Is the program a full academic year?
The program is written as 20-minute lessons, 60 lessons per Stage. It was designed in this way to allow for maximum flexibility. If needed, lessons can be extended into two days to suit the needs of the students in the group.
What is a “Stage” ?
A “Stage” refers to a level in Kickstart. Though the Stages are roughly aligned to grade-level curricula and standards, students may place into any Stage based on their needs. For example, a Stage A group may have two kindergarten and two first-grade students in it.
Are there consumables to be purchased each year?
No. The Kickstart program was designed to be self-contained and ready to go each year, but schools will need to renew MyZBPortal.com licenses annually to access recorded songs, professional learning videos, and other online lesson support resources.
Is Kickstart aligned with Common Core?
All the activities are designed to support students who are struggling with grade-level Common Core curriculum. Many activities (especially in Stage A) are prerequisites to grade-level standards. The program is aligned with both the Math Content and Math Practice Standards.
What’s the difference between a Complete Intervention
Kit and a Student Materials Pack?
The Complete Intervention Kit is the full kit and initial purchase for a school. It includes the three Teacher Guides for each stage, one Student Materials Pack, Blackline Master Book, Songbook, Ten Park Cards, Activity Cards, and one-year access to MyZBPortal.com for two teachers.
The Student Materials Pack is included in the Complete Intervention Kit and can also be purchased separately. It contains only the hands-on manipulatives. It typically supports additional classrooms using Kickstart: Number Sense and Kickstart: Number Sense en español.
How are students placed in the program?
There are two paths for placement in Kickstart. Sometimes teachers know enough about a student to use the chart at the front of each Teacher Guide to place the student in the best stage. Alternatively, a quick 10-question assessment included in the program helps identify where students struggle with number sense and recommend placement.
Is there progress monitoring?
Kickstart includes tracking sheets to monitor student progress and areas of difficulty. Tracking sheets also help identify lessons in each Teacher Guide that can support students struggling with specific concepts. The placement assessments can also be used as pre- and post-assessments for growth monitoring.
How much training is needed to begin or teach the program?
Kickstart was written with real classrooms and real teachers in mind. The program is high quality, low prep, and highly effective, with little training necessary. Teacher Guides were designed to be “move in ready.” A teacher should be able to open the Teacher Guide, look a lesson over, and start teaching it that day.
What do I do if my kindergarteners aren’t ready to access Stage A material?
Available as a separate purchase, Kickstart: Early Number and Counting or Kickstart: Early Number and Counting en español features 30 days of intensive intervention for students struggling to access Stage A content. These lessons are available in a printed Teacher Guide or digitally as a one-year add-on to a MyZBPortal.com license.
