognitive development. Just as the
name suggests, the symptoms and the
intensity of symptoms of ASDs vary in the
children who have them. Some children
with ASDs are mildly a ected while others
are severely a ected. e thinking and
learning abilities of people with ASDs also
varies — from gi ed to severely challenged.
Autistic disorder is the most commonly
known type of ASD, but there are others,
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

including “pervasive developmental
disorder-not otherwise speci ed”
(PDD-NOS) and Asperger syndrome.
Of course, all young children are
developing cognitive, language, and
social-emotional skills as they grow. Even
typically developing infants and toddlers
must learn over time to manage transitions,
engage in meaningful interactions with
adults, and use their imaginations. Still, it
is helpful to recognize some of the red ags
associated with ASDs. Remember that in
isolation many of these behaviors are typical
in young children. However, a pattern
of these unusual behaviors, persistent use
of these behaviors over time, or impaired
communication or social skills are causes
for concern. As you observe children, you
should both trust your instinct and use
your knowledge of typical development to
identify possible concerns. Now let’s take
a look at some of the behaviors and symptoms
common to ASDs.
In comparison to their same-age
peers, a young child with an ASD may…
• Have trouble relating to others or not
have an interest in other people at all.
• Avoid eye contact and want to be alone.
• Prefer not to be held or cuddled.
• Have unusual trouble expressing her
needs using typical words or motions.
• Appear to be unaware when other people
talk to him but respond to other sounds
(for example, a child might not answer to
his name but may look up when he hears
an airplane in the sky).
• Repeat actions over and over again in a
persistent or obsessive way, o en without
obvious purpose (for example, icking
ngers or rocking back and forth).
• Have extreme trouble adapting when
a routine changes.
• Have unusual reactions to the way
things smell, taste, look, feel, or sound.
• Not smile on his own by 5 months
or laugh by 6 months.
• Not try to attract attention through
actions by 7 months.
• Show no interest in games of
peek-a-boo by 8 months.
• Repeat or echo words or phrases said
to her, in ways unlike same-age peers,
or repeat words or phrases in place of
normal language (echolalia).
• Have other language delays (for example,
no single words like “mama” or “dada”
by 12 months, or no words by 18 months).
• Not look at objects when another person
points at them by 12 months.
• Not play pretend games (for example,
pretending to feed a doll) by 24 months.
• Not point at objects to show interest
by 24 months.
• Lose skills he once had (for instance,
a child may stop saying words he was
once using).
Sta in Head Start programs are
uniquely able to support families in identifying
developmental concerns, accessing
early intervention, and implementing
service plans related to ASDs. Head Start
professionals who work with the youngest
children and their families develop relationships
that allow ongoing observation
and discussion about child development.
Sta also conduct formal screenings and
ongoing assessment of children, as required
by the Head Start Program Performance
Standards, and recognize early warning
signs of developmental delay. When sta
members act early on concerns and talk
with parents about what they see, children
are able to bene t from the earliest intervention.
Young
Ones
What you can do:
Program directors and managers
Providing comprehensive developmental
services includes supporting families as
developmental concerns are identi ed,
diagnoses are made, and services are
implemented in your inclusive setting. To
support families and sta and to help set
a positive tone during what is likely to be
an emotionally challenging time, create an
atmosphere that promotes the following:
• A sound understanding of development:
Head Start sta members need
to have a strong foundation in typical
infant-toddler development. With this
knowledge and the screening and ongoing
assessment required by the Head
Start Program Performance Standards,
sta members can help families identify
potential delays and concerns at the
earliest opportunities. Because children
with ASDs sometimes lose skills they
once had, documentation is especially
important.
• Observation: In their ongoing work
with families, Head Start sta members
have the opportunity to observe children
develop over time. Talk with sta about
the importance of careful observation,
encourage them to talk about what they
observe, and help them evaluate and
contemplate their observations.
• Strong relationships among sta , families,
and children: Healthy relationships
enable sta to observe children’s behavior,
deliver appropriate curriculum, and
provide information about screening and
assessment to families. As an administrator,
it is crucial that you recognize that
identifying a delay or a disability like
autism can raise many complex issues for
families and sta alike. O er information
on sharing screening results with
families and supporting them through
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 57

Young
Ones
58
an evaluation. Talk with sta about how
they are handling the emotional weight
of this process. In addition, because
ASDs a ect communication and social
skills, it is particularly important to talk
with sta about potential challenges of
parenting and working with children
who may struggle to communicate or
interact with others, including their
parents.
• Strong partnerships with community
organizations: As the Performance Standards
suggest, work with young children
with conditions like ASDs requires the
coordinated e ort of community partners.
Local early intervention programs
provide evaluation and services to support
the development of young children
with delays and disabilities. To the extent
possible, those services must be delivered
in a child’s natural setting — such as an
Early Head Start classroom. erefore,
as an administrator, you should work to
develop partnerships that allow mutual
support between programs and program
sta , provide shared training opportunities,
and maximize available resources. It
is important to identify community resources
that speci cally support families
as they learn about and cope with autism
and related disorders. To get you started,
the Autism Society of America has an
online database of autism services and
supports within a community (located
online at http://209.200.89.252/search_
site/search.cfm).
• Individualization: Head Start programs
are required to provide individualized
services to all children. When young
children share particular diagnoses,
however, it can be tempting to simply
do for one child what has been done
for another. Remember that ASDs are
expressed di erently from child to child,
and the service plans for each child will
also di er, re ecting the individual
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
Tip: Are you looking for a convenient way to connect with other professionals
and experts to discuss issues involving Autism Spectrum Disorders? If so,
consider joining an e-mail discussion group. The National Institutes of Health has
an autism list. To sign up, go to https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=autism&A=1.
