Why Project CLASS is Needed
Project CLASS (Children Learning Appropriate Social Skills) improves children’s behavior and learning readiness
These days, too many children have behavior problems in school, at home and in life. Too many children are not able to Engage Eye Contact, Pay Attention, Follow Instructions, Accept No, Calm Down when Angry, and Make Good Choices. Too many children are not able to Learn, Get Along with Others and Succeed. Project CLASS significantly improves children’s behavior for school, home and life success.
Project CLASS teaches core-foundation social and learning readiness skills to children 3-5 and 6-12 years old. Core-foundation skills are the ABC basic underpinning skills critical for: Positive Behavior; Learning; Focus of Attention; Academic Achievement; Family Relationships; Getting Along with Others; Combating Bullying & Hate; Mental & Behavioral Health; Success not Failure.
Relationships are central to our survival, health, success, effectiveness and happiness. Clearly, our daily news headlines trumpet relationship deficiencies and problems. Relationships depend on behavior, social & relationship skills – the bull’s eye of Project CLASS.
Two key reasons we have so many relationship and learning problems:
Too many adult care-providers (teachers, parents, foster parents, other caring adults) are not effectively teaching and equipping children with these core skills.
Too many children have not learned the skills to get along with others and are not equipped with the skills to avoid relationship and learning problems.
Our heart-felt, persevering work commitment is in the trenches in schools, at home and in the community and dedicated to:
- improving children’s behavior and learning readiness;
- equipping children with core foundation social and relationship skills;
- equipping teachers, parents and caring adults with the skill sets to develop these skills in children.
We know we have a problem when:
Many elementary school teachers report that they are spending between 35% and 75% of their time responding to student behavior problems and inattention, instead of teaching academic content. Too many children do not have the social and paying attention skills to learn the academics that teachers are committed to teaching.
Social skills are the skills necessary to get along with others and form constructive relationships. Social and relationship skills significantly determine children’s success or failure in school and in life. When children know and use social and relationship skills, teachers can teach and children can learn. Whether in school, at home, on a job or in the community, social and relationship skills are a central part of daily living.
Project CLASS concentrates attention on a defined curriculum of essential foundational social and relationship skills. These core building block skills are the starting point for positive relationship development and are the elemental foundation for more complex skills development in the future.
With consistent implementation of the Project CLASS program, teachers, parents, and other caring adults can teach and children can learn!