A family stops you at pickup with a seemingly simple question. Their child has been in your curriculum since October, and they want to know: Is she going to be ready for kindergarten?
You’ve watched this child move through morning routines with growing confidence. You’ve seen her build sentences in the spring that weren’t there in the fall. You have the answer. What you may not have is the language to give it in a way that actually helps.
When families ask about kindergarten readiness, they’re rarely asking for data. They want to feel sure their child is going to be okay. Independent research from Johns Hopkins University found meaningful kindergarten-readiness gains for children in Guilford County classrooms using the Frog Street Pre-K curriculum under real classroom conditions. Here’s how to use those findings in conversations that give families what they’re really looking for.
What Did The Research Actually Find, and Why Does It Matter For These Conversations?
In 2026, Johns Hopkins researchers studied the Frog Street PreK curriculum as it was implemented in Guilford County Schools, North Carolina, a diverse, multiethnic district serving about 67,000 children across 124 schools, as detailed in the full efficacy study report. Children in Guilford County classrooms using the Frog Street PreK curriculum demonstrated statistically significant differences in kindergarten readiness outcomes, with an effect size of +0.26 (approximately a 10 percentile gain) and positive gains across all five domains measured. Children learning English showed an effect size of +0.62, indicating a larger observed difference within that subgroup and statistical significance at p < .001, though based on a smaller subgroup.
You don’t need to recite those numbers to a parent at pickup. Knowing they exist, though, changes how you plan the conversation. You’re not reassuring families based on instinct, but standing behind something that independent researchers confirmed in classrooms where children were using the Frog Street Pre-K curriculum in Guilford County Schools under real classroom conditions.
| Download the Educator Research Summary: Plain-Language Findings You Can Use with Families |
How Do You Translate Research Findings Into Language Families Can Actually Use?
Most families aren’t looking for “effect sizes.” They just want honest reassurance backed by science. Follow these best practices to weave this data into family conversations.
Lead With What You’ve Observed, Then Connect It To The Research
Start with something specific to the child, like, “One of the things I’ve noticed about her this year is how much her language has grown. She’s asking longer questions and staying with a conversation. That connects to what researchers found when they studied children in Guilford County classrooms using the Frog Street PreK curriculum. Across the areas they measured, researchers observed positive kindergarten-readiness differences.”
Use Plain Language
The study measured five areas: language and literacy, math, thinking and reasoning, social-emotional development (SED), and physical development. You don’t have to name them as “domains,” though.
You can say, “The researchers looked at how children were doing with language, with early math, with how they think through problems, and with how they handle their feelings and get along with others. They also looked at physical development. Across all five areas, researchers observed positive differences in kindergarten-readiness outcomes.”
Address The English Language Finding If It’s Relevant
If a family’s child is learning English alongside another language at home, that finding deserves specific mention. You can say, “There’s actually a part of this research that I think is especially relevant for your family. The study looked specifically at children who are learning English. The research found a larger observed difference within the subgroup of children learning English, which is meaningful for families in your situation.”
Be Honest About What The Research Does and Doesn’t Show
No study can predict what will happen to any individual child. Don’t use the data as a guarantee that their child will excel in kindergarten. Honesty is always the best policy. Say something like, “This research doesn’t tell us exactly what kindergarten will look like for any one child, but it does tell us that the curriculum she’s in is doing what it’s designed to do.”
What Do Families Most Want To Hear?
When parents ask about kindergarten readiness, they’re really asking you if their child will be okay. They want confirmation from you as someone who knows both the research and their child.
The most useful thing you can do is name that underlying question and answer it directly. You can say, “What I can tell you is that we are looking at the skills kindergarten readiness assessments measure, including language, early math, problem solving, social-emotional development, and physical development. Independent research found positive kindergarten-readiness differences across the areas measured compared with comparable children in the district. That does not guarantee any one child’s experience, but it is meaningful evidence that this curriculum is designed to support the skills your child needs next.”
| Download the Educator Research Summary: The Guilford County Findings and How to Use Them in Your Curriculum |
The conversations families have with you about kindergarten readiness are some of the most consequential ones they’ll have in these early years. When families ask, you now have independent research behind your answer.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I say when a family asks if their child is ready for kindergarten?
Acknowledge the anxiety, answer the question directly, and don’t lead with data before you’ve led with the child. Start with something specific you’ve observed about their child, then connect it to what researchers found. Let parents know that researchers observed positive differences across the developmental areas measured in the study. Be honest, the research shows patterns across many children. It doesn’t predict outcomes for any individual child.
How do I explain research to a family without using academic language?
You don’t need to use the term “effect size” at all. Instead, say, “Researchers compared children using the Frog Street Pre-K curriculum with similar children using another pre-K curriculum. The study found measurable differences in kindergarten-readiness outcomes for children using the Frog Street Pre-K curriculum on the readiness measure used in the study.”
What do I say to families where English is the second language?
Families of multilingual children often carry extra anxiety about kindergarten readiness, and this research speaks directly to their situation. Let them know that the study examined children learning English as a subgroup, and the study observed a larger difference within that subgroup than in the overall sample, with an effect size of +0.62, statistically significant at p < .001. The researchers noted this is based on a smaller subgroup within the study.
What if a family pushes back and says research doesn’t reflect their child?
They’re right that no study predicts what happens to any individual child. The study also found that children learning English showed an effect size of +0.62, statistically significant at p < .001, though based on a smaller subgroup. What you can say is: “Research tells us that the curriculum is doing what it was designed to do, in classrooms that looked a lot like this one, with children from a diverse district population. It can’t guarantee anything, but the research suggests the curriculum is designed to support kindergarten-readiness development under real classroom conditions.”