Here are a few others:
• St. Johns University at www.autism-resources.com/mailinglist.html.
• University of Arizona Tucson Autism Listserv at http://autism.web.arizona.edu/listserv.shtml.
• Open Georgia Autism Listserv at www.behavior-consultant.com/openlistserv.htm.
needs of the child, the wishes of the family,
and the community resources that
are available.
What you can do: Teachers and
home visitors
e behaviors of children with ASDs can
be confusing, challenging, and sometimes
disruptive for families and sta . Even a er
children are diagnosed, there are always
many questions that remain. e relationships
you build with children and families
can be a valuable source of support for
families as they identify and learn about
ASD and how it a ects their children.
Here are some suggestions:
• Share your observations: Even as you
start to build relationships with families,
share your observations about a child’s
development and encourage families
to do the same with you and others in
your program. By doing so, conversation
about a child’s developing skills becomes
a natural and regular component of your
interactions with families. e Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention’s
Learn the Signs. Act Early. campaign
(go to www.cdc.gov/actearly for more
information) is designed to teach parents
about developmental milestones and
early warning signs of delay. Information
from reputable sources such as
this can provide tremendous support
in your conversations about development.
Remember, too, that families
know their children best and, therefore,
are an invaluable help to you and your
colleagues. Always be considerate and
sensitive when sharing your concerns
with families, and listen attentively when
families do the same.
• Learn about ASDs: e early signs of
ASDs (listed earlier) may help you better
understand the children you serve.
ey can also help you make informed
referrals to early intervention services.
Remember, however, that ASDs can only
be diagnosed by trained professionals.
Discuss your developmental concerns
and observations with families, but allow
others to make the o cial diagnoses.
• Involve families in screening, referral,
and ongoing assessment: As you conduct
screenings and formal assessments,
talk with families about what you are
doing and why. Whenever you identify
a concern, talk with families about what
you see and listen carefully to their
responses. Answer their questions about
evaluation and early intervention programs.
And emphasize the importance
of early intervention and the di erence it
can make for children with developmental
delays.
• Celebrate strengths: Like all children,
children with ASDs have many strengths
and talents. Be sure to talk with families
about their children’s positive attributes
and accomplishments. And ask them
to share the things they celebrate about
their children. As families face early
intervention evaluations and possible diagnoses,
they o en appreciate reminders
of their children’s positive qualities and
skills.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Of course, a child who is diagnosed
with an ASD will need individualized
services that are developed in partnership
with the family and early intervention
practitioners. In general, it is helpful to
do the following:
• Keep communicating with children:
Talk in simple sentences. Get down on
the child’s level and try to make eye
contact. When appropriate, use hand
gestures (pointing, waving, and so on)
along with spoken language to communicate.
• Provide help with transitions: Many
children with ASDs resist changes. Giving
advance warning or notice before an
activity begins (or ends) can signi cantly
decrease transition problems. For example,
use songs to signal that it is time
to clean up and get ready for a new activity.
ese kinds of transition activities
can help prepare all children for changes
to come. Visuals can also be very helpful
in supporting children with ASDs (and
all young children!) with transitions.
Create a daily schedule for children that
includes pictures of the activities that
they will be doing during the day.
• Pay attention to cues: Like all children,
children with ASDs will try to communicate
their needs, whether it is that
they are hungry, tired, or in need of a
diaper change. For children for whom
communication is challenging, however,
it is particularly important that you try
to recognize and pay special attention to
what may be very subtle cues.
• Be consistent: Like all children, children
with ASDs need consistent limits
to help them self-regulate and control
their behaviors. If a child is exhibiting
an undesirable behavior, use redirection
whenever possible. For example, if
a child is grabbing at a toy that another
child is playing with, gently brush
his hand away and redirect him to
another toy.
Jaden and Andrew are lucky to be
involved HS-009 RPS in Early Ad-vFNL Head Start programs.
Children and Families Magazine
Because
4.75 x 7
of
no
the
bleed
dedicated
- half page
support
island
of
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June 13, 2008
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Young
Ones
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do not have to navigate the di cult
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Validation. What works,
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 59

Science for
Young Explorers
“Nature” is
Wherever You Are!
by William Ritz
When we think about nature, the images that arise are often of places like
Yellowstone National Park or the Grand Canyon. And while these are without
a doubt extraordinary examples of nature — perhaps even nature in its grandest
form — they just aren’t easily accessible to most of us. So I invite you to start
seeing the world around you — wherever that may be — as yet another remarkable
place in which you and the children in your classroom can explore nature in
wonderful new ways. After all, every school or home is within walking distance
of interesting living and nonliving things: pets, birds, plants, colors, and shapes.
The kind of nature walks you take is limited only by your imagination.
The power of observation
Young children need plenty of opportunities
to practice and develop basic observational
skills. Whether they grow up to be
scientists, writers, artisans, or technophiles,
all children will bene t from the ability
to observe their surroundings, to make
comparisons, and to reason. In addition to
being a good introduction to science and
nature, going on regular nature walks is
also a fun, engaging way to alert children to
the many interesting things in their everyday
world that they might otherwise never
have noticed.
