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Frequently Asked Questions
 
Is We Can! a reading intervention program?
We Can! is a comprehensive early childhood curriculum that includes lessons in phonics, pre-writing, comprehension and vocabulary, as well as math, social studies, science and social skills.
 
Is We Can! based on research?

Like Cambium Learning’s other programs, We Can! is based on research. The research base may be found on the Internet at www.voyagerlearning.com.
 
Is We Can! a bilingual program?
We Can! actually includes lessons in three languages: English, Spanish, and American Sign Language. Not only do children learn languages more easily at the pre-school age, but ASL keeps small hands busy.
 
Inside the Teacher's Guides, why are the Target Objectives offered in Spanish for the Teacher, however no other instruction or script is provided in other sections? Can you provide some insight into this decision?
The rationale behind this decision was that the teacher may speak/read Spanish to get the directions and then it is his/her responsibility to teach the children in English and convert it to Spanish if needed. Most directions in We Can! are printed in English and Spanish.
 
What is the structure of the We Can! curriculum?
We Can! has monthly thematic units broken up into five Teacher's Guides. Detailed lesson plans are included for each theme. We Can! incorporates learning centers, small group, and whole-class instruction. The Classroom Management System helps ease the transition between the groups and centers. This includes Two-Choice Discipline to help with behavior, a rotation chart to show where everyone should be, and clothespins on orange cones to designate who can play in each learning center.
 
Do customers have to buy the entire We Can! classroom kit?

This is preferred for fidelity of implementation, but the following smaller kits are available individually:

Letters, Sounds & Strokes Phonics Kit
I Can Draw Pre-Writing Kit
Classroom Management Kit
American Sign Language Kit
Literature set
 
How does the Classroom Management portion of We Can! work?

The Classroom Management piece of We Can!:


 		 includes a daily schedule that alternates time periods for small- and whole-group instruction.

 		 has a helper chart to assign jobs and responsibilities to children in the classroom community.

 		 incorporates a rotation chart that guides children to learning centers and instructional activities.
guides teachers in assessing student skills to facilitate flexible groupings.
uses a timer to remind children to clean up learning centers.

 		 has explicit suggestions for different schedules, based on the length of the preschool day.

 		 uses a Two-Choice Discipline system to help students understand expectations and consequences.
uses American Sign Language to keep hands busy, and the noise level down.
 
What is Letters, Sounds & Strokes?
Letters, Sounds & Strokes is a phonics system that teaches in English, Spanish, and American Sign Language. It uses letter cards for explicit phonics instruction, has flash cards for repeated practice and assessment activities. Memory cards are included for games that reinforce phonics practice and review. A word bank containing vocabulary word cards (available in both English and Spanish) is used on its own and to create connected text for oral language activities. This kit includes The Learning Zoo CD-ROM, which reinforces color recognition, math skills, word recognition and letter/sound (phonemic awareness), and symbol relationships.
 
Why do the letter cards in the Letters, Sounds & Strokes program show the lower case letter first and then the capital letter?
Research shows PreK-K children "use" more lowercase letters when learning to read and write. Letter recognition, as a predictor of reading achievement, initially came from a review of literature complied into a report by Marilyn Adams (Beginning to Read, 1990). Adams's review of research proved that good readers could NAME more alphabet letters than poor readers . . . so assessments, for the accountability "run", measure letter recognition. Reading First research indicates that letter recognition is associated with reading success too. Common sense and research support focusing on the lowercase letter as the catalyst for recall for young children for early phonemic awareness, letter recognition/naming, and printing.
 
What are Pre-Writing strokes?

These five strokes help children learn how to design and create shapes, letters, and numerals. They are:

Up and around
Touch, pull down
Touch, push over
Slant down to the right
Slant left and down
 
What letters does the "up and around" stroke prepare children to write?
These are part of the I Can Draw Pre-Writing portion of We Can!. Children use pre-writing strokes in repeated drawing activities. This practice prepares them to ultimately form letters and numbers, and encourages students to listen and follow directions.
 
Does We Can! include assessments?

Yes, We Can! includes Blackline Masters and specific direction for assessing students. The assessments include:

collecting and recording observational data.
developing Student Portfolios or Mailboxes.
collecting student work samples.
the Emerging Literacy Checklist for baseline data at the beginning of the year.
the Early Childhood Assessment for the beginning, middle and end of year.
the Monthly Skills Checklist to link home/school communications.
 
How does We Can! build fine motor skills, and does the curriculum inform teachers how to assess these skills?

