As your child begins Florida’s Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) program, their teacher will learn more about their early reading skills through the FAST Star Early Literacy assessment. One of the first checkpoints in the program year is Progress Monitoring 1 (PM1). There will be two other checkpoints during the middle (PM2) and end of the school year (PM3) to assess your child’s learning gains.
These short assessments help teachers understand what children already know and what skills they are ready to learn next. Each assessment usually takes less than 15 minutes and adjusts to each child’s responses. The goal is not to “pass” a test, but to help teachers support each child’s learning and growth.
Families can help children feel confident and ready by building early literacy skills at home through everyday conversations, shared reading and play.
What Skills Are Measured
FAST Star Early Literacy helps teachers understand how children are developing important early reading skills. Practicing these skills at home in fun ways can help strengthen your child’s confidence and love of learning.
Talk, Play and Explore Words
Children learn language best through everyday experiences. Simple conversations and playful activities help build the skills children need for reading.
You can try these creative activities to help your child hear and understand the sounds in words
- Singing songs and nursery rhymes
- Playing rhyming games
- Clapping syllables in words
- Talking about your surroundings
Learning to Adapt
It’s normal for children to feel curious or even a little unsure when trying something new. Let your child know that the assessment is just another way their teacher learns about them. Encourage them to relax, listen carefully and try their best. Your support and encouragement help build confidence and a positive attitude toward learning.
Parents Are a Child’s First Teacher
The small moments you spend reading, talking and playing with your child each day help build the skills they need for success in VPK, kindergarten and beyond.