To get you and the children in your
class started, try going on a few “sensory
walks” around the neighborhood. You
won’t need many tools or instruments for
these journeys. Since they are “scienti c
eld trips,” you and the children should
make sure that all of your “sensors” are
ready before you head out. Let the children
know that the most important tools they’ll
need on the nature walk are their “built in
tools” — their eyes, ears, nose, hands, and
perhaps even their taste buds (although
warn children carefully that this last tool
must be used very carefully and sparingly
and only when an adult says it’s OK). You’ll
also want to take along something to keep
track of the children’s observations: paper
for writing or drawing, a few pencils, and
maybe a digital camera or tape recorder.
Remind the children that when we engage
in science or nature activities, it’s important
to keep track of the things we observe!
Sensory neighborhood walks
e rst of your sensory walks around the
neighborhood could be one that focuses on
the sense of sight — in this case, the eyes
have it! Select a common shape — perhaps
a square, triangle, or circle — and tell the
children that you want to see how many
things they can nd that match that shape.
To remind children of what the shape looks
like, give them each a small construction
paper cutout of the shape you selected.
As you walk around the neighborhood,
ask children to nd things that are the
same shape. Remember to record their
observations (or have them record their
observations using drawings). And when
the children point out matching shapes, ask
IDEAS THAT NURTURE
CURIOSITY AND DISCOVERY
them to talk about what they’ve found. If
someone has trouble “seeing” the shape for
which you’re looking, ask the children who
have spotted items to describe how they did
it. Shape walks are a nice way to reinforce
children’s understanding of what shapes
look like while simultaneously encouraging
children to look much more carefully at
features of their neighborhood that may too
o en be seen but not truly observed.
More ideas for sensory walks
On another outing, ask the children to
focus on colors. Review some basic colors,
and then ask the children to help you pick a
color to hunt for on your nature walk. You
might also want to discuss shades of color,
so be prepared to show them a variety of
di erent shades of green if that’s the color
your class selected. Before going on your
walk, also have the children suggest some
items you’re likely to come across that
match the color. And remember to record
your ndings.
Another interesting type of sensory
walk is one that focuses on the sounds in
a child’s everyday world. As the children
60 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

walk, ask them to stay alert for di erent
sounds. Let them know that the tools
they’ll need to rely on to make their
observations are their ears and their listening
skills. en discuss the sounds you
encounter. What sounds do the children
like? Which ones do they dislike and why?
Which ones are natural or organic and
which ones are man-made? What do the
sounds tell you about the people, animals,
and activities of the neighborhood? Neighborhoods
o en have changing patterns of
sounds as the day progresses. What di erences
you can detect between “morning
sounds” and “a ernoon sounds” as you
walk around? What words can be used to
describe speci c sounds? Again, ask them
to keep track of their “sound observations”
with drawings, scribbles, photos, audio
recordings, or dictation. Small portable
recording devices are wonderful for keeping
track of the children’s observations
and they also make it possible to review
the sound observations when you return
to the classroom. For a more challenging
sound walk, have some of the children take
turns walking around blindfolded (with
careful supervision and in an area that is
far from cars and other hazards, of course).
Are your listening skills sharper when the
“distractions” of the neighborhood sights
are removed?
Another type of sensory walk that can
be enhanced by blindfolding is one that focuses
on smell. What odors do the children
detect? Which ones do they nd pleasing?
What comments do they make when passing
a bakery, for instance? Encourage them
to describe the odors — and don’t be satis-
ed with vague descriptions like “it smell’s
good” or “it smell’s bad.” By encouraging
more speci c descriptions, you’ll help the
children expand their descriptive vocabulary.
You can even challenge them to draw
pictures that illustrate the odors!
Still another sensory walk might focus
on textures. Observing the textures of pavements,
walls, tree trunks, and owers is an
excellent way of helping children sharpen
their “touch observations” as well as their
descriptive language skills. Data collection
during this walk can include rubbings.
Rubbings are simple to make. All the child
needs to do is place a sheet of paper over
an object (a leaf, for example) and drag the
length of a crayon over the item. For some
objects, you might need the children to
work in teams of two: one to hold the paper
and the other to do the rubbing. Display the
rubbings or share them with families.
A critter safari
Critters (or small animals of one kind or
another, such as worms, beetles, pill bugs,
butter ies, or snails) can be found on
almost any neighborhood walk. Of course,
grassy areas and places littered with leaves
or other plant debris are o en the best
hunting grounds. Look for di erent kinds
of critters in weeds, dirt, trees, cracks in the
sidewalk, under rocks, and even near trash
cans. Invite the children to talk about how
the critters look, smell, move, and feel. To
help enhance their observations, give them
hand-held magni ers. If your center has
some bug containers or “bug houses,” be
sure to bring them on your critter walk. Of
course, use good judgment when touching
small insects or animals. Here are a few
questions you can ask to encourage the
children’s explorations: What can you tell
me about this critter? Where is its head?
Does it appear to have eyes? How many legs
does it have? Tell me about how it moves
from place to place. What color is it? How
well does its color blend in with the place in
which you found it? If you were that critter,
how would you try to blend in with your
surroundings?
Science for
Young Explorers
Nature bracelets
Nature bracelets provide young nature
explorers with an enjoyable way of keeping
track of the interesting things they nd
and collect. All you need to do is to place a
strip of wide masking tape, sticky side out,
around the child’s wrist and you’re on your
way. As the children nd interesting things
on the walk — ower petals, leaves, seeds,
pebbles, twigs, and so forth — they can
attach the items to their bracelet and let the
collection grow as they walk and explore.
Bring the tape along with you in case you
have an eager scientist who wants to amass
a large collection.
Along the way, ask a variety of questions
to prompt more careful exploration
and collection. Can you nd something that
is bigger? Longer? Shorter? A di erent color?
