Children at Brennan Woods Elementary School in High Ridge spent the day honing their math and science skills through interactive play at Block Fest.

By Sarah Worner | February 17, 2011

On Saturday, Brennan Woods Elementary School, in High Ridge, hosted Block Fest, a fun interactive learning day put on by Parents as [...]]]> Brennan Woods Elementary School Kids on the Blocks

Children at Brennan Woods Elementary School in High Ridge spent the day honing their math and science skills through interactive play at Block Fest.

By Sarah Worner | February 17, 2011

On Saturday, Brennan Woods Elementary School, in High Ridge, hosted Block Fest, a fun interactive learning day put on by Parents as Teachers. Block Fest consisted of five different stations of blocks to play with that ask children to actively apply math, science and communication skills.

Originally created at the University of Idaho, Block Fest is in its fourth year as a program, and in its second year as a touring event in Missouri. About once a week the blocks are laid out out at a school or day care center in the St. Louis area, inviting families to come play.

The Block Fest event at Brennan Woods was packed with families from both the school and surrounding community. This particular Block Fest event was sponsored by Walmart, which provided snacks and books for the children. Walmart’s Missouri general director, Glenda Flemming Willis, made a surprise appearance to present Parents as Teachers with a donation of $89,000to expand the program.

Source:  Fenton-HighRidgePatch: http://fenton-highridge.patch.com/articles/brennan-woods-elementary-school-kids-on-the-blocks#photo-4916355

Kamryn Clark, Cedar Hill, makes a pattern out of small color blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Families have fun building together with large, sturdy blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Caitlin Wideman, Fenton, examines a card that details possible color block patterns. Credit Sarah Worner

Tyler Sibole, Fenton, builds a tower out of foam blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Braeden Simpkins, Cedar Hill, plays with an oversized foam block. Credit Sarah Worner

Grant Vessells and his father Paul, of Fenton, play with some big red blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Dylan Heitert, House Springs, claps two blocks together. Credit Sarah Worner

Mikayla Broz, Fenton, explores some basic principles of light and color as she stares through a see-though block. Credit Sarah Worner

Nathan Sadler, House Springs, experiments with patterns and dimensions of some wooden blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Arihanna Heitert, House Springs, makes a long chain of wooden blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Christopher Wideman, Fenton, makes a tall stack of color blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Father Chris Sadler, House Springs, has as much fun as his son Nathan does playing with the blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Dylan Heitert, House Springs, attempts to balance a round block on a rectangular one. Credit Sarah Worner

Jack Clark, Cedar Hill, knocks over a row of blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

Both parents and children enjoy playing with a mat full of colorful foam blocks. Credit Sarah Worner

The Mirror, Thursday, February 17, 2011

BLOCKfest is Saturday in Tonganoxie

February 17, 2011

BLOCKfest, an interactive exhibit that provides families of children who are younger than 8 with a hands-on math and science learning opportunity, is coming Saturday to Tonganoxie Elementary School.

The exhibit has been shown to increase parent knowledge of early development in the areas of math and [...]]]> http://www.tonganoxiemirror.com/news/2011/feb/17/blockfest-saturday-tonganoxie/

The Mirror, Thursday, February 17, 2011

BLOCKfest is Saturday in Tonganoxie

February 17, 2011

BLOCKfest, an interactive exhibit that provides families of children who are younger than 8 with a hands-on math and science learning opportunity, is coming Saturday to Tonganoxie Elementary School.

The exhibit has been shown to increase parent knowledge of early development in the areas of math and science education, while providing opportunities to increase social skills and literacy opportunities for young children. Five stations with different blocks will be available for families during one hour block play sessions. Early childhood educators from the Parents as Teachers program will be available to demonstrate techniques that can help parents maximize their child’s learning.

BLOCKfest is sponsored by Parents as Teachers, Tonganoxie USD 464 and and Cabot Cheese. Parents as Teachers is a free developmental program available to all families of children birth to 3 residing in the USD 464 district. For information about PAT or other upcoming BLOCKfest events, email pslater@keystonelearning.org or visit Tonganoxie PAT on Facebook.

