Illinois Early Learning Project – Early Math Counts

Get Ready For Change in 2015

Early Math Counts — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 17:59:52 +0000

Next week, we say goodbye to our dear old Governor Quinn and usher in a new Governor by the name of Rauner (in case you hadn’t heard). I think things may get interesting in the State of Illinois. However, this new Governor has a reputation for caring deeply about young children and education, so I am hopeful and remain open-minded about the changes that are sure to come.

Many of you might also know that the new Governor’s wife is an early childhood professional and has been in the field for years and years. This might tether him to our world in a way that nothing else can.

There is a lot of money coming into our state earmarked for early childhood education initiatives. If you are not completely up to date on all of these exciting projects and advancements, check out the Illinois Early Learning Project website. They publish a periodic newsletter that provides up-to-the-minute information about all sorts of early childhood goings on in the state, as well as tons of links to interesting resources, access to professional development and trainings, and videos.

Check it out.

Get ready for change in 2015.

Big Blocks and Learning

Early Math Counts — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 14:09:41 +0000

There’s a lot of money rolling into the State of Illinois because of the Race to the Top initiatives, and a nice big chunk of that has been set aside for early learning.

One of the products of this work is the Illinois Early Learning Project, which includes a website where you can find “evidence-based, reliable information on early care and education for parents, caregivers, and teachers of young children in Illinois.”

Last week, they posted this video of young children playing with the big blocks for an extended time. The video is really great. You can see how he is planning to use the blocks, picking each block carefully, sorting through his choices and making calculated decisions. As the other children come over, you can see them working cooperatively as they build.

When his mother asks him prompting questions, you hear him expressing his thinking, planning, strategizing. It is quite remarkable,

Click here to see the video.

Over the past 2 years I have written about blocks as one of my favorite materials in the ece classroom. You can revisitone of those posts here.

Illinois Parents

Early Math Counts — Fri, 13 Jun 2014 10:14:58 +0000

Have you informed your parents about the webpage specifically designed just for them?

IllinoisParents.org is loaded with information for parents of young children in Illinois. There, they will find resources, events, community partnerships, and local/regional hotline phone numbers. Funded by the Illinois State Board of Education and the Early Learning First grant, this resource might be useful for your parents.

Let them know about it.

Maintaining the Home Language

Early Math Counts — Fri, 04 Apr 2014 10:18:23 +0000

Last week, the Illinois Early Learning Project posted an article about the importance of maintaining children’s home languages while in childcare. This practice leads to greater success in reading in English later on.

Check it out here.

Illinois Prevention Initiative Manual 2013

Early Math Counts — Wed, 04 Dec 2013 19:34:21 +0000

The Illinois Early Learning Project has just published the Illinois Prevention Initiative Manual for 2013.

This was developed for directors and administrators in the continuous improvement of their birth – 3 programs.

Take a look!

Illinois Early Learning Project

Early Math Counts — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 20:00:22 +0000

Sometimes, we forget about all of the resources that are available to us as early childhood professionals. I love this page because it has a comprehensive list of all of the great resources that the State of Illinois has to offer. In addition to easy-to-read descriptions of the various partners, there are contact names with phone numbers. I really appreciate an organization that provides me with the means to actually speak to a real, live human being.