So er? When you’re back in the classroom,
have show-and-tell conversations about the
children’s bracelets. Encourage children
to bring home their bracelets and to ask
their families to take them on nature walks
around their homes to see what they nd.
Adopting a tree
Choose a tree near the school that changes
during the year — one that loses its leaves
(that is, a deciduous tree) is best. Invite the
children to “adopt” the tree and let them
know that the class will visit and carefully
observe it from time to time. On your rst
visit, encourage the children to look carefully
at the trunk, leaves, and any exposed
roots, and have them record their observations
in simple drawings. If you have a
camera available, take pictures of these
structures and keep (and date) the resulting
photographs for use in later comparisons.
You can also collect and preserved some of
the leaves. Rubbings can be made to record
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 61

Science for
Young Explorers
the texture of the tree bark. Use a tape measure
(or even a length of string) to record
the circumference of the trunk of the tree.
Can the children nd any seeds, owers, or
fruit present? Look for any signs of insect
or other animal life on or around the tree.
Be sure to record all of the ndings.
Visit the same tree on several other
occasions as the school year progresses,
and repeat these data collection processes,
again recording the dates. ese pieces of
information can be displayed alongside
each other on a bulletin board to make it
easier for children to make comparisons.
Some of the changes will be more readily
observed than others (for example, changes
in leaf color). A er each observation, ask
such questions such as What, if anything,
looks di erent? Is it taller? Wider? More
bushy? A di erent color? How do the leaves/
owers/seeds smell?
While children’s ability to detect more
subtle di erences may be hampered by
their limited measuring skills, work from
the information they have been able to
gather to help them to begin to comprehend
the kinds of changes that trees and
other organisms undergo during their life
cycles. One way to reinforce their understanding
of these changes is to invite them
to place the tree photographs and drawings
in chronological order. All of this is
intended to help children begin to get a
sense of time and of some of the changes
that occur in nature.
Other curriculum connections
To art:
• Use the items that the children collected
on their nature bracelets (described
above) to create individual or group
nature collages.
• Create a display (possibly with photographs)
that depicts the square, circular,
or triangular shapes or interesting
textures the children observed while on
their shape or texture walks.
• Preserve leaves collected at di erent
times of the year by pressing them between
two sheets of wax paper and sealing
the sheets with a warm (not hot) iron.
Or, if you have access to a laminating
machine, use it instead to preserve the
leaves. Have the children create a “leaves
of nature” collage from leaves of di erent
colors, sizes, shapes, and textures.
To math:
• Relate the shapes walk activity to
any math work in which children are
expected to learn and use basic geometric
shapes such as circles, squares, or
triangles.
• While engaging in one of your neighborhood
walks, get the children involved
in counting things and recording their
data for later use. For example, they
might keep track of the color of automobiles
parked on the streets. Later, they
could create bar graphs displaying this
information. Small cut-outs of autos in
the colors observed, lined up along vertical
lines will produce a very attractive
bar graph that can help tell the story of
the autos seen on the walk. You might
instead choose to count trees, birds,
dandelions, trash cans, houses of given
colors — any will work!
• Mount the string used to measure the
circumference of a tree your children
have adopted on a bulletin board and
invite the children to count how many
“units of measure” long the string is.
e units used might be anything from
the width of someone’s hand to strips of
paper (in actual units of measure, such
as feet).
To social studies:
• Create a map of your walking route. Help
the children to develop some sort of visual
depiction of the path that was taken.
ey might start by making visuals of
each individual segment of the walk
and then work together to assemble the
segments on a large classroom bulletin
board. When the display is completed,
invite the children to try to place drawings
of some of the major landmarks of
the route on the display.
To writing:
• Invite the children to write one or more
stories about the nature walks they went
on. ey may of course have to tell their
story via drawings or through words that
you will write for them.
• e adopt-a-tree activity o ers many opportunities
for story-writing. In addition
to just telling about the changes the tree
undergoes from season to season, ask the
children to imagine that they are the tree
and to create a story about what it feels
like to be that tree as the changes they
witnessed take place.
To reading:
Here are some children’s books that are
related to these activities:
• A Tree is Nice, by Janice May Udry
(HarperCollins, 1984).
• Circles, Triangles, and Squares, by Tana
Hoban (Simon & Schuster, 1974).
• Color Dance, by Ann Jonas (Greenwillow,
1989).
• Color Zoo, by Lois Ehlert (Lippincott,
1989).
• Growing Colors, by Bruce McMillan
(Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Books, 1988).
• My Very First Book of Colors, by Eric
Carle (Crowell, 1974).
• Red is Best, by Kathy Stinson (Fire y,
1982).
• Shapes, Shapes, Shapes, by Tana Hoban
(Greenwillow, 1986)
• e Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree, by
Gail Gibbons (Harcourt Children’s
Books, 1984).
62 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

• When Dad Cuts Down the Chestnut Tree,
by Pam Ayres (Walker Books, 1988).
Involving families
• Ask children to nd objects in and
around their house that match the colors
or shapes they like the best. Encourage
them to tell you why they seem to like a
speci c color or shape.
• Ask families to look through a magazine
that has many pictures with their child to
nd examples of shapes such as squares,
triangles, and circles. What can they nd
in and around their home that also resembles
these shapes? Together, families
can draw pictures with the shapes you
have found and identi ed.