By Marina Richardson, Staff Writer CNHI

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 — Excited 4-year-olds gathered at E.E. Waddell Center recently to participate in this year’s Block Fest.

This group of 4-year-olds came from All Star Learning Center, but various groups of children had been attending [...]]]> The Stanly News and Press (Albemarle, NC)

November 10, 2010

Children learn and play at Block Fest

By Marina Richardson, Staff Writer
CNHI

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 — Excited 4-year-olds gathered at E.E. Waddell Center recently to participate in this year’s Block Fest.

This group of 4-year-olds came from All Star Learning Center, but various groups of children had been attending the festival all week, with both morning and afternoon sessions available to preschools, day cares and families.

“It is countywide,” said Margaret Hightower, Parents As Teachers coordinator for the Stanly County Partnership for Children (SCPC).

“All of the 4-year-olds can be a part of it.”

Five stations of different kinds of blocks were set up inside the gym. The children were organized into groups, then taken to the stations.

They played with each set of blocks for a certain amount of time, then rotated, so that all the children were able to play with all the blocks.

“The idea of blocks came about as a way to help children learn,” SCPC Executive Director Barbara Whitley said.

“Children can learn by doing. With blocks, they practice using their hand and eye coordination and their fine and gross motor skills.”

The children also practiced creativity as they played, building houses, towns, race tracks and alphabet letters with the blocks. They worked together with each other, practicing social skills.

“There are a lot of things that you can learn from the simple activity of playing with blocks,” Whitley said.

Many parents were present with their children, as parent and child interaction is encouraged by the Parents As Teachers program.

“The parent is the first and best teacher,” Whitley said.

“It’s fun for you to do something with your child.

“We’re thrilled to make this available. It’s a great experience.”

Contact Marina Richard-son at (704) 982-2121 ext. 28 or snaponline28@carolina.rr.com.

Will Helmandollar and Glorionna Brown (below) enjoyed constructing activities at the annual Block Fest

[...]]]>

What?……….BLOCK Fest™ event!       Where?………………..Waynesville, NC
When?……….November 6, 2010          Special Effects?……S N OW !

URL for more information: http://www.ywca-br.org

Phone number for more information: 225-413-2198

Summary Description:

BLOCK Fest is a one-hour, hands-on building extravaganza for young children (8 months to 8 years old) and their parents featuring five different block types. As children play at BLOCK Fest, information about early science and math is available to accompanying adults in [...]]]> http://www.usasciencefestival.org/satellite-event-directory?sobi2Task=sobi2Details&sobi2Id=88

Organized by:
YWCA Greater Baton Rouge

URL for more information:
http://www.ywca-br.org

Phone number for more information:
225-413-2198

Summary Description:

BLOCK Fest is a one-hour, hands-on building extravaganza for young children (8 months to 8 years old) and their parents featuring five different block types. As children play at BLOCK Fest, information about early science and math is available to accompanying adults in banners and at play stations. The adults also receive a block play handbook explaining learning aspects of block play and providing some family strategies for block play at home. Block play provides a natural context for exploring the physical world. Like little scientists, children can experiment with structures and observe the outcomes of their building efforts. Through this process they learn about mass, weight, proportionality and balance, and can use their new concepts to plan and predict outcomes.

Age Group:
Families, Elementary School

Venue:
Baker Municipal Center

Venue Address:
3325 Groom Road
Baker, Louisiana 70714

Parking/Special Instructions:
Free parking is available at the Baker Municipal Center,

Fee:
Free of Charge

Pre-registration required?
Yes

Pre-registration information:

Individual and group registrations are strongly encouraged. Participation is limited to 100 individuals. Contact Deborah Jones at 225-413-2198 or deborah@ywcabr-cfe.net to register.

