School Readiness Needs of Latino Preschoolers: A Focus on Parents’ Comfort with Home-School Collaboration

This study investigated the contextual, social, language, and learning factors that influence the success of Latino preschoolers transitioning to kindergarten. Data were collected on 112 Latino children who completed a four-week preschool program focusing on English language and school readiness skills. Predictive analyses indicate that their parents’ self-reported comfort with home-school collaboration was a stronger predictor of kindergarten success than the academic and social skills measured by this study. These findings suggest that school readiness is a product of the interactions between the child, family and school personnel. Relationships that parents and children experience with school personnel are essential, not only because of their continuing influence on children after they begin school, but also because they provide the opportunity for families to be the best resources possible for their children.