• Be sure to tell the families about the nature
walks and encourage them to go on
Event Highlight
Our Future:
Children in a Global Village
National Black Child Development Institute’s
38th Annual Conference
October 25-28, 2008
Atlanta, Georgia
This event is for practitioners,
parents, researchers, administrators,
and policy specialists who
want to learn how to nurture the
natural curiosity, excitement, and
genius in children? Here are just a
few examples of the session topics
at this event:
• Social-emotional development
of infants, toddlers, and
preschoolers
• Empowering parents
• Strengthening families
• Working with fathers
• Working with culturally diverse
infants, toddlers, and families
their own nature walks with their children.
ese walks might even turn into a
cherished a er-dinner routine. Families
can hunt for di erent plants, owers,
or colors to test their observation skills.
Encourage parents to ask questions and
share information they know with their
children during these walks.
I hope you and the children with
whom you share your days will truly come
to love and enjoy the nature in your very
own neighborhood. Perhaps one day each
one of us will get the opportunity to visit
Yosemite or the Grand Canyon, but in the
meantime, let’s have fun creating our own
science and nature activities right in our
backyards!
• Building profi ciency
in reading and writing
• Teaching, parenting and mentoring
successful Black males
• Using assessments to
improve instruction
• Reducing childhood
overweight/obesity
For program and registration information,
visit www.nbcdi.org/conference or call (800) 556-2234.
Science for
Young Explorers
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William C. Ritz is a 50-year veteran of science teaching
and science-teacher education who has devoted
his recent years to bringing “sense of wonder” science
to young children, their parents, and their teachers.
Now professor emeritus of science education at California
State University, Long Beach, he began his
career teaching junior high science in western New
York and then science and environmental education
courses at Syracuse University. Ritz earned his
bachelor’s degree in chemistry and geology, master’s
degree in secondary sciences, and doctorate in
science education from the University at Bu alo in
New York. His book, A Head Start on Science: Encouraging
a Sense of Wonder, is available through
the National Science Teachers Association Web site
at www.nsta.org or through most major booksellers.
This article was adapted in part and
expanded from activities in A Head Start
on Science, written by William Ritz.
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THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 63

64
Poetry All Around
by Melissa Stinnett
I remember playing with my brother
and sister when I was a little girl as
we learned from our grandmother to
recite poetry and sing songs. I loved
the feeling of the rhythmic words and
sounds we created. My grandmother
had a song for every occasion. In the
morning, for example, she sang:
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are gray
You’ll never know dear,
how much I love you,
Please don’t take my sunshine away.
My particular favorite was making up
rhymes about our wrinkled toes as we took
a bath.
Oh, my toes are getting wrinkled,
And I don’t know what to do.
My toes are getting wrinkled,
And I don’t know what to do.
Oh, my toes are getting wrinkled,
And I don’t know what to do.
I think I’ll just say “Ah, chew!”
Playful poetry and songs, together
with the fun experiences in our lives, make
a strong literacy impression that can have a
lasting a ect. Poetry is an extraordinary vehicle
for teaching young children both about
how language works as well as interesting
information about the world in general.
Using poetry in the classroom reading
program allows children to use their natural
love of rhyme, rhythm, and repetition to
propel them forward toward reading. Poetry
is especially well-suited to be read aloud.
And, as research has shown, listening to
stories as they are read aloud helps children
develop phonemic awareness.
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
NEWS AND TIPS TO HELP LITERACY EMERGE
IN YOUR HEAD START CLASSROOM
Now let’s take a look at ways you can
incorporate more poetry into your regular
routine in the classroom or at home.
Poetry box
Find a big box in which you can store enlarged
sheets of poetry. Your objective will
be to add a weekly poem to the box. You
should label the box, have the children help
you decorate it, and keep it in the reading
area. When you choose a poem for the
week, write it on a large sheet of paper, cut
it into an appropriate shape (for instance,
in the shape of a cat for a poem about cats),
include any other illustrations that would
help convey the meaning of the poem to
the children, and then laminate it. You’ll
soon nd that these poems will become
familiar reading for the children as they
return to the poetry box again and again.
Poem of the week
Select a poem-of-the-week, which can be
used for di erent purposes each day. Here
are some ideas for how you could use one
poem for various activities throughout the
week.
Day 1: Introduce the poem by discussing
the title and the author. Based on the
title and corresponding illustrations, ask
the children to guess what the poem might
be about. en read the poem aloud; be
sure to be animated and expressive while
you read. Discuss the message or main
subject of the poem. During the discussion,
you might need to prompt the children to
think critically about the poem by asking
questions. Here is one of my favorite poems
by Robert Lewis Stevenson that you might
consider using.
Bed in Summer
In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candle-light.
In summer quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.
I have to go to bed and see
e birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown-up people’s feet
Still going past me in the street.
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?
Ask the children, Have you all had to
go to bed when the sun is still shining in
the summer time? How did you feel about
that? is may lead to a discussion about
the time change that occurs between summer
and winter each year.
Day 2: Reread the same poem. For this
reading, however, encourage the children
to join in wherever they feel comfortable.
Talk about any vocabulary words that may
need clari cation. Encourage your students
to think of other words or phrases that
could be substituted. en read the poem
again and encourage the children to move
in some way, perhaps swaying or clapping.
Also try reciting the poem as a rap
or chant, emphasizing the ending words
(night, light, way, day, etc.).
Day 3: Reread the poem and then ask
the children to create a drawing or collage
to go with the poem. If appropriate, you
might also create stick puppets, so the children
can act out the poem.
Day 4: Reread the poem. Point out
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

some of the print concepts and conventions,
such as the use of periods or commas,
the le -to-right direction of the words, and
so forth. Encourage the students to read the
poem together, paying close attention to the
print conventions and visual information
that a ect the way the poem is read. At this
point, you can stop before the last word
in a line and ask the children if they can
remember the missing word.
