In this month's newsletter, we're highlighting a recent Early Learning Network study led by researchers at MDRC, University of Michigan and the Harvard Graduate School of Education, in collaboration with Boston Public Schools.

The team's findings revealed that content-rich instruction in prekindergarten (pre-K) may boost children’s math skills — a critical predictor of academic success from kindergarten through third grade. The study also found that content-rich and cognitively demanding instructional practices in pre-K led to larger gains for children who started the year with stronger academic skills.

Learn more about the study and its implications for practice in the story linked below.

The Early Learning Network, funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, leverages its expertise, resources and geographic diversity to help narrow opportunity gaps and maintain early learning success as children transition from preschool to third grade. Together, network researchers from universities and organizations across the U.S. are examining current policies and practices, identifying malleable factors associated with early learning and achievement, and developing tools to assess early learning instruction, interactions and environments. Learn more at earlylearningnetwork.unl.edu.