Access 26 earns recognition from Wicomico County Board of Education

SALISBURY, MD ---Access 26, the area's only local community access television channel, was recently honored by the Wicomico County Board of Education for the station's efforts in producing the "Ready For School" series.

After receiving a Certificate of Appreciation, Mike Goodson, manager of Access 26, said, "This kind of affirmation really lifts our spirits and lets us know that we are in fact doing good work for our community."

The seven-episode series titled "Ready for School" was co-produced by Grace Murdock, mentor teacher at Pinehurst Elementary School, and Access 26. In it, local educators give basic readiness lessons for parents and caregivers of children up to age 6. The emphasis is on helping children develop their oral expressive language through presentation of appropriate vocabulary in each segment while learning basic skills such as numbers, counting, colors, shapes, letters and letter sounds.

Themes include "Environmental Learning," "Counting 0-10," "Before I Write" and "Learning Around the House." Exposure and possible mastery of the basic skills offered in this series, coupled with related concepts, provides an excellent foundation for children entering pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, Goodson said.

"We've only scratched the surface of what is possible," he added. "Our service benefits both the viewers and citizens who utilize our publicly accessible equipment to produce local programs; the potential is very exciting." For more information about Access 26 and the "Ready For School" program, e-mail www.access26.org or visit the Access 26 Web site at http://www.wcboe.org/programs/ReadyforSchool.