A key to fostering kindergarten readiness in children hinges on supporting children’s learning both in the preschool classroom and at home (Galindo & Sheldon, 2012). At Hatch Early Learning, we understand the important connection between home and school for children’s early learning. Therefore, Ignite by Hatch™ is built to support children’s learning at school while seamlessly connecting that learning to their homes.
How Does Ignite Build Home–School Connections?
Ignite builds connections between school and home by being accessible to children and caregivers outside of the classroom. Children can engage with Ignite at home by using the family login, and caregivers can access their children’s progress through the family portal, which offers detailed progress reports that provide valuable insights into their children’s learning journey. The family portal also goes a step further by offering Family Connections experiences—hands-on activities based on Ignite skills. These activities are designed for minimal preparation, utilizing readily available materials and making it easy for families to engage in meaningful learning experiences together.
Why Does the Home–School Connection Matter?
Ignite’s extension into the home is important because it further supports caregivers’ involvement in their children’s learning at school. By offering real-time insights into children’s learning goals, strategies, and overall progress, Ignite ensures that the skills children are learning at school can become a focal point of caregiver–child engagement and conversations. When concepts children learn at school become the focus of engagement with their caregivers at home, children build deep connections between these newly learned concepts and their existing knowledge, real-life home experiences, and even their cultures and unique backgrounds (Haden et al., 2016; Leichtman et al., 2017). These deep connections not only enhance memory retention but also empower children to seamlessly apply new knowledge in their day-to-day lives (Marcus et al., 2018; Tessler & Nelson, 1994).
Does Ignite Usage at Home Support Progress Towards Kindergarten Readiness?
The answer is YES! We examined the Ignite progress made by all 63,780 3- to 5-year-old children who played in Ignite during the 2022–2023 school year. The children who played Ignite both at home and at school passed 2.7 levels on average, and the children who primarily played just at school passed 2.5 levels on average. These results show that children who play Ignite at school and at home demonstrate greater progress towards kindergarten readiness than children who primarily engage in Ignite activities only at school.
In conclusion, Ignite's extension to the home is valuable for supporting children’s kindergarten readiness. By involving caregivers in their children's learning journeys, providing easy access to progress reports, and offering engaging activities, Ignite ensures that the benefits of classroom learning extend seamlessly into the home environment. This holistic approach not only enhances children's academic achievements but also fosters a love for learning that goes beyond the classroom.
References
Galindo, C., & Sheldon, S. B. (2012). School and home connections and children's kindergarten achievement gains: The mediating role of family involvement. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 27(1), 90–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2011.05.004
Haden, C. A., Cohen, T., Uttal, D. H., & Marcus, M. M. (2016). Building learning: Narrating experiences in a children’s museum. In D. Sobel & J. L. Jipson (Eds.), Cognitive development in museum settings: Relating research and practice (pp. 84–103). Routledge.
Leichtman, M. D., Camilleri, K. A., Pillemer, D. B., Amato-Wierda, C. C., Hogan, J. E., & Dongo, M. D. (2017). Talking after school: Parents’ conversational styles and children’s memory for a science lesson. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 156, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2016.11.002
Marcus, M., Haden, C. A., & Uttal, D. H. (2018). Promoting children’s learning and transfer across informal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics learning experiences. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 175, 80–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2018.06.003
Tessler, M., & Nelson, K. (1994). Making memories: The influence of joint encoding on later recall by young children. Consciousness and Cognition, 3(3–4), 307–326. https://doi.org/10.1006/ccog.1994.1018
