Category Archives: Preschool

‘Week of the Young Child’ addresses the needs of our littlest learners

 

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The week of April 10-16 is the Week of the Young Child, an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) to put a public spotlight on the needs of young children and address those needs through early childhood programs and services.

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HISD seeking families and home instructors for HIPPY program

HISD’s Family and Community Engagement department is still recruiting families and part-time home instructors to work with the Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) program for the 2015–2016 school year.

HIPPY is a school readiness program for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children that helps parents prepare their preschoolers for academic success. Instructors visit parents in their homes for an hour a week over a 30-week period during the school year, and model research-based learning activities designed to help Pre-K children develop skills in reading, math, and science. Parents then practice the activities with their children over the week until they learn a new activity during the next lesson. Children whose parents participate in the program consistently outperform their peers in reading and math in kindergarten and first grade.

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Arabic-speaking parents and students can now access resources in Arabic online

First day of class at the Arabic Immersion Magnet School, August 24, 2015.

First day of class at the Arabic Immersion Magnet School, August 24, 2015.

Arabic-speaking parents in HISD will now be able to access various resources on the district’s website in the Arabic language. The new section will be accessible from the top right corner of the district’s website, in the same way that resources in Spanish and Vietnamese can be accessed.

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HISD home visiting program to help hundreds of families prepare children for preschool

The Houston Independent School District this week will begin offering in-home lessons to hundreds of new families from across the district in an effort to help parents better prepare their children for preschool.

The lessons are part of the district’s Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters — or HIPPY program. As part of the program, HIPPY home instructors models simple educational activities for parents to practice with their 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds.

The one-hour, weekly lessons span 30 weeks and cover early literacy skills, mathematics, science, fine and gross motor skills, and language development. Research shows that HISD kindergarten students whose parents have participated in the HIPPY program significantly outperform their peers in reading and math. Continue reading →

HIPPY parent turned home instructor describes experience as ‘great opportunity’

As fall approaches, the Family and Community Engagement Department is busy recruiting 15 part-time home instructors to work with the HIPPY program for the 2015–2016 school year. The program was recently awarded a $6.5 million grant from the Health and Human Services Texas Home Visiting program to expand to schools across the district, serving almost 1,400 families.

Home instructors play a vital role in delivering the program. Over 30 weeks, home instructors visit the parents of preschool-aged children, delivering research-based curriculum in reading, math, and science to ensure students are ready to start kindergarten and succeed in school. We spoke with Veronica Herrera, a former HIPPY parent turned home instructor, to find out more about the job. Continue reading →

HISD seeking home instructors for HIPPY program

HISD’s Family and Community Engagement department is recruiting 15 part-time home instructors to work with the HIPPY program for the 2015–2016 school year.

Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) is a school readiness program for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children that helps parents prepare their preschoolers for academic success. Instructors visit parents in their homes for an hour a week over a 30-week period during the school year, and model research-based learning activities designed to help Pre-K children develop skills in reading, math, and science. Parents then practice the activities with their children over the week until they learn a new activity during the next lesson. Children whose parents participate in the program consistently outperform their peers in reading and math in kindergarten and first grade. Continue reading →

St. George Place featured in governor’s new video

When Gov. Greg Abbott outlines his emergency items as governor in a new video, early education takes the top spot, along with one of HISD’s elementary schools. Abbott toured pre-K, kindergarten, and first-grade classrooms at the School at St. George Place on Feb. 26, 2015, and met with district leaders afterward. Read more about his proposal to allocate $200 million to fund half-day pre-K programs throughout Texas here.

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Governor bolsters commitment to pre-K funding with visit to HISD

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Days after making early childhood education his top priority upon taking office, Gov. Greg Abbott visited an HISD elementary pre-K program and renewed his call for state support in providing a solid foundation for the state’s youngsters.

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Preschool families treated to a children’s museum visit

Almost 500 HISD families participated in interactive learning activities with their preschool children at the Children’s Museum of Houston on Thursday, Dec. 11. The free visit to the museum was funded and organized by the HISD office of Family and Community Engagement as part of its Home Instruction for the Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) program.

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