Early Learning Coalition Awarded Grant From Bishop Parker Foundation

July 19, 2023 – Palmetto

The Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County (ELC) has been generously awarded a $50,000 grant from the Bishop Parker Foundation to support the Spot On Program. With this exciting new program, the ELC is helping to ensure more children are developmentally Spot On!

The Spot On program focuses on improving communication, self-regulation, and functional life skills in young children to prevent developmental delays from impacting early learning. Some examples of the skills addressed and their possible impact on early education are described below.

Communication: Teaching communication skills means teaching children to communicate their wants and needs so that their caregivers and peers may clearly understand them. When children share their ideas, teachers can intentionally design learning opportunities that target their interests, making school engaging. However, if a child cannot clearly communicate, the adults and peers in the environment may misunderstand their interests, making school less appealing.
Self- Regulation: In an oversimplified explanation, teaching self-regulation skills means coaching children to identify emotions and express themselves rather than using undesired forms of expression, such as tantrums, to express strong feelings. When children struggle to self-regulate, the learning environment may feel chaotic and thus cause children to lose focus on academic content.
Functional Life Skills: Addressing functional life skills in early education targets various skills such as washing their hands, opening containers, putting on shoes and socks, and holding a crayon. These skills focus on age-appropriate independence; all learning, no matter what age, requires independence from students.

Early education aims to ensure that all children are ready for kindergarten to the fullest extent possible. With Spot On, those children who are not yet reaching expected milestones or behavioral targets can receive the support they need right in their classrooms. Typically, therapy is unavailable in childcare centers, and children who need it are taken by their families to the therapy center during the day or early evenings (if they get to go at all). This schedule can be intrusive to the child and family, especially if it means missing work or play.

The ELC’s Spot On program reduces that barrier by coordinating therapy services directly at childcare centers. Spot On goes further and unifies therapists, teachers, and families to support successful growth at school and home. Spot On provides weekly professional development and collaboration at the participating childcare centers. The Speech and Language Therapists and the Occupational Therapists provide professional development, ensuring that preschool professionals and families have the knowledge, skills, and strategies to help children become more independent and make social and communication gains.

Darrell King, ELC Chief Executive Officer, said: “We are extremely grateful to the Bishop Parker Foundation for their significant and timely investment in the Spot On program. Since piloting the program last year, we have seen substantial gains, 100% of children have made progress on their therapy goals, and all teachers report seeing improvement in the development of the children in their classrooms.”

With Spot On, even when therapy is over, caregivers gain the competencies necessary to continue supporting children’s skill growth, and young children are empowered to reach their fullest potential and chase their academic dreams.