Getting Ready: Promoting School Readiness through a Relationship-Based Partnership Model

Authors

Susan M. Sheridan, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Christine Marvin, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Lisa Knoche, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Carolyn P. Edwards, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

2008

Citation

Sheridan, S.M., Marvin, C., Knoche, L., & Edwards, C.P. (2008). Getting Ready: Promoting school readiness through a relationship-based partnership model. In Innocenti, M., Guest Editor, Early Childhood Services, Special Issue on Young Children’s Relationships, 2(3), 149-172.

Comments

Copyright (c) 2008 Plural Publishing, Inc.

Abstract

School readiness is determined by the life experiences of young children between birth and enrollment in formal education programs. Early intervention and education programs designed to promote school readiness often focus on skills a child fails to demonstrate that are believed to be of importance to social and academic success. The Getting Ready model of early childhood intervention (Sheridan, Edwards, & Knoche, 2003) recognizes the transactional nature of young children’s development and the important role parents play in pre-school readiness and school-age success. In the Getting Ready model, collaborative partnerships between parents and professionals are encouraged to promote parent’s competence and confidence in maximizing children’s natural learning opportunities, and preparing both parents and children for long-term school success. Parent-child interactions in everyday experiences, mutual observations and goal-directed problem solving, and young children’s successful development constitute the input, processes and outcomes of the Getting Ready model. The empirical rationale for and specific components of the model are described, with practice implications embedded throughout this paper.