At the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) 2017 Conference, ABCmouseÒ for Schools will announce the launch of new product features to help students build a strong foundation for academic success and become third-grade ready. Arriving in time for the 2017–2018 school year, these exciting features make it easy for teachers to use ABCmouse.comÒ Early Learning Academy in their instructional day and for administrators to see the results.

For teachers: A reimagined Teacher Homepage helps teachers plan and build lessons; teach in whole-group, small-group, or individual instruction; and monitor class progress. Implementation support will continue to focus on helping teachers accomplish their third-grade readiness goals for all their students, starting with pre-K.

For administrators: Student Information System (SIS) Integration streamlines the process of rostering and provides ongoing data about progress and usage at the district, school, class, and student level. In addition, an enhanced Leadership Dashboard allows for real-time usage monitoring that drills down from the district to the individual student level. 

For students and families: Students and families can now access key ABCmouse activities without Internet connectivity through a series of apps for use on mobile devices. A new Mastering Math app is the first in a series of adaptive, game-based apps that help children build a strong understanding of fundamental math concepts. Additionally, more than 100 Spanish-language learning activities have been added to ABCmouse; a total of 800 will be available by the end of 2017. A Spanish-language toggle for navigation will be added in the fall, making it easier for Spanish-speaking parents to access ABCmouse.

Since the initial launch last summer, dozens of schools and districts across the country have become paying customers of ABCmouse for Schools, including schools and districts in Texas, California, New York, and Florida.

“We've been implementing this exciting, engaging, and informative program with our primary-grade students and our special education students,” said Yubeda Miah, Principal of Gulfstream Elementary School, which is part of Miami-Dade County Public Schools. “Students love the action and colorful lessons, and have shown improvement on their benchmark reading skills. The support we've received has been phenomenal.”

ABCmouse offers a research-validated curriculum for pre-K through second grade, with more than 8,500 individual learning activities and 850 complete lessons, encompassing reading and language arts, math, science, health, social studies, art, and music. ABCmouse for Schools complements this curriculum with high-quality teacher support and implementation services including onboarding services, usage reports, and training for teachers and parents. By enabling fidelity of implementation and intentional use, ABCmouse for Schools drives significant learning gains.

To strengthen the school-home connection, ABCmouse for Schools also includes year-round home access to ABCmouse for all students. A recent study with the Miami-Dade County Public School District found that regular use of ABCmouse during the summer helped prevent “summer slide” in reading for rising first graders. Students who regularly used ABCmouse for at least 70 minutes per week over the summer demonstrated literacy gains equivalent to one month of academic instruction.

“ABCmouse has created fabulous opportunities for students to engage in learning while having fun,” said Norma Spencer, Principal of Dr. Theodore T. Alexander, Jr. Science Center School in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). “I am ecstatic about our students being able to enjoy this amazing experience at home and over the summer by logging in to the site. This extra feature will help our students retain important literacy skills that are sometimes lost over the summer.”

To experience ABCmouse for Schools in person at ISTE 2017, please make an appointment with Sue@PRwithPanache.com to visit the PR with Panache! Storytelling Suite in The Stetson Room at Hilton Palacio del Rio, 200 South Alamo Street, San Antonio, TX.