Hannibal, MO —

The Hannibal Parents As Teachers Program has announced that “Block Fest” will be coming to Hannibal on Friday, Sept. 24. This event is co-sponsored by the Parents As Teachers National Center in conjunction with the [...]]]> Children’s Block Fest event coming to Hannibal

Hannibal Courier-Post

Hannibal, MO —

The Hannibal Parents As Teachers Program has announced that “Block Fest” will be coming to Hannibal on Friday, Sept. 24. This event is co-sponsored by the Parents As Teachers National Center in conjunction with the Hannibal public schools.

The free event will be held at the Shirley Bomar Center, 253 Munger Lane in Hannibal. Five one-hour long sessions are available – 10 to 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., and 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required. Contact the Parents As Teachers office, (573) 221-3054, to sign up for a session. One adult must accompany each child participating. Each session is limited to 40 children.

Block Fest is a fun-filled event for parents and children ages eight months to kindergarten entry. Children and parents will have the opportunity to visit five block stations and construct with unit, foam, wooden plank, brick, and unit blocks. Block play helps build confidence and creativity as a child generates and tries out new ideas. It also encourages independence, leadership, visual-spatial, and language skills. All these skills are needed for future school success.
This is one of two large group meetings being held this year for the Parents As Teachers Program. “Big Truck and Safety Night,” will be held on Monday, Oct. 4, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Hannibal Middle School’s front parking lot.

Copyright 2010 Hannibal Courier-Post. Some rights reserved

Scene & Heard – Block Fest: Children’s Center, Imprints team up for event that encourages creativity

Credit: Ed Brown Photos

Monica Sisak (from left), with son Boris; Sally, Guadaloupe and Simona Chavez; Kathleen, Julia and Audrey Cannon at Block Fest.

By CINDY HODNETT

Published: June 22, 2010

One of the large meeting rooms at the Children’s Center for the Physically Disabled was transformed [...]]]>

Scene & Heard – Block Fest: Children’s Center, Imprints team up for event that encourages creativity

Credit: Ed Brown Photos

Monica Sisak (from left), with son Boris; Sally, Guadaloupe and Simona Chavez; Kathleen, Julia and Audrey Cannon at Block Fest.

By CINDY HODNETT

Published: June 22, 2010

One of the large meeting rooms at the Children’s Center for the Physically Disabled was transformed into building-block heaven on June 5. Representatives from Imprints, a support organization for early-childhood development, brought hundreds of blocks of all shapes and sizes to Block Fest.

An annual event designed to highlight the educational value of building with blocks, Block Fest brings children of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds together for several hours of creative play that parents can observe, share and replicate at home.

“Imprints is part of the Parents As Teachers organization in Forsyth County,” said Julia Toone, a representative from Imprints. “Block Fest was started in 2006 by the University of Idaho, and Imprints hosted its first Block Fest last year.”

Kathleen Cannon brought her daughters Audrey, 4, and Julia, 2.

Cannon said, “We have been involved with Imprints for almost three years, and our parent educator lets us know about events like this. My favorite part is watching the girls interact with the different types of blocks. It’s nice to see kids step away from all of the gadgets we have today.”

Shantel McGowan came with her daughter Anderson, 2.

“We heard about this event last year, but not early enough to sign up, so we decided to come out this year,”McGowan said. “It’s great because she played with these types of blocks for a while but had gotten away from it. Now she’s getting back into it again.”

Jaime and John Gallimore watched their son Charlie, 14 months, play with the blocks at each of six stations.

Jaime said, “We’re having fun watching him try out the different kinds of blocks, and he really likes seeing the other kids.”

Simona Chavez brought her daughters Guadaloupe and Sally.

“They like building with blocks,” Chavez said. “This is our first year, and we are really enjoying it.”

Boris, 3, and Anton Sisak, 6, built towers in various sizes while their mother, Monica, watched.

“We use Imprints once a month, and they come up with things you don’t think about doing every day,” Sisaksaid. “This is like a play date we can have together.”

Conner Ward had wrapped up his kindergarten year the day before, and his mother, Joy, brought him out to encourage creativity.

