Jump frog Jump, that’s what I shout, in unison with thirteen four and five year olds at the Toney-Harvest Head Start Center. Several times a year my Kiwanis Club reads to the kids at the center as part of the RIF (Reading is Fundamental) program. At the start of the year, the kids could not sit still. They didn’t know their numbers or letters. Now, when I point to a number they can tell me what it is. They can count up to 100 (at least most of them). They know their letters. They sat still as I read five books. And I am impressed with their progress.
One of the programs that Republicans in Congress want to slash funding for is Head Start. They say it doesn’t work. They say they have studies that show that the kids do not do better in school. I don’t know how good their studies are. I don’t know if they were conducted properly. I do know that many of these kids start out life with two strikes against them. They come from poor families. Many are raised by single parents. They don’t read at home; don’t even have books. But at the Toney-Harvest Head Start Center they learn to sit still and listen. They learn to raise their hands to be recognized. They learn their numbers, colors and letters. And when they leave to go to kindergarten next year they will be ready.
Jump frog jump, indeed.
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