Training Modules: Success Stories

From Teaming participants:

"Everyone on the team got to know each other better.  The 'Whole Picture' exercise supported our differences as well as acknowledged how each one of us brings a piece of the whole to the group."  Head Start Teacher

"We will benefit by learning how to slow down and be a little more organized and stay on task. We kept our ground rules simple and easy for us all to follow."  Teacher

"I am really seeing a crossover into other areas of my life. I had a discussion with a parent last night and was able to use my listening skills to better understand her issues. The cultural barriers that were there before seemed to disappear." Teacher

"The production of a Team Charter was one of the most collaborative efforts by our team in the five years I have been with them. It was extremely impressive how proud everyone was of the final product! We identified students as our top priority and recognizing the value of each team member was second. This gave everyone a feeling a value and strengthened our commitment to the team."  Teacher

"Compared to a year ago the current meetings are actually accomplishing something versus just coming together to whine and "blow off steam". Although being able to vent is important, it seemed as though our team was just existing rather than showing any accomplishments." Teacher

"It was helpful to go through and focus attention to the ways that we make decisions. I found the classifications of important/unimportant helpful to analyze what we do on a daily basis. I think there is value in spending time on the unimportant things. We have become a close team because we spend time on each other's interests"  Teacher

"I've appreciated the identifications of shark, fox, etc. We know our "shark" now and we are now able to joke when there is a "shark attack" and sing the Jaws theme song.  When our teddy bear is being too soft and gentle on an issue the team has been able to say, "Well, there's our teddy bear!" It has just been helpful to us to have new ways to understand each other."  Teacher

Overall Remarks

"Thanks for the opportunity to take the course. It definitely served a valuable purpose. We have not felt good about our meetings for a couple of years. Just felt like we were spinning our wheels. Now we have a focus and course of action for each day. It will have a positive effect." Teacher

"The module is powerful because it gives us the chance to focus on what we do and use our own experiences as an established team." Teacher

"This has given me a lot of ideas for the myriad other committees that I am on." Teacher

From the Early Literacy and Sharing Literacy participants and their Administrators:

 “The Early Literacy module has helped our staff in meeting the mandated outcomes for language and literacy development.  We have noticed increased presentation of literacy and language in the classroom environments, increased literacy enhancement activities for children, and parent education activities regarding children and family literacy.”  Head Start administrator

"I think all of us have had a chance to increase our reading and writing activities. This experience has given us a great opportunity to share ideas we are using in our classrooms with others in the group. I know that I will incorporate the other's ideas into my lesson plans and am looking forward to my classroom experiencing a more print-rich environment." Head Start Teacher

“We discovered how many resources we can ‘tap’ into for student growth.  We’re integrating reading and writing throughout the classroom.” Head Start Teacher

“This [Chapter Three: Supporting Young Readers and Writers] helped us realize how we all serve as models for reading and writing – no matter what our professional roles are.”  School District Early Childhood Special Educator

"This material is very practical. The suggestions are things that people without a lot of time and money could actually make happen and there's good information that will help us respond to families. It covers questions parents really ask." Head Start Family Advocate

“Our collaboration last year allowed us to present the training to 22 child care providers that in turn touched over 170 families.  The support and communication from the BEST Project was phenomenal.  They were always prompt, efficient and knowledgeable with all communication.  In fact, our training went so that we received additional funding from the local school district to again partner with BEST and offer two additional Early Literacy trainings.”  Child Care Resource and Referral Program Manager 

“I never really read to the kids before.  Now we read every day.  I read the story to them, and then they take turns reading to me.  They like being read to and they like reading to me.  Child Care Provider

“Literacy has always been incorporated in my program, but now stronger than ever.  I’ve learned many different ways to teach literacy to young ones.  I will continue to use what I’ve learned and incorporate it in my daily routine with all the children in my care.”  Family Day Dare Provider

“The [Sharing Literacy] training brought research-based literacy practices to six Even Start programs and their collaborative partners, in teams that included Even Start staff, classroom teachers, school district administrators,  and school/community librarians.  I have received feedback from the teams that the training is relevant, timely, well-designed, user-friendly and easily understood by professional educators and lay-persons.” Even Start Family Literacy State Coordinator

“This chapter [Motivating and Supporting Literacy with Preschoolers] gave me a variety of ways to integrate reading and writing in all the classroom areas and helped me incorporate a variety of learners and learning styles.”  Even Start Teacher.

“The statement [in Chapter Two: Developing Young Children’s Vocabulary and Background Knowledge] says it all: ‘If we want families to make conversations a more meaningful part of their everyday life, we should be ready with sensible suggestions of times and places that provide opportunities to talk.’  The Talking Topics cards that follow are fantastic and very easy to apply toward many situations.”  Even Start Staff Member

“The ‘Family Fun with Letters and Sounds’ handouts were very helpful.  This will definitely help me for activities for home visits, parenting ideas and for use with ESL students.”  Even Start Preschool Teacher/Home Visitor

From Challenging Behavior participants and their administrators:

“One of the children in our class seemed to have a really hard time getting along with others.  When we did the observations and environmental assessment from the module, we discovered that most of the problems occurred when children were clustered too closely together.  We worked together to rearrange the room and the play spaces and most of the negative behaviors disappeared.  We could then focus on teaching the child more positive skills.”  Head Start Teacher

“Our team is now united in our positive approach to challenging behavior and our expectations for children.”  Head Start Teacher

“We found it easy to understand and apply the positive behavioral support plan.   We’ve learned the importance of gathering and recording individual information and using it to develop individualized plans.”  Head Start Teacher

“The directions throughout the module were clear and allowed time for discussion relevant to actual classroom experiences.”  Head Start Administrator

"I love the positive approach - it was very affirming." Head Start Teacher

"This helped me learn a lot about the teachers I work with and become more aware of the challenges they face."  Head Start Classroom Aide

"This showed us we can be a positive resource for caregivers who are struggling with challenging behavior."  Head Start Teacher

[The module showed us that] areas of improvement are attainable and necessary to fulfilling the needs of all children. Head Start Teacher

The [Skills and Attitudes] checklist was comprehensive and a great way to talk about our program and services for children and families. When we revisited the checklist [at the end of the training] it helped us see where we had progressed as a team, and showed us how much better we understood each other's roles." Head Start Team