27th June 2018: Newsletter no. 7

You are about to ready the last (seventh) newsletter of the Good Start to School (GSS) project, which is coordinated by the Nakladatelství Dr. Josef Raabe publishing house. It is an international  European Erasmus+ project, which falls within Key Action 2 (KA2), with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary as participating countries. Project partners include the branches of the Raabe publishing house in Hungary and Slovakia, Masaryk University in Brno, Kindergarten Maršovice, Kindergarten Čtyřlístek in Prague, Kindergarten and Elementary School Pilsen-Božkov, Kindergarten and Elementary School Jan Amos Comenius in Bratislava and Kindergarten Fasori Kicsinyek in Budapest.

What is new with us?

At the end of June 2018, the Good Start to School project will come to an end after 33 months. The objective of the project was:

  • to support the social-emotional development of the child in the kindergarten during the entire length of kindergarten attendance;
  • to facilitate the transition of the child from kindergarten to primary school;
  • to support communication between the kindergarten and the parents.

The project led to the creation of top-quality outputs, which are intended mainly for kindergarten teachers. The last stages are currently underway of project promotion and project outputs dissemination. We also plan to carry out further promotion of the project outputs.

Outputs of the Good Start to School project.

The project outputs are available in four languages (Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, English). More than 4,500 printed copies of the project outputs have been distributed among kindergartens in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. All outputs are also available for free download on the project website http://www.goodstarttoschool.eu in the “Project Outputs” section.

PREDICT

The diagnostic and evaluation tool is intended for the continuous recording and evaluation of the education progress of the child in kindergarten, or rather of the development of the child’s key competences. It meets the practical requirements for monitoring and recording during the entire length of the child’s kindergarten attendance. The results of the evaluation of the child can be recorded in a flexible manner in line with the preference of the individual teacher.

METHODOLOGY FOR TEACHERS

This handbook for kindergarten teachers contains information on the diagnostic and evaluation tool PREDICT, including instructions on how to work with the PREDICT tool in both its printed and electronic form. The publication introduces to the teacher the diagnostic methods used in kindergarten, it deals with the communication between the kindergarten and the parents, and it provides numerous examples from practice, as well as practical samples in the form of annexes.

METHODLOGY FOR PARENTS

This guide through the evaluation of the child in a clear and understandable manner introduces to the parents how kindergarten teachers work with children on their social-emotional development using the PREDICT toll, and how beneficial cooperation and good-quality communication between the kindergarten and the parents is for the development of the child.

ELECTRONIC FORM OF THE PREDICT TOOL

The electronic version of the evaluation and diagnostic tool PREDICT allows for simple visualization of the measured results, and for a clear and easy-to-follow presentation of the results for the individual child, as well as for the entire class in the Excel format. The visualization of the results is an effective tool that can be used in the conversation of the teacher with the parent, or in consultation hours.

International Dissemination Conference

In the final stages of the project, three international dissemination conferences were held the objective of which was to introduce the interested (not only) teaching public to the GSS project and its final outputs. The conferences were attended by more than 400 visitors, who witnessed:

  • an introduction of the Good Start to School project
  • a detailed introduction of the project outputs
  • experience with the GSS tool from the point of view of the kindergarten teacher
  • a presentation of the electronic form of the PREDICT toll and its benefits

During the conference workshops, the visitors could find out more about:

  • how to use the GSS project outputs in practice
  • how to work with the electronic version of the PREDICT tool

The project conferences were held in Prague in Prague on 17th April 2018, in Budapest on 17th May 2018 and in Senec on 7th and 8th June 2018. Contributions given by speakers from our partner organizations drew the interest of the visitors. Kindergartens were also interested in our project outputs, and they are planning to use them in practice. We are glad that we managed to achieve the objectives of the conferences.

What is ahead of us?

The project is now at its end. What is its future? The outputs will be available for free download in electronic form on the project website, and on the Erasmus+ platform. We will be very pleased if our project outputs are used by as many kindergartens as possible. We are planning to continue to promote the project and its outputs at lectures, seminars and further activities where we meet with kindergarten teachers. We sincerely hope that PREDICT, Methodology for Teachers, and Handbook for Parents will provide real support and inspiration to all users.

Where you can reach us

The Good Start to School is presented through the following channels:

Use our outputs and give us feedback on how you enjoy working with them!

We wish you all a great summer!

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