The Country School is an independent, coeducational, Pre-K through 8 school founded in 1934.
News
Value of Read Aloud
Last week I wrote about how important the establishment of a regular reading habit is for your child’s overall and optimal cognitive development. All sorts of advantages are seen in the profiles of children and young adults who read at least 30 minutes a day. A recent study reported on in The New York Times article “Reading Aloud to Young Children Has Benefits for Behavior & Attention” takes this even further. It makes the case that parent-child play and “the parent-child-book moment… have the potential to curb behaviors like aggression, hyperactivity, and difficulty with attention.”
The study “Reading Aloud, Play, and Social-Emotional Development” was recently published in Pediatrics. It followed a large sample of 4 1/2 year olds who were about to enter formal schooling. Their parents had received coaching on incorporating reading aloud and parent-child play when the children were between birth and 3 years old. The study found that those families who continued to read aloud and play together developed significantly lower levels of aggression, hyperactivity, and difficulty with attention.
The study’s investigator, Dr. Alan Mendelsohn puts it this way: “We think when parents read with their children more, when they play with their children more, the children have an opportunity to think about characters, to think about the feelings of those characters. They learn to use words to describe feelings that are otherwise difficult and this enables them to better control their behavior when they have challenging feelings like anger or sadness.”
The Times article ends by noting, “All families need to know when they read, when they play with their children, they’re helping them learn to control their own behavior so that they will come to school able to manage the business of paying attention and learning.”
Recent News
List of 5 news stories.
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Kindergarten Students Serving Others!
Kindergarteners have been participating in a 3 part HOHO (Helping Others; Helping Ourselves) project lead by Ferris and Laura Butler. Students packed boxes to be shipped to veterans and their families. The boxeswere filled with child friendly, donated items. Also in the boxes were handwritten letters from the students along with a handmade American flag craft. The Butlers carefully orchestrated this project, and we are very grateful for their time and efforts. -
Spring Athletic Award Winners
Congratulations to all our spring athletics award winners and to all our Cougar athletes who participated in sports and clubs! This spring, TCS offered Boys’ and Girls’ Lacrosse, Pickleball Club, Running Club, and Volleyball Club. Providing so many athletic opportunities took a village—thank you to our amazing coaches, volunteers, and parent drivers for making it all possible! And thank you to our students for setting an example of dedication and sportsmanship!Read More -
Summer Trips for Upper School Students in 2025
It is with great excitement that The Country School announces the addition of 2025 summer trips for our Upper School students!Read More -
The Country School Celebrates 90 Years and Installs Jay Parker
Read MoreThe Country School is proud to be celebrating its 90th school year. This milestone year also marks the beginning of a new chapter with the appointment of Jay Parker as the 7th Head of School. -
Conversation & Homecoming - Saturday, February 24, 2024
Read MoreThe Country School, Talbot County Free Library, and the Avalon Foundation, sponsors, join with fourteen other community organizations to present Conversation & Homecoming with Carole Boston Weatherford and her son, Jeffery Boston Weatherford, a program free and open to all.
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