COUNTDOWN TO KINDERGARTEN

Program Goals

• to increase the successful transition of South Carolina's most at-risk children into the K-12 school system
• to increase parent involvement in the early grades (particularly in hard-to-reach communities), when children's learning is foundational for life success
• to increase public awareness of the importance of school readiness and provide ways for parents and communities to impact children's early school success.

Program Components

Home Visitation- Teachers make six visits over the summer to the homes of participating students and families. Children and families are introduced to actual materials used in kindergarten and are given a Kindergarten Transition Toolkit to keep. 

Learning Celebration- The last visit is a "field trip" to the school where the child will attend class in the fall. 

Public Awareness- Throughout the summer, First Steps releases tips to media to help parents and caregivers get children ready for kindergarten. 

CTK Schools

• J.L. Cain, St. John's, and Pate Elementary schools, Darlington
• Lamar-Spaulding Elementary, Lamar
• Rosenwald Elementary, Society Hill
• Southside Early Childhood Center, Hartsville

Darlington County School District place all CTK children in their home visitor's classroom for kindergarten, thereby building upon the teacher-child and parent-teacher relationships built over the summer.

Why CTK is Important

"Pre- and post-survey results show that home visits had a significant positive impact on the frequency of parent-child interactions around early numeracy, reading and early literacy, and arts and crafts activities. Long-term results reported by teachers of Countdown students include stronger school participation among families served by the program as measured in terms of student attendance, parent-teacher conferences, and parent volunteering."

 - Teacher College, Columbia University