Preschool: First Findings From the Preschool Follow-Up of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort
At age 4, more than 60 percent of children have a lot of the skills needed to succeed in school, such as recognizing numbers and shapes, according to the findings from a federal study . The study also shows that children living with both parents tend to score higher on literacy skills than children in single-parent families, and females perform better than males at tasks that require fine motor skills.
The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort, conducted by the Institute of Education Sciences in the U.S. Department of Education, is a sample of almost 9,000 children that began when the children were born in 2001. It is meant to provide a better understanding of children’s early experiences, including child care, physical well-being, health, and preparation for school.
This “first look” report also shows that children’s skills vary by socioeconomic status, with 40 percent of children from low-income families mastering early math skills, compared with 87 percent in high-income households.
