skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Helping Fill the Coronavirus Learning Gap

play audio
Play

Friday, March 20, 2020   

ALBANY, N.Y. - With schools closing around the country to help slow the spread of the new coronavirus, millions of children could lose critical learning time - but there are resources to fill the gap.

Education experts say early childhood learning is critical to future academic performance. According to Betsy Zorio, vice president of U.S. Programs and Advocacy with the nonprofit Save the Children, wide-scale learning losses could be among the biggest and longest-term impacts the new coronavirus will have on children.

"During the summer, low-income children typically lose two to three months of reading progress," says Zorio. "So, that will be dramatically increased if families don't act now to ensure that the learning process continues."

Save the Children has gathered online resources at 'Savethechildren.org,' with tips and links to help parents help their kids in pre-K through 6th grade keep learning until schools reopen.

Zorio points out that the challenge is even greater than finding ways to keep advancing children's reading and math skills - it's also about coping with the isolation and boredom that can set in from being kept at home.

She says sticking to a routine can help, too.

"So, ensure that you're keeping wake-up times and bedtimes the same, eating meals around the same time," says Zorio, "that children are helping to set their schedule for the day, and also ensuring that they continue to have access to healthy foods and exercise."

The toolkit also includes relaxation activities to do at home with kids, and tips to help grandparents stay connected.

Save the Children will continue to update the online toolkit in the weeks ahead. Zorio adds that, once schools can open, there will be opportunities to help kids make up for lost time.

"Summer programs are really critical to ensuring that that learning loss doesn't happen," says Zorio. "And after-school programs in the fall will be critical to ensuring that whatever loss was sustained during this period is closed."


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021