School-Parent Compact 2024-2025

Early Childhood Center

Meeting and Exceeding Expectations! Preschool Through Kindergarten🥇

Through the implementation of Preschool Intervention and Referral Team (PIRT) strategies, coaching, and professional development opportunities, our goal is for all preschool students who receive instruction aligned to the curriculum to achieve an increase in their literacy, math, science, social studies, technology skills, and social-emotional learning skills (pyramid model) by June 2025.

Through the implementation of coaching and professional development opportunities, our goal is for all Kindergarten students who receive instruction aligned with the curriculum to achieve an increase in their literacy and math skills by June 2025.

In order to ensure high-quality education for our young students, we have created a thorough assessment plan for our Kindergarten students. At the beginning of the school year, our qualified teachers or paraprofessionals will conduct the Brigance assessment to establish a baseline for students' skills in the developmental domains of physical, language, academic, and cognitive development. We recognize the significance of language in learning, and therefore, the assessment will be conducted in the child's native language if needed (by bilingual instructors).

We have adopted STAR assessment that is aligned with the NJ State standards to benchmark our kindergarten students. This benchmarking process gives our teachers valuable data to personalize instruction in ELA and Math. The STAR diagnostic seamlessly integrates with the intervention tool Freckle, and it will play a key role in our daily WIN periods. Exciting stuff!

What Is a School-Parent Compact?

The School-Parent Compact for Achievement is a collaborative agreement between parents, students, and teachers. Its purpose is to outline how all parties involved can work together to ensure that students meet grade-level standards. At the Early Childhood Center the parents and staff worked together to develop this compact, with teachers from different disciplines such as ESL, Special Education, and General Education contributing their expertise. By building strong relationships and fostering effective communication, we aim to create a supportive and positive learning environment for all students.

Many Exciting Learning Opportunities📚🔬

Core Language Language Arts (CKLA) Pilot: Staff will pilot a new program that is based around the Science of Reading. The curriculum committee that was formed last year analyzed this program, and went to the Saddle Brook School District to see it in action, so we are very excited about this opportunity.
Professor In Residence (PIR) Ms. Barbara Diaz: Ms. Diaz will be in our school every week coaching and working with our students, preschool and kindergarten instructors on differentiation, centers, and ELA and Math.
What is W.I.N. Time? W.I.N stands for ‘Whatever I Need.’ W.I.N. time is a period of time during the school day that enables students to get what they need, when they need it. This could include academic support, social-emotional support, enrichment activities, and more. The beautiful aspect of W.I.N. time is that it can be as flexible or structured needed.
Title I Schedules around WIN periods: Ms. Bruno, our Title I instructor will be scheduled in classrooms to work with all students in small groups. The “WIN” periods is a time when Ms. Bruno will be personalizing instruction to further meet the unique needs of each learner. It is a time of reinforcement, support, and/or enrichment.
Reading Groups: Academic staff will be assigned to readers and meet with students in small groups. We will utilize MCLASS and the DIBELS to determine reading levels, motivate and empower our young readers.
The Greatness Project (DREAMS) is focused on developing a Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum based on the Nurtured Heart Approach (NHA) framework. The curriculum is designed to be a "train-the-trainer" model, which will equip educators with the tools and resources they need to effectively teach SEL to their students. Our aim is to create a comprehensive and evidence-based curriculum that promotes emotional well-being, self-awareness, and interpersonal skills, among other key areas of focus.

Learn More About DIBLES

Official DIBELS Home Page

DIBELS ® (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) is a set of procedures and measures for assessing the acquisition of literacy skills. DIBELS 8th Edition represents the culmination of decades of research into supporting students in becoming successful readers.

dibels.uoregon.edu

Developing Resiliency with Engaging Approaches to Maximize Success (DREAMS) Program

The DREAMS Program provides trauma-informed and healing-centered supports to schools.

nj.gov

What Is the Science of Reading?

Years of have research have offered insight into the best ways to teach and learn reading. But what is the science of reading? Find out here.

weareteachers.com

The Elementary Secondary Education Act (The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2016)

On December 18, 2015 , President Obama signed into law the Every Student Succeed of 2016, reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. This is the text of the legislation.

www2.ed.gov

Teachers, Parents, Students-Together For Success

Offer math and literacy workshops during the school year for parents. Parents can collaborate with teachers on strategies that they can implement at home.
Offer technology nights for parents to learn how to access and navigate Genesis, Class DoJo, and Genesis.
A Newcomer program will continue to assist families in navigating the educational process.
A Back-to-School-Night 'kick-off' the school year.
Scheduled Parent-Teacher conferences during the school year.

Parent Outreach Opportunities

Parent-Teacher Conferences
ECC School Newsletter
Family SEL Night
Attendance Workshops
Family ELA/Math Night
Family ESL Night

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Communication About Student Learning

The Early Childhood Center is committed to frequent two-way communication with families about their children's learning. Some ways you can expect us to reach you are:

Trimester/Seasonal ECC newsletters outlining activities & happenings
Updates on the district's website
Parent-Teacher Conferences
Back-To-School Night
Palisades Park Schools Web Page
Parent Nights 2-3 times per year

As Parents We Will

Check my child's weekly homework folder and ensure that assignments are completed and returned
Ensure my child is well rested and attends school regularly
Attend family/parent meetings when offered by the ECC
Visit the District's website to apprise myself of my child's progress
Have fun with math and reading. Use materials teachers provide to enrich my child's experience with academics
Look for each trimester's ECC's newsletter and note the various activities offered

Attendance Matters

10 Facts About School Attendance

Absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year. Half the students who miss 2-4 days in September go on to miss nearly a month of school.
Absenteeism and its ill effects start early.
Consistent attendance is crucial for ensuring that children read proficiently by the end of third grade and are not held back. Therefore, it is important to establish good attendance habits early on to promote reading proficiency.By 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school.
Research shows that missing 10 percent of the school, or about 18 days in most school districts, negatively affects a student’s academic performance. That’s just two days a month and that’s known as chronic absence.
When students improve their attendance rates, they improve their academic prospects and chances for graduating.