“One of the things we’ve learned is to let the kids lead when they’re playing,” she said. “You can get the crayons out for them, but don’t insist that they use green for the trees. Let them use purple if they want. It’s OK to motivate them, but don’t dictate what they should do.”

Matt and Nikki Frances joined their daughter Palmer, 2, in block play.

Nikki said, “We’ve only been to two stations so far, but she really enjoys going through the towers we build.”

Nearby, Annessa and Patrick Miller watched 13-month-old Kennedy choose her favorite blocks.

“I think the small blocks are more her size, and she enjoys watching the big kids build,” Annessa Miller said.

“This is great because we really enjoy doing stuff with her,” Patrick Miller said. “We stack blocks at home, so this is kind of right up our alley.”

Denni Peebles is the development and donor relations coordinator for the Children’s Center. She worked with Imprints representatives on the logistics of Block Fest.

“We had 15 classes come through yesterday, and they loved it,” Peebles said. “The parent educators knew what each child was capable of, and they just let the energy flow. The Children’s Center is such a logical venue for this type of event. We have people here from every area of Winston-Salem.”

More than 430 guests attended over two days, and Toone said that one mother drove from Asheville and rented a hotel room for the night. She added that more than 40 staff members and community volunteers helped, suggesting activities to parents and gently directing the children to the appropriate stations.

“All of the classrooms came through yesterday, and we had kids out of their wheelchairs and on the mats playing,” Toone said. “This is a great activity for a big group of children, and it has broad appeal. Every kind of family comes to this event.

“Part of our parent-education program is sharing all kinds of wonderful things parents can do to get their kids off to a great start,” Toone said. “Research shows that the more time kids have to play with non-connecting blocks, the better, so we’re excited about sharing this event with the community.”

cwhodnett@aol.com | 830-1896

Recent concerns about global competitiveness have led to state initiatives to strengthen math and science skills, with a focus on the junior high and high school years. However, research [...]]]> By Harriet Shaklee, Diane Demarest, Patti O’Hara and Janica Hardin, University of Idaho
Presented to the Annual Meeting of the National Conference on Family Relations
San Francisco, November 14, 2009

Recent concerns about global competitiveness have led to state initiatives to strengthen math and science skills, with a focus on the junior high and high school years. However, research suggests that children’s early experiences play an enormous role in the development of their understanding of mathematics.  Between birth and five years of age, children develop mathematical concepts of space, shape, size, pattern, number, and operations (Ginsburg, Lee & Boyd, 2008). Young children’s emerging math concepts serve as a foundation for their later cognitive development, and can predict later school success from the elementary through the high school years (Duncan, et al., 2007).

Play is a natural learning lab for young children where they can work out math ideas such counting, equality, addition and subtraction, planning, patterns, classification, volume and area, and measurement.  Informal concepts such as these provide the foundation for later formal math learning (Bergen, 2009).

Parents and teachers help young children learn by offering materials that promote construction of math concepts. Research shows that block play provides a particularly rich learning context for children (Cohen & Uhry, 2007; Hanlin, Milton & Phelps, 2001; Newburger & Vaughan, 2006; Sarama & Clements 2009).  Longitudinal evidence shows a link between block play and later math competence – that is, early block play predicts math interest and competence in junior high and high school, when the concepts get more complex and difficult to master. Even when IQ and gender were controlled, preschool block performance still accounted for significant variance in later math performance (Wolfgang, Stannard & Jones, 2001).

Block play also provides a natural context for exploration of the physical world as children experiment with structures and observe the outcomes of their building efforts.  Through this process they learn elementary concepts of physics such as mass, weight, proportionality and balance, and can use their new ideas to plan and predict outcomes.

Block play supports other aspects of development as well, including language as children talk about their structures with others.  Blocks also provide opportunities for social development as children build and share with others, and challenge children cognitively as they focus and solve problems as they build.