Day 5: As you read the poem today,
help the children develop phonemic awareness
by clapping out syllables (can-dlelight).
Give each child a small binder to
keep all of the poems in. Also include each
child’s illustrations or artwork with the
poems. Have the children take the poem
binder home at the end of each week to
share with their family. Bringing the weekly
poem home will help promote a literacy
connection between home and school. By
the end of the year, the children will end
up with a binder full of beloved poetry for
familiar reading!
Songs
Songs can also be part of your daily shared
reading time on the carpet. As a daily
routine, sing three or four songs. For
example, in her book Joyful Learning in
Kindergarten, Bobbi Fisher’s describes using
the song, Singing in the Rain as a way of
getting children together on the carpet.
I’m singing in the Rain,
Just singing in the rain.
What a glorious feeling,
I’m hap-hap-happy again.
umbs up!
Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh, sh,
Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh, sh,
Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh, sh, sh
Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh, sh.
Elbows out!
Knees bent!
Tongue out!
Poetry for your Head Start classroom
A Light in the Attic, by Shel Silverstein
(Harper & Row Publishers, 1981).
All the Colors of the Race, by Arnold
Ado (Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1982).
Balloons and Other Poems, by Deborah
Chandra (Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1990).
Beneath a Blue Umbrella, by Jack Prelusky
(HarperCollins Publishers, 1990).
Eats, by Arnold Ado (Lothrop, Lee &
Shepard, 1979).
Eric Carle’s Dragons Dragons: And Other
Creatures that Never Were, compiled by
Laura Whipple (Penguin Young Readers
Group, 1991).
For Laughing Out Loud, by Jack Prelutsky
(Random House Children’s Books, 1991).
Free to be You and Me, Vol. 5, by Marlo
Thomas (Running Press Book Publishers,
2002).
If I Were in Charge of the World and
Other Worries, by Judith Viorst (Simon
& Schuster Children’s Publishing, 1981).
The Llama Who had No Pajama, by Mary
Ann Hoberman (Harcourt Children’s
Boooks, 2006).
Children can stand and move about
while performing the di erent actions in
the song, putting up their thumbs, li ing
up their elbows, bending their knees, and
sticking out their tongues. en you can…
• Work with onsets, which are the initial
consonant or consonant cluster found
at the beginning of a word or a syllable
(for example, the /st/ in stomping). Ask
children if they hear a certain sound
repeated throughout the poem.
• Work with rimes, or the vowel and
consonant cluster at the end of a word
(for example, /amp/ in lamp). Ask the
children to point out the words that
Moon, Have You Met My Mother? By Karla
Kuskin (HarperCollins Publishers, 2003).
More Poetry for Holidays, selected by
Nancy Larrick (Scholastic, 1973).
The New Kid on the Block, by Jack Prelusky
(HarperCollins Publishers, 1984).
Poems of A. Nonny Mouse, selected by
Jack Prelutsky (Knopf, 1989).
The Real Mother Goose, by Blanche Fisher
Wright (Scholastic, 1994).
Sing a Song of Popcorn: Every Child’s Book
of Poems, by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers
(Scholastic, 1998).
Sing to the Sun, by Ashley Bryan (Harper-
Collins, 1992)
Sky Scrape, City Scape: Poems of City Life,
by Jane Yolen (Boyds Mills Press, 1996)
Tickle a Pickle, by Ann Warren Turner
(Macmillan Publishing Company, 1986).
Tomie dePaola’s Book of Poems, by
Tomie dePaola (Putnam Juvenile, 1988).
Where the Sidewalk Ends, by Shel Silverstein
(Harper & Row Publishers, 1974).
rhyme, taking a close look at the printed
words. Also ask the children to help you
think of other rhyming words.
• Extend vocabulary by introducing
synonyms that may not be as familiar to
the children and encouraging them to
suggest other words that could be used as
substitutions throughout the poem.
Listening to poetry
Find favorite poems and read them aloud
to the children. Talk about the reasons you
like the poems, their rhythm, the rhyming,
and so forth. Shel Silverstein’s poems are
always a big hit with children because of
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 65

66
their catchy rhymes and rhythms.
Here’s a quick example:
Bear in ere
ere’s a Polar Bear
In our Frigidaire —
He likes it ‘cause it’s cold in there.
With his seat in the meat
And his face in the sh
And his big hairy paws
In the buttery dish,
He’s nibbling the noodles,
He’s munching the rice,
He’s slurping the soda,
He’s licking the ice.
And he lets out a roar
If you open the door.
And it gives me a scare
To know he’s in there —
at Polary Bear
In our Fridgitydaire.
ere are plenty of wonderful poems
and nursery rhymes to choose from,
including Mother Goose nursery rhymes,
Jack Prelusky’s For Laughing Out Loud:
Poems to Tickle Your Funnybone, and
Deborah Chandra’s Balloons and Other
Poems. Ask the children the following
questions: Listen to the sounds carefully.
What sounds do you like? What pictures
come to mind when you hear the poem? How
does the poem make you feel? en gather
everyone up to dance to and pantomime a
familiar poem as you recite it together.
Writing with poetry
Teachers can write poetry with their class
as a shared writing activity. Create a poem
by making a list of things for which the
children are thankful. For example…
I am thankful for…
My mom
Because she loves me so much.
School
Because you learn a lot.
My grandpa
Because he spoils me.
