Waterford Upstart has been granted enough Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund dollars to provide 900 laptops to New Hampshire families of pre-K students, Internet via a loaned hotspot, family education coaching and access to the Waterford Upstart online learning program — all for free, according to a Waterford spokesperson.
Waterford Upstart is an online kindergarten readiness program that teaches math, science and literacy. Waterford, an educational nonprofit, launched Waterford Upstart in 2009.
According to the N.H. Department of Education, the purpose of the ESSER fund is to provide emergency relief money to address the COVID-19 pandemic's ongoing impact on elementary and secondary schools.
In a March 9 news release from the department announcing that ESSER dollars were being dedicated to the kindergarten-readiness initiative, Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut said Waterford has contributed to students' success.
"Millions of children and families have benefited from the ongoing research, development and enhancement of the curriculum in schools, homes and learning centers around the world," Edelblut said. "The Waterford Upstart program helps close the well-documented preschool access gap, providing proven school-readiness support for children most at risk of school failure."
Jan. 31 is the deadline to sign up and receive benefits. There are no income or location requirements, and the program is open to all students who will be entering kindergarten in the fall of 2023, according to a Waterford news release. The Waterford Upstart learning period will end May 28 for participants.
Jeanie Ryan, the New Hampshire Waterford Upstart media contact, said the online learning program features personalized learning. Although the grant is for the literacy program, she said, students are also given access to math and science lessons by Waterford Upstart for free.
"The algorithms are quite sophisticated; it's adaptive learning software, so it works along the path with the child," Ryan said. "If the child gets stuck on something, it doesn't just push them forward or have them be stuck, it comes at them from different angles to teach the lesson until they get the lesson and move forward."
Ryan said two kids could be sitting next to each other and move through the program at different paces. The goal is to have students be kindergarten ready, and in some cases, children have been first-grade ready, she said.
The program is intended to be used as an at-home learning opportunity.
"It's complementary to whatever they're doing in pre-K school, homeschooling or Headstart," Ryan said.
The program's mission, she noted, is to get parents involved with their child's learning.
A family-education coach will be assigned to each child, who will take an assessment to see what they need from the program, and this will be communicated to the parent virtually, according to Ryan. Parents can choose which five days they'd like their student to participate in the program; it's not limited to Monday through Friday. Daily sessions last 15 minutes. Families can keep the laptop after the program is over.
"It's a family communication opportunity to develop education readiness, setting a really strong foundation for lifelong learning," Ryan said.
Families interested in participating in the pre-K program can register at waterford.org/upstart or call 1-888-982-9898 for more information.
©2022 The Keene Sentinel (Keene, N.H.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