We Can! provides specific direction for teachers to observe students during activities and record their observations. The curriculum directs teachers to look for details including:

Use of right or left hand predominantly
Use of correct grip for crayon or pencil
Use of correct amount of pressure
If the student colors with most movement in fingers and wrist, less movement in elbow
Use of correct body posture and alignment to paper
If the student colors with confidence
If the student attempts to string letters together to write name
If the student attempts to connect geometric shapes or forms to draw pictures
If the student integrates shapes by overlapping them to make a picture
 
What is folding and tearing paper all about?
Folding and tearing paper helps students develop the grip, posture and motor skills needed for writing in Kindergarten and first grade.
 
How does We Can! develop vocabulary?

We Can! develops vocabulary by:

using thematic unit vocabulary words.
introducing the word in Spanish, English and ASL.
encouraging students to tell about experiences with each word.
using each new word in context.
saying or reading a sentence using the word.
making up stories that include the word.
using pictures or objects that illustrate the word.
 
How and why does We Can! use American Sign Language (ASL)?

We Can! uses ASL to:

build vocabulary and oral language skills.
expand and deepen word knowledge.
help students recall words and their meanings.
teach Spanish and encourage multilingual and multicultural experiences.
help students to interact with peers who speak another language or may be nonverbal.
help students learn to communicate by acting out their ideas.
help students stay engaged and on task.
 
What is the research that supports the use of ASL in classrooms with hearing children?
Little research exists because very little research exists for Pre-K in general. There is evidence support the use of ASL for children with special needs. There are many articles supporting the use of ASL for building vocabulary word meaning and enhancing communication with young children prior to them developing expressive speech. ASL is the third most common language in the country. It satisfies high school requirements as a foreign language which is great for some students who may struggle with a more difficult language. We used ASL to build word knowledge, encourage more interactions and get more responses from students . . . and for behavior (better their hands are in the hand rather than on their friends!) gesturing is a child's first language so it is natural to connect the ear (hearing), eye (seeing and doing) with the hands (doing) . . . teachers love it because they can see more responses at once as a quick check . . . like when the teacher asks children to sign the sound they hear at the beginning of a word like "mat" and the kids make the sign for letter "m."
 
How does We Can! teach math?

The math lessons in We Can! include having students:

sort objects with plastic salad tongs.
identify shapes of classroom furniture.
sort objects by color, shape or size.
count rubber bugs and other objects.
use a ruler and tape measure to measure objects such as rocks.
compare number of dots on two number cubes.
use My Big Book About Colors, Shapes, Numbers and Counting.
cut fruit into sections.
 
How does We Can! teach science?

Some examples of science lessons in We Can! are:

talking about ways the students and their families can help the environment.

 		 tasting different berries and identifying characteristics such as sweet, sour, or crunchy.
investigating objects with all five senses.
exploring different textures of rocks.
observing insects.
 
How does We Can! teach social studies?

Thematically tied social studies lessons in We Can! include:

discussing farms, farmers, and how they grow plants and raise farm animals.
talking about emotions and feelings.
identifying names for different types of clothing.
comparing different types of families and their homes.
 
Does We Can! include multi-sensory activities?
We Can! includes literature, music and poetry to enhance learning experiences with rhyme, rhythm, exploration, and movement. The We Can! Sing English and Spanish CD of songs is also part of the curriculum. Additionally, American Sign Language provides another strategy by which children expand vocabularies, oral language skills, and manage their behavior.
 
Does We Can! incorporate technology?
The Learning Zoo CD-ROM, which includes games and activities for the computer, is included in the We Can! Classroom Kit and the Letters, Sounds & Strokes Phonics Kit.
 
How were the vocabulary words chosen for We Can!?
The vocabulary words are unit theme based and also include HFW (High Frequency Words) for listening comprehension, not reading since Pre-K children first need to hear and understand the word meaning in context (meaning the text that is being read or discussed in class). More vocabulary words are introduced and practiced in Letters, Sounds & Strokes (LSS) and those words are selected by skill/phonemic awareness specifically. The back of the cards provide in LSS show the words using a specific sound and listed in order of level of difficulty. Teachers say the words, explain their meaning, and ask children to identify personal experiences where they have perhaps heard the word (connecting to background knowledge). More words are introduced in the Word Bank in the kit, The directions for the Word Bank are in the LSS Teacher's Guide. Words in the Word Bank are introduced by High Frequency for pre-reading, early print awareness (This, Is, A, Here, Are, and The; additionally the word family "at" as in Cat, Fat, Sat, etc.). So We Can! introduces words in multiple ways to enhance vocabulary and oral language development.
 
Can you tell us the best way to use the program with children who have special needs? Are there any modifications?
The modifications for every lesson/week/unit for ELLs represent what teachers do as "Plan B" when students need more. In the back of each Teacher's Edition are modifications for ELLs. The modifications for children with special needs in literacy and language are the same as those suggested for ELLs, (National Literacy Council (2006).