The University of Idaho Extension developed a traveling interactive exhibit called Block Fest to bring this message of early math and science learning to parents of young children (8 months to 8 years) in communities of all sizes. Block Fest is a hands-on block building extravaganza incorporating 5 building stations, each featuring a different kind of blocks. A station with large cardboard blocks allows children to experiment with the architecture of big structures and enclosures, while the large geometrically shaped blocks at the foam block station pose challenges of balance, symmetry and shape.  One station features colored cubes with pattern cards for children to match as they build shapes with color patterns, while the unit block station invites exploration of proportional relations among blocks.  The final station has Keva blocks, uniformly shaped building planks that can be stacked into structures of all sizes and shapes.

Children and their parents move through the stations over a one hour period. At each station, children enjoy block building while family adults learn about block play and ways to support their children’s math and science exploration.  Information about emergent math and science is available at each block station, and lessons are reinforced through the research-based take-home book we developed for parents, Playing and Learning with Blocks.

Since Block Fest was first launched in Idaho in 2006, we have reached over 8000 children, parents, and other family adults in 50 Block Fest events throughout the state, involving over 300 volunteers and staff members. Block Fest regularly fills to capacity when it comes to a community, with parents – both Moms and Dads – enthusiastically learning with their children. Results reported here represent outcomes at two large Block Fest events in Boise, ID, with 316 adults and 308 children in 2006, and 371 adults and 505 children in 2007.  Block Fest procedures and recruitment methods were comparable at the two events.

Block Fest was designed to introduce parents to information about emergent math and science for their young children, and ways that they can support that learning. Parent learning at Block Fest was assessed immediately after the event, with a follow-up assessment three months later.

Parents and Children Learn at Block Fest

Parent learning: After the Block Fest activities, parents to used a 7 point scale to rate their agreement with three statements about what they learned at Block Fest (-3 = strongly disagree, 0 = neutral, +3 = strongly agree). Ratings of +2 and +3 were combined as statement agreement, while -2 and -3 were taken as disagreement. Adults agreed that they could see how their children learned through block building at Block Fest (76%) and that they learned ways to support early math and science learning for their children (66%).  Participants also agreed that they learned how block building helps children learn early math and science ideas (76%).  69% of participants identified an idea from Block Fest that they will use with their children at home. These results show that Block Fest was an effective learning environment for parents. However, the Block Fest experience may be best described in the participants’ own words – see Table 1.

Table 1:  Selected parent comments about Block Fest

Adults Learning

• It was an amazing exciting experience for myself as well as my children.
• What a great way to get down on the floor and see the world they do and build something amazing at the same time.
• It was fun for us as parents to see her “get” a certain concept and it was exciting for her.
• It was a great way to experience some of the learning a child works on every day!
• Learned new ways to help our child with math skills – not something I would associate with regular block play.

Exploration and Creativity

• Creative juices flow at Block Fest!
• This was a great and fun way for children to explore and problem solve through play.
• It has been great to see how creative the children are! They have a natural ability to build sturdy structures.
• It always amazes me how creative children are when they are given an opportunity to build.
• My child focused all the time. He was innovative.

Cognition and Problem solving

• Children loved it – stayed focused entire time.
• Go and let your child have fun while they develop their brains; and bring your camera!
• See how much fun the kids have – and how much they can learn from playing with blocks.
• Experience a fun time that inspires enthusiastic, truly interested kids.
• My child built from a plan.

Math and Science Learning

• Great way to encourage math and science at an early age.
• A great opportunity to learn and play with kids. Blocks really do set the stage for school learning.
• Block Fest is a good way for children to learn about creative play and working with others about science and a bit of math.
• My child created the patterns with an expertise unknown before.
• Color matching and shape recognition skills were enhanced as a result of the wide range of blocks used. Fantastic!

Enthusiastic children

• My five year old attended Block Fest last year too and he was waiting for this event all year long.
• The kids had a blast!
• I was surprised at how some very young toddlers were completely engaged.
• My children said spontaneously “This is the best place you’ve ever taken us!”
• See how much fun the kids have – and how much they can learn from playing with blocks!

