Motley early-childcare provider honored
Angela Dobson of Motley was honored recently by Parent Aware for School Readiness (PASR) for using kindergarten-readiness best practices in her business.
Dobson has been doing licensed home childcare for 12 years. She is in the process of completing her four stars to obtain a Parent Aware Rating.
According to a press release, Dobson’s business was one of five in northern-Minnesota to be honored by PASR.
“These folks really deserve a lot of credit for doing the right thing for Minnesota’s youngest children,” said Ericca Maas, Executive Director of PASR, a non-profit that supports the ratings. “It’s one thing to make claims about quality, but these providers are proving that they are actually using best practices.”
The Parent Aware Ratings are a Consumer Reports-like service that helps parents find child care and preschools in their area that are using kindergarten-readiness best practices.
The best practices measured by the ratings include use of proven, evidence-based curriculum, teacher training, teaching materials and teaching methods.
“I’ve worked in this field for a long time and I have a hard time spotting these best practices just by a quick visit,” said Maas. “The Parent Aware Ratings help parents know who is using best practices, something that is nearly impossible for most parents like me to spot on our own.”
PASR notes that up to 90 percent of brain development occurs before age five, making the first five years of life a critically important time to have children in stimulating learning environments.
Dobson and the other honorees have been given a number of tools to promote their rating, such as yard signs, banners, window stickers and a customized web video. An ad campaign also promotes providers with ratings. In addition, providers may also be able to serve children receiving millions of dollars worth of state-government-funded Early Learning Scholarship, which can only be used with Parent Aware-rated programs.
Preschool programs with a Four-Star Rating:
o Excel in the use of most of the practices that best prepare children for kindergarten.
o Are committed to school readiness by using best practices in child assessment; and always working toward making instruction more individualized, stimulating and language-rich in order to promote critical thinking.
o Have education credentials, are committed to ongoing professional development and have volunteered for additional training.
o Develop strong relationships with families by doing most of the following: sharing assessment results, helping them access family support services; and providing information in parents’ primary languages.
Other area Four-Star Parent Aware Rated Programs include the Staples-Motley School District’s Preschool Programs: School Readiness, Head Start, ECSE (Early Childhood Special Education) and Little Cardinals Academy; and Sacred Heart Area Preschool in Staples.
