Coconino County Superintendent of Schools Robert Kelty is pleased to announce the First Things First Kindergarten Transition Grant has been awarded to the Coconino County Superintendent of Schools Office. The $190,229.68 grant will provide a kindergarten transition program across the county to ensure school readiness for qualified youth. The Coconino County Superintendent of Schools’ Office will be contracting with the United Way of Northern Arizona to scale the “KinderCamp” model throughout Flagstaff, Fredonia, Page, and Williams.
The KinderCamp program is a targeted intervention for school-readiness designed to help children and families with limited resources prepare for the transition into the educational system. KinderCamp accomplishes this goal by:
- ·Building social and emotional skills that support learning such as following directions, taking turns, relating with others, and learning in a classroom with other children;
- ·Increase pre-literacy and math skills;
- ·Creating an environment that fosters independent-thinking by allowing each child to experience learning by manipulating, investigating, asking questions, and taking risks;
- ·Making families more comfortable with a formal school setting by familiarizing them with resources, teachers, staff, and routines; and
- ·Providing a collaborative environment for preschool and kindergarten teachers to work together to share knowledge, expertise, and best practices for teaching students and preparing for the transition into kindergarten.
County School Superintendent Robert Kelty would like to thank the Coconino Regional Council of First Things First, the state board of First Things First, and the United Way of Northern Arizona for granting and assisting his office to ensure the best educational opportunities for every child in Coconino County.
For more information, contact the Superintendent of Schools Office at (928)679-8070.