In recent years, new studies have shown how academically rigorous early education programs often leave students ill-prepared for elementary school. What early advantages these programs may give students tend to fade later in their academic career. Carrie Shoup, an Early Education Coach/Mentor for Para Los Ninos, believes this issue stems from a lack of emphasis on social-emotional development and the holistic well-being of a student.

“We are seeing a lot of kids in elementary schools who are smart, but are struggling in these other areas, and wishing we could go back and set that foundation.” The approach PLN employs is “looking at the family and the kids in a holistic way; not only what is school readiness academically, but what does school readiness mean for an individual.”

Shoup has been a lead organizer for PLN’s Transitional Kindergarten program (TK), which uses a creative curriculum. This means TK instructors adapt different classes to match the needs of the students and make an explicit effort to get to know each child.

As Shoup asserts, it is vital that instructors are “not just looking at them as a name on a sheet, a number on a page, but really building a relationship with that child and being curious with them.” This philosophy applies equally to each child’s family. “We spend the time to not only be curious with the child but to reach out to the families and to be curious with families– not from a place of judgment, but from a place of partnership.”