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
Common poetry terms
Acrostics: a poem or series of lines in
which certain letters, usually the rst in
each line, form a word. The following is
an example using the word summer:
Sunshine pours through
Under my window shade
Morning is here
My mother whispers softly
Eager to rise
Relishing the day
Alliteration: The repetition of the
same or similar sounds at the beginning
of words, for example, Peter Piper
picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Couplet: a pair of lines that works as a
unit, usually rhymes, and forms a complete
thought.
Epic: a long, serious poem that tells the
story of heroic gures, for example, The
Iliad and The Odyssey, by Homer.
Free verse: a verse that does not follow
a xed metrical pattern.
Haiku: a type of Japanese poetry that
when written in English contains 17
syllables, ve syllables in the rst line,
seven in the second line, and ve in the
third line.
You can also try writing a sound
poem. Have the children answer several
questions about the sounds they hear.
Here are a few sample questions:
• Can you describe the sound?
• What does the sound make you think of?
• How do you feel when you hear the
sound?
Roll, boom
Swish, swish, boom
Swishing wind roars
Shaking the leaves and trees
Glad I am inside my warm house.
Poetry has the wonderful ability to
capture the imagination and attention of
young children with its interesting and
lyrical use of words, rhymes, and imagery.
To a child’s great delight, poetry — whether
Limerick: a humorous poem that is ve
lines long. Usually the rst, second, and last
lines have the same rhyme, while the third
and fourth rhyme.
Meter: the basic rhythmic structure of a
verse.
Onomatopoeia: a word or group of words
that imitates the sound it is describing,
such as buzz, meow, and gulp.
Stanza: a unit within a poem that consists
of an arrangement of a certain number of
lines, usually four or more, that often has a
xed length, meter, or rhyme scheme.
Verse: a line of a poem.
References
A Child’s Garden of Verses, Robert
Louis Stevenson (Charles Scribner’s
Sons, 1905).
Joyful Learning in Kindergarten,
Revised edition, by Bobbi Fisher
(Heinemann, 1998).
My toes are getting wrinkled,
M. Cunningham (Unpublished,
1973).
You Are My Sunshine (song),
by Davis, J. & Mitchell, C. (1931).
Where the Sidewalk Ends, by Shel
Silverstein, S. (Harper & Row
Publishers, 1974).
it’s about wrinkled toes, a sky that’s clear
and blue, or a polar bear in your Frigidaire
— will make learning about sounds and
language fun!
Melissa Stinnett, Ed.D., is assistant professor of
reading at Western Illinois University in the Department
of Curriculum and Instruction where
she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses.
She serves as governmental relations chair for
Western Illinois Reading Council. Stinnett has a
wealth of experience with early literacy instruction
and Reading Recovery and has taught
kindergarten, rst, and second grades. She is a
frequent presenter at state and national literacy
conferences.
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

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The NTI attracts multidisciplinary
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education, child welfare, family
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To learn more about the companies listed below
and their products and services, please visit their Web sites.
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Concordia University www.csp.edu ............................................page 52
Curriculum Associates www.CurriculumAssociates.com .....page 3
High/Scope Educational Research Foundation
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High/Scope Educational Research Foundation
www.highscope.org ...................................................................page 59
Lätsä Company www.latsa.com ...................................................page 32
NASCO www.eNasco.com ............................................................page 14
Pearson www.PearsonAssessments.com ....................................page 23
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Connecting Science, Policy and Practice:
Improving Outcomes for Infants
and Toddlers
The National Training Institute (NTI) is a comprehensive and multidisciplinary conference,
which focuses on cutting-edge research, best practices, and policy issues for infants,
toddlers, and families.
HIGHLIGHTS
■ Join the many experienced professionals who return year after year to this unique
multidisciplinary event that brings together the many related professions that
support infants, toddlers and their families
■ Dr. T. Berry Brazelton will be the speaker for the opening plenary
■ More than 72 workshops and training sessions from leading
experts in the field
■ Policy Initiatives to address the needs of the most vulnerable
infants and toddlers
■ Earn continuing education (CE) credits, sponsored by
The Institute for Continuing Education, and receive an
NTI Certificate of Attendance
Register now! Early Bird Registration Rates Available • http://www.zttnticonference.org/
Pearson www.PearsonAssessments.com ....................................page 43
Play with a Purpose www.pwaponline.com ..............................page 47
Playworld Systems www.PlayworldSystems.com .....................page 25
Preventative Dental www.prevdentspec.com ............................page 41
Rada Cutlery www.radacutlery.com ...........................................page 63
Robert-Leslie Publishing www.Robert-Leslie.com ..................cover 3
Source for Learning/Preschool First
www.preschool rst.com ..........................................................cover 2
Teaching Strategies www.teachingstrategies.com .....................cover 4
