You’ve probably heard about “Common Core.” Its official name is “The Common Core State Standards Initiative.”
The first thing you should know about the Common Core Standards and the associated Common Core Assessments is they are much harder than previous standards and assessments.
The goal of Common Core is to create consistency, and to break out, in detail, exactly what students need to know at the end of each grade. This starts in Kindergarten and goes through 12th grade. In Florida, they changed the name to Florida State Standards — with very minor changes to the Common Core Standards.
The idea is that with consistent standards, students who are graduated from high school will be ready to go to college, or to take a full-time job.
It has been sponsored by the National Governors Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO).
What Common Core Means To You
The bottom line… school work gets much harder, more quickly. The higher standards for high school graduation mean the standards flow backwards through each grade. In each grade the work gets tougher.
- Students who are running into challenges today will soon be challenged even more.
- Smart students who struggle and are falling behind will fall behind more quickly.
- Parents will need to pay closer attention than ever to how their child is doing in school, starting in first grade.
- We are already seeing the impact. More students are failing important math and reading tests. In the state of New York, the number of students passing one of these important new tests has been cut in half.
- Third Grade is critical. This is because up through Third Grade, kids learn to read. After Third Grade, they read to learn.
- Third grade retention rates are likely to increase by 50%
- This failure rate is often disproportionately high for smart, struggling students, and even for gifted students, who learn differently.
The solution is to be an informed, empowered and proactive parent. A parent who takes immediate action. A parent who finds out if a child is learning differently, and follows up to work with schools, teachers, and other professionals, to make sure that your child is being taught the way your child learns best.
3 Things You Can Do To Help Your Child
- To better understand how your child learns, and how you can capitalize on those strengths, DOWNLOAD Mira’s short, uplifting book “Life is a Ball, Don’t Put Me in a Box.”
- Take our free Online Success Assessment. It will help you see if your child learns differently.
- After taking the assessment, give us a call and ask us your questions. We’ll help you better understand what your child is dealing with, and what you can do to make a positive difference. You will also have the opportunity to join our weekly conference call.
If you have already taken our Success Assessment, put your child on the path from stress to success. Please call us.
(561)361-7495