Parent observations of children’s learning: At the conclusion of Block Fest in 2007 parents reviewed 25 descriptors and circled those that characterize the behaviors of one of the children they brought to Block Fest. The behavioral descriptors represented one of five developmental categories including language, social development, science, math, and cognition.  Parents were asked to identify the age of the child they were describing.  The descriptors representing each behavioral domain were:

• Language:  describing, asking, naming, listening, pretending
• Cognition:  focusing, thinking, problem solving, wondering, being creative
• Social:  sharing, watching others, building with others, planning together, taking turns
• Science: comparing, predicting, experimenting, balancing, observing outcomes
• Math: estimating, sorting, counting, adding, making patterns

175 respondents completed the parent observation survey (only one parent per family completed the form).  Individual descriptors were combined within behavioral domains, so that children with two or more behaviors circled within a category were tagged as showing that behavioral domain.  Table 2 shows the children in each age group described by 2 or more behaviors within each behavioral domain.

Table 2:  Parents describe their children at Block Fest, 2007

Children with 2 or more behaviors observed per category:

Language       Cognition       Social              Science            Math               N

Age N         %              N         %            N         %           N         %            N         %

Under 3 9     20.4%       29   69.0%       28   66.7%       22   52.4%       13   30.9%       42

3’s 17   41.4%       28   68.3%       27   65.8%       23   56.1%       24   58.5%           41

4’s 20   52.6%       27   71.0%       27   71.0%       29   76.3%       25   65.8%       38

5+ 16   29.6%       43   79.6%       36   66.7%       41   75.9%       35   64.8%       54

As the table shows, parents were especially likely to report seeing social, science, math, and cognitive behaviors as their children engaged in the Block Fest activities, with language the least commonly observed category of behavior. Comparisons show that observed behaviors increased with age for language ( 12×2′> (3) = 9.96, p<.025), science ( 12×2′> (3) = 9.39, p<.025), and math ( 12×2′> (3) = 13.92, p<.01). Social behaviors were reported at a constantly high level across age, while observed language behaviors were low across age.  Age differences were not significant for either domain ( 12×2′> (3) = 2.03, p>.10 for cognition; .39, p>.10 for social behavior)

These parent observations suggest that Block Fest was very successful indeed at engaging children in several important aspects of development.  Interactions among the children offered plenty of opportunity for social development, and active play with the block materials challenged the children cognitively.  The block play environment also provided a rich context to explore concepts in math and science.  Even many of the youngest children showed behaviors in these areas, but the level of engagement was even greater for the older children at the exhibit.  Block play is sometimes considered to be for preschoolers — not challenging enough once children enter school.  However, these results show that older children were very interested in Block Fest and found an engaging learning environment there.

Block Fest Learning Goes Home

Three months after Block Fest 2006, an email survey was sent to the 110 parents who provided e-mail addresses, with a 49% response rate. Those parents reported many follow-up activities to Block Fest.

Parents pursued more information: Nearly all respondents (96%) told someone else about Block Fest, and 78% talked with their child about their time at Block Fest.  Parents reported reading the parent handbook, Playing and Learning with Blocks, which they received at the event (83%).  Many respondents checked out the Block Fest website (40%) and 24% talked to their child’s preschool teacher or care giver about early math and blocks.  Only 17% inquired about Parents as Teachers, the Block Fest event host.

Block activities at home: Since attending Block Fest, respondents have done many block related activities with their children at home, including getting out their blocks and making them more available (70%), playing blocks with their child (89%), building with objects instead of blocks (61%), purchasing blocks (31%), making blocks (13%), and looking for information on the internet about blocks (28%).

Science and math at home: Parents said that they increased their math and science interactions with their children, using more math and science words (44%), seeing opportunities to talk about math and science ideas with their children (55%), and finding math and science in everyday activities (72%).

Parenting strategies: Parents took also took parenting lessons home from the ideas presented at Block Fest, with 46% of parents reporting that they’re using more open ended questions with their children, 36% encouraging their child to clean up in different ways, 54% playing on the floor more often with their child, and 50% describing their child’s play more rather than directing it.

