Most students yearn for that one-to-one time with a caring role model in the playroom. Primary Project is a life changing experience for our children.
If you know a child who appears to be having challenges in the learning environment, Primary Project may be the solution.
Primary Project is a national evidence-based program that helps children in Pre-K through third grade adjust to school, gain confidence, social skills, and focus on learning. Through play, Primary Project addresses children’s school adjustment difficulties and increases their chances for success.
Begun in 1957, Primary Project is the foundational program of Children’s Institute. It has helped countless children since then, and continues to grow throughout New York and the nation. It identifies young children who show emerging school adjustment difficulties and provides them with one-on-one time with a specially trained and supervised paraprofessional.
- Teachers and parents of pre-k through third grade children who may be experiencing school adjustment challenges
- Detect school adjustment difficulties early
- Children develop a school-based, trusting relationship with an adult
- Reduce social, emotional, and school adjustment difficulties
- Enhance learning skills
- Reduces negative adjustment behaviors
- Improves children's self-confidence, social skills, learning skills, and other school-related competencies
- Allows school mental health professionals to focus on children who need more intensive interventions
- Early screening detects school adjustment difficulties
- Children meet weekly with highly trained and supervised paraprofessionals (called child associates) in a playroom setting
- The child sets the pace with the child associate supporting and reflecting on what the child says and does to reinforce and build on the child’s strengths
- Ongoing consultation and program evaluation allows for continuous improvement
- Ongoing training opportunities are available for teachers & educational staff, Primary Project supervisors and child associates, and Primary Project preschool sites. Contact us for more information.
- Evidence-Based Program - National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP): Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
- Sharing Success Program - New York State Education Department
- Lela Rowland Award for Outstanding Prevention Program - National Mental Health Association
- Exemplary Prevention Program - U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health
COMET is Children’s Institute's data management and reporting tool
Schools who implement Primary Project use COMET to screen children in the early grades and identify those who may benefit from the program, they then complete pre-post assessments on COMET to monitor progress and report on results. Having the assessment tools available online, as opposed to paper, has increased response rates up to 98% and reduced turn-out time for results from weeks to instantly!
Resources
- Advocacy flyer
- Certificate of Completion
- Child Associate Job Description
- Facts for Parents
- Datos para los padres
- Facts for Schools
- Guidelines for Program Implementation
- Logo for download
- Parent-Child Rating Scale (P-CRS)
- Program Consultation
- Program Flyer
- Primary Project Best Practices Rubric
- Primary Project Qualitative Study (2017)
- Primary Project Standards
- Suggested Playroom Materials
- Videos
National Certification
Research
Massengale, B., Perryman, K. (2021). Child-Centered Play Therapy’s Impact on Academic Achievement: A Longitudinal Examination in At-Risk Elementary School Students. International Journal for Play Therapy, 30(2), 98-111.
Contact
Lynn Smith, LMSW
Co-Director of Primary Project
Shelley M. Sanyshyn, MS
Co-Director of Primary Project