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION Back-to-School 2008 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 67

NHSA Conferences
e following contact information
applies to all NHSA conferences listed
in this section:
Contact: Lori Burke
National Head Start Association
1651 Prince Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 739-7557 Fax: (703) 739-0878
E-mail: lburke@nhsa.org
www.nhsa.org
3rd Annual Director’s Training
St. Louis, Missouri
October 26-30, 2008
Collaborative Governance: The Roles
of Governing Bodies and the Policy
Council
An NHSA Audioconference
November 18, 2008
3-4:30 p.m. ET
Examples of Unwise Gifts: Learn to
Stay Compliant
An NHSA Audioconference
December 2, 2008
3-4:30 p.m. ET
25th Annual Training Conference
Atlanta, Georgia
December 14-18, 2008
January Leadership Institute and
Board Meeting
Arlington, Virginia
January 26-29, 2009
36th Annual Training Conference
Orlando, Florida
April 27-May 2, 2009
National Meetings
NBCDI’s 38th Annual Conference
Atlanta, Georgia
October 25-28, 2008
Contact: Vicki Davis
National Black Child Development
Institute
1313 L Street, NW, Suite 110
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 833-2220
E-mail: moreinfo@nbcdi.org
www.nbcdi.org
2008 NAEYC Annual Conference
Dallas, Texas
November 5-8, 2008
National Association for the Education
of Young Children
1509 16th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
(800) 424-2460
www.naeyc.org
OF INTEREST TO THE HEAD START COMMUNITY
23rd National ZERO TO THREE
Training Institute
Los Angeles, California
December 5-7, 2008
ZERO TO THREE
2000 M Street, NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20036
www.zerotothree.org
Region II
Region II Head Start Association
Training Conference
San Juan, Puerto Rico
November 16-19, 2008
Region II Head Start Association
303-309 Washington Street
3rd Floor
Newark, NJ 07102
(973) 643-0300
E-mail: info@regioniiheadstart.org
Region III
Virginia Head Start Association
Annual Conference
Roanoke, Virginia
March 16-18, 2009
Virginia Head Start Association
P.O. Box 876
Lynchburg, VA 24505
(888) 848-3124
www.headstartva.org
PHSA Spring Conference
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
April 2-3, 2009
PHSA
3700 Vartan Way
Harrisburg, PA 17110
(717) 526-4646
E-mail: stateo ce@paheadstart.org
www.paheadstart.org
Region IV
Georgia Head Start Association’s
Annual Fall Conference
Dalton, Georgia
November 12-13, 2008
Georgia Head Start Association
P.O. Box 896
Sandersville, GA 31082
Phone: (478) 240-0925
RIVHSA Annual Training Conference
Atlanta, Georgia
February 2-5, 2009
Region IV Head Start Association
P.O. Box 409
Buford, Georgia 30515
(770) 891-2139
www.rivhsa.org
Region V
OHSAI Parent Leadership Institute
Columbus, Ohio
November 19-20, 2008
Ohio Head Start Association
144 Westpark Road
Dayton, Ohio 45459
(937) 435-1113 Fax: (937) 435-5411
www.ohsai.org
MHSA Parent Training Conference
Midland, Michigan
November 21, 2008
Michigan Head Start Association
530 W. Ionia, Suite F
Lansing, MI 48933
(517) 374-6472
www.mhsa.ws
OHSAI Board Meeting
Columbus, Ohio
December 3, 2008
Ohio Head Start Association
144 Westpark Road
Dayton, Ohio 45459
(937) 435-1113 Fax: (937) 435-5411
www.ohsai.org
OHSAI Social Work Conference
Columbus, Ohio
March 1, 2009
Ohio Head Start Association
144 Westpark Road
Dayton, Ohio 45459
(937) 435-1113 Fax: (937) 435-5411
www.ohsai.org
MHSA Annual Pre-Conference and
Conference
Kalamazoo, Michigan
March 11-13, 2009
Michigan Head Start Association
530 W. Ionia, Suite F
Lansing, MI 48933
(517) 374-6472
www.mhsa.ws
Region VII
MHSA Board Meeting
Columbia, Missouri
November 13, 2008
Missouri Head Start Association
223 SW Greenwich Drive, Suite 11
Lees Summit, MO 64082
(816) 537-7801
E-mail: MOHeadStart@comcast.net
www.MOHeadStart.org
KHSA Annual Conference
Salina, Kansas
November 14, 2008
Kansas Head Start Association
22521 W. 53rd Terrace
Shawnee, KS 66226
(913) 422-1700
E-mail: khsa.kc.rr.com
www.ksheadstart.org
Call for Events
Send your calendar items to be listed
in Children and Families.
Contact: Julie Antoniou
1651 Prince Street, Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 739-7561 Fax: (703) 739-0878
E-mail: julie@nhsa.org
KHSA Board Meeting
Salina, Kansas
January 7, 2009
Kansas Head Start Association
22521 W. 53rd Terrace
Shawnee, KS 66226
(913) 422-1700
E-mail: khsa.kc.rr.com
www.ksheadstart.org
Region VII Leadership Conference
Kansas City, Missouri
May 19-21, 2009
Region VII Head Start Association
122 Teton Ridge Drive
Lake Winnebago, MO 64034
(816) 537-7801
E-mail: r7hsa@aol.com
www.r7hsa.com
Region IX
General Membership Meeting &
Professional Leadership Training
San Francisco, California
October 13-14, 2008
Contact: Deidad Covarrubias
Region IX Head Start Association
4305 University Avenue, Suite 400
San Diego, CA 92105
(619) 228-2855
E-mail: info@r9hsa.org
AHSA General Board and Committee
Meetings
Tempe, Arizona
November 20, 2008
Arizona Head Start Association
3910 S. Rural Road, Suite K
Tempe, AZ 85282
(480) 829-8868
CHSA 7th Annual Parent Conference
San Diego, California
January 26-27, 2009
California Head Start Association
1107 9th Street, Suite 301
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 444-7760 Fax: (916) 444-2257
www.caheadstart.org
E-mail: ed@caheadstart.org
CHSA 11th Annual Education
Conference
San Diego, California
January 28-30, 2009
California Head Start Association
1107 9th Street, Suite 301
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 444-7760 Fax: (916) 444-2257
www.caheadstart.org
E-mail: ed@caheadstart.org
68 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES Back-to-School 2008
THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

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