SOUTH KITSAP — Parents of current kindergarten students in South Kitsap School District surveyed recently about their participation in READY! for Kindergarten workshops found that an impressive 90.3 percent participating in the program met the reading standard for their grade level, school district officials said late last month.

For comparison, 59.9 percent of kindergartners across Washington state in fall 2017 were at grade level.

According to the school district, READY! for Kindergarten is a series of 90-minute parent workshops that meet three times a year, from birth until a child enters kindergarten. The program is built around the premise that parents are their child’s first and most influential teacher.

The officials said the program equips parents to play with a purpose for 10 minutes a day and to read with their children for 20 minutes a day. The program tools focus on language and literacy, math and reasoning, and social-emotional development.

While South Kitsap’s READY! program invests four and a half hours a year into these pre-kindergarten families, the research data attests to the power of children, Amy Miller, the district’s spokeswoman, said.

“With research-based information about how to prepare their children in a fun and playful way, parents make all the difference in the world for their kids as they start kindergarten. Research also tells us that students who start ahead, stay ahead year after year. A successful start in kindergarten sets the trajectory for all of education and for life.”

Questions about READY! for Kindergarten can be directed to Tracy Schneewind at 360-874-7058 or the communications office at South Kitsap School District.