The PATHS
to Success Program
The PATHS to Success Program
This school year, the PATHS curriculum continues in
the Harrisburg School District and another phase called
PATHS to Success begins with kindergarten students.
Developed in partnership with Penn State and Hempfield
Behavioral Health, the program also includes a
developmental study and is designed to promote school
readiness in kindergarten children.
Why Focus on School Readiness?
As children enter school, they face important,
new challenges:
• Learning to read
• Learning to follow rules
• Learning to get along with others and make friends
• Learning to feel confident in school
During the pre-kindergarten and kindergarten years, the
front brain is growing rapidly. This growth promotes the
important thinking skills that children need to succeed in
school. These skills include learning how to pay attention
for longer periods of time, to have self-control, and to
solve everyday problems. Healthy brain growth does not
occur automatically. It depends upon the support that
children receive as well as their early learning activities
and experiences.
What is the PATHS to Success Program?
PATHS to Success includes ideas and activities that are
designed to promote the rapid development of these
attention, self-control, and problem-solving skills. The
program has been developed to unlock children’s
potential to both learn and enjoy school.
Supporting children’s self control also helps children build
friendships and positive relationships with classmates and
adults at home and at school.
What Does the Program Involve?
The PATHS curriculum is a central part of the program.
The PATHS curriculum helps children develop four types
of skills:
• Friendship Skills — making friends, keeping friends,
good manners
• Emotional Skills — talking about feelings,
understanding and respecting others’ feelings
• Self-control Skills — being able to calm down,
being respectful to parents and teachers
• Problem-solving Skills — recognizing problems
and solving them, making good decisions
With parent permission, kindergarten children will also
participate in Friendship Groups that will be held during
school. The Friendship Groups involve fun activities that
are designed to build friendships at school and promote
a friendly school environment.
Handouts and information are available to support parents
at home. Some children will be offered additional home
support, based upon child need and parent interest.
How Will the Program be Evaluated?
The study will evaluate the development of school
readiness skills in children. This evaluation will include
measures of children’s behavior, achievement, and brain
power. You may see a van with a “Twiggle Spaceship”
logo that will be outside the elementary schools. This is
the PATHS to Success mobile lab. With parents’ permission,
children will work on learning tasks in this van, and
we will use a computer to study their underlying brain
waves and growth in their performance. We expect to
see that this program actually makes children smarter
than they already are!
With the PATHS to Success program, we hope to promote
children who are:
1. Strong — with good coping and
decision-making skills
2. Smart — good readers, connected to school,
and attentive
3. Caring and Respectful — with strong bonds
to their families and friends, responsible,
and caring toward others
For more information, contact:
Mark Greenberg (814) 863-0112
Jennifer Ford (717) 260-9636