VKRP Family Resources
It takes a village to help children learn and grow! When families and teachers work together, it helps to foster authentic home-school connections that can last far beyond early childhood.
Families are children’s first and forever teachers, and family involvement in education can make a profound difference in early learning outcomes. Working together ensures that teachers understand each child’s needs and home environment. Good communication provides families with information about what their child is learning in the classroom so they can reinforce those skills at home.
The Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP) has created materials that provide opportunities for teachers and families to connect about children’s early skills.
How can data be shared with families?
The VKRP Family Information Report provides a brief overview of VKRP, includes information about why it is important, and shows children’s scores in the different learning domains and what the scores mean. Specifically, for kindergarten, students’ scores in the four assessed areas are provided – literacy (PALS-K summed score), mathematics, self-regulation, and social skills. The benchmark for each learning domain is shown, and information is given about how to interpret children’s scores relative to the benchmark.
The Family Information Report is similar for pre-kindergarten students. Because there is no summed score currently for the Pre-K Language & Literacy Screener (VALLS: Pre-K), families are directed to ask teachers for more information about children’s literacy scores. Additionally, benchmark information is not included for mathematics, self-regulation, and social skills in pre-kindergarten, but families are provided with information about what their child’s score means.
When does VKRP recommend sharing data with families?
In consultation with program, school, and division leaders, educators make the decision on how best to share VKRP data with families. In order to gather varied perspectives, the VKRP team spoke with families and educators to better understand their thoughts on how and when to share VKRP data. With their help, the following recommendations were suggested:
- Consider sharing VKRP data during teacher-family conferences. Families shared that they were excited to meet with their child’s teacher to learn more about the VKRP assessments and how to support their child at home. Conferences are a time when teachers are already discussing student development with families, and sharing information from assessments like VKRP can provide a more comprehensive picture of the students’ skills and/or progress during the school year.
- Develop a consistent approach to sharing VKRP reports. If one teacher in a school shares VKRP reports with families and others do not, some families may end up feeling excluded from information that could help them support their child’s development. Having a consistent approach across all teachers within a school can ensure that all families can access the information they need.
What resources are available for families?
VKRP has resources available to help families support the development of foundational skills. Families can use Family Resource Packet to help their children practice their mathematics, self-regulation, and social skills at home. These resources are available in the fall and the spring as well as in English and Spanish for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students.
Where can I find the Family Information Report and Family Resource Packet?
To access the Family Information Report for a student:
- After an assessment is completed, the scores are reflected on the Classroom Overview Report
- While on the Classroom Overview Report, click on the student’s name to see their Student Overview
- While on the Student Overview page, the Family Information Report appears on the left-hand navigation bar.
- Click the Family Information Report version needed to go to that report.
A link to the Family Resource Packet is available at the bottom of each Family Information Report and is found on the VKRP web portal under Understanding Reports.
Additionally, the Family Resource Packet can be accessed on the VKRP public website here along with several carefully vetted resources that teachers can share with families to help them support skill development at home.
Our colleagues at the Virginia Literacy Partnerships (VLP) also offer a family resources webpage located here.
The VKRP team is so grateful to educators for their commitment and dedication to Virginia’s youngest learners and their families!
More Questions for the VKRP Team? VKRP provides support via the online chat feature when you are in the system, via email vkrp@virginia.edu, and via toll free 866-301-8278