In summary, evaluation results show that Block Fest was a hit with the kids, and that parents saw their children engage in challenging cognitive and social activities, including math and science concepts and behavior.  Parents increased their understanding of early math and science learning at Block Fest, and became more aware of the math and science in everyday events.  Even 3 months after the event, Block Fest lessons were still strong in parents’ thoughts and in their activities at home with their children.

Extending the Impact of Block Fest

Block Fest is an Extension program with a message for families about early math and science learning.  We have extended that outreach though a suite of interconnected events to increase program impact.  At the launch of Block Fest we raised visibility for our message by hosting a Block Fest Gala in the Idaho State Capitol featuring Governor and Mrs. Kempthorne (February 2006).  We also hosted Block Fest in the capitol building during the legislative session to increase understanding about early learning among our policy makers (February 2006 and 2007).  In addition, we developed a block building challenge for adults and youth, sponsored by area businesses, to spread our message about math/science learning further in the business and educational community (February 2006 and 2007). We have also reached over 300 educators and early childhood professionals with training on early math and science learning, enabling them to strengthen the learning environments for children in child care and school settings. Block Fest events have received generous coverage by television and newspapers in host communities.

Block Fest has been able to travel so extensively throughout the state through partnerships with community agencies and organizations.  In many cases, county Extension offices were central players, but even more frequently other family-serving programs hosted the event.  Parents as Teachers programs throughout the state were especially helpful in program outreach, and Block Fest served as a way to raise visibility for these parenting education programs.  At each site, Block Fest was launched through partnerships and coalitions. Youth groups have provided volunteers and made blocks to sell, Lions and other civic organizations have provided funding and food, Parents as Teachers programs have promoted the event and set it up, schools and churches have donated space for the event, child care and Head Start centers have helped spread the word to parents.  This strategy has strengthened relationships between Extension and family-serving agencies, schools, child care, and parenting programs throughout Idaho, extending the educational reach of the University of Idaho well beyond the capacity of our county offices.

Block Fest is designed to draw business sponsorship as a funding strategy.  The message of early math and science learning fits well with business concerns about workforce development, and sponsorship allows businesses to raise their visibility with area families. Block Fest has helped cement new partnerships between University of Idaho Extension and companies in science and technology, architecture and construction, and early learning, as well as other family-oriented Idaho companies. Business sponsorships have generated over $60,000 for Block Fest exhibit development and travel.

In sum, Block Fest has provided a platform for the University of Idaho Extension to bring a message of early math and science learning to parents and young children throughout Idaho.  Evaluation evidence shows strong program impact, with continuing effects on family behavior three months after the event.

References

Bergen, D.  (2009).  Play as the learning medium for future scientists, mathematicians, and engineers, American Journal of Play, 1(4), 413-428.

Cohen, L. & Uhry, J.  (2007).  Young children’s discourse during block play, Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 21, 302-8.

Duncan, G., Dowsett, C., Claessens, A., Magnuson, K., Huston, A., Klebanov, P., Panani, L., Feinstein, L., Engel, M., Brooks-Gunn, J., Sexton, H., Duckworth, K., Japel, C.  (2007).   School readiness and later achievement.  Developmental Psychology, 43, 1428-46.

Ginsburg, H., Lee, J., & Boyd, J.  (2008). Mathematics education for young children: What it is and how to promote it.  Social Policy Report, 22, 1-23.

Hanlin, M.F., Milton, S., & Phelps, P.  (2001).   Young children’s block construction activities: Findings from three years of observation.  Journal of Early Intervention, 24(3), 341-355.

Newburger, A. & Vaughan, E.  (2006).  Teaching Numeracy, Language and Literacy with Blocks. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.

Sarama, J. & Clements, D. (2009).  Building blocks and cognitive building blocks, American Journal of Play, 1(3), 314-337.

Wolfgang, C., Stannard, L., & Jones, I.  (2001). Block play performance among preschoolers as a predictor of math achievement.  Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 15(2), 173-81.

       [...]]]> What?……….BLOCK Fest™!       Where?………………..Waynesville, NC
When?……….November 6, 2010          Special Effects?……S N OW !