Teaching children how to count before kindergarten can save millions of dollars in the long-term, according to a recent study.
Students entering kindergarten who are not ready for school cost Minnesota about $113 million each year, according to a study by St.Paul-based Wilder Research, which also found that many students fail to catch up with their peers.
The findings aren't surprising to those working in Rochester public schools' early childhood programs, who screen every child before kindergarten, a state law since 1992.
Peggy O'Toole-Martin, Rochester's Early Childhood Family Services program manager, said it's crucial for children to learn concepts like shape, color and letter recognition before they enter kindergarten. The screenings also review social and emotional health.
It's vital for children to be screened at about 3 years old in case they need additional help, she said.
"When you walk into a kindergarten class, and one child can count to 20, but another child doesn't know numbers, you can already see that the child who can count to 20 is going to be off and running," O'Toole-Martin said. "It's amazing what can happen in the early childhood years."
According to the study, schools statewide annually lose an estimated:
• $42 million due to lost aid because of dropouts
• $28.9 million in teacher-related costs linked to turnover, absenteeism and poor conditions
• $24.4 million for special education and grade repetition
• $11 million to teach English-language learners who were unprepared
• $6 million on safety measures due to delinquent behavior
One way Rochester schools are hoping to catch students before they fall behind is through early childhood screenings -- where district staff can direct parents to receive help in several different areas. Rochester's early childhood screening received a boost from a $450,000, three-year grant from the Minnesota Early Learning Foundation and have received support from Rochester Area Foundation's First Steps program. The screenings are free for parents.
Four-year-old Olivia Njogu eagerly awaited her screening test last week by scribbling in a coloring book. Before she entered the screening room to identify letters and shapes, she used a red crayon to fill in an apple and an "A."
Similar to the coloring books and toys on the outside of the screening room, staff frame the assessment under the pretense of different games, rather than eye and hearing tests.
"It's not a test to get into kindergarten," O'Toole-Martin said. "It's designed to look at children to see if we're on target. ... It's not a test, it's a snapshot in time."
Last fall, 97 percent of Rochester students entering kindergarten had already been screened. That number jumped from roughly 80 percent in 2007.
Audrey Colligan brought her 3-year-old son Alex to be screened last week. When she brought her 5-year-old Jalynn for a screening more than a year ago, district staff discovered that the young girl needed glasses. To help her kids prepare for kindergarten, Colligan outfitted the kitchen fridge with magnetic letters and reads often with Alex and Jalynn.
That is exactly what parents should be doing, O'Toole-Martin said.