Can We Play Now?

Preparing Young Children for School Success

Dr. Marta’s School Readiness Institute (SRI) Digi was created to provide support to parents and educators of early learners to ensure that their learning stays on track in light of the disruptions we are facing due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

SRI Digi participants receive the following:

Six Early Childhood Focused Literacy Learning Guide Units Developed by Dr. Marta

One – Live 60-Minute Informational
Demonstration per month on Dr. Marta’s Literacy Learning Guide Activities

Access to the Dr. Marta Instructional Video Library containing additional resources to support early learners

A list of recommended materials that parents/educators can use with their early learners

The reading list* of the children’s books featured in Dr. Marta’s Literacy Learning Guides for this cohort includes:

Flower Garden by Eve Bunting

City Shapes by Diana Murray

Community Soup by Alma Fullerton

Chugga Chugga Choo Choo by Kevin Lewis

Block City by Robert Louis Stevenson

Mighty Mighty Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker

Each of Dr. Marta’s Literacy Learning Guides contains seven curriculum lessons that enhance and enrich the development of strong literacy skills. Units also include supplemental materials to assist parents/educators in the delivery of the curriculum. Literacy Learning Guide Unit materials are delivered electronically to SRI Digi participants in advance of each 60-Minute Informational Demonstration.

The cost per family to participate in the School Readiness Institute is $180/month for six months. This rate is being offered to the Beta cohort as a 60% discount from the average market rate for similar services in appreciation for your assistance in providing customer feedback on the curriculum and digital resource delivery strategy.

SRI Digi participants also receive a discount when scheduling additional consulting sessions with Dr. Marta via https://martacollier.com/schedule-an-appointment/.

This service provides parents and early childhood educators with engaging and project based strategies to boost confidence, creativity, critical thinking and love for learning. If you are interested in applying to join the School Readiness Institute, please direct your inquiry to info@AskDrMarta.com “Subject Line: School Readiness Institute” for additional information or apply here.

Meet Dr. Marta (Your Instructor)

Marta D. Collier, Ph.D. (Dr. Marta) has worked in the field of early childhood education for more than 40 years as a classroom teacher, teacher educator and education services entrepreneur throughout the midwestern and southern regions of the United States. Dr. Marta has administered multi-state, regional and local community literacy and teacher training programs to address the gaps in research and practitioner resources for early learners with particular attention to students and families in rural communities.

CLICK TO VIEW CURRICULUM VITA

After retiring from higher education, Dr. Marta began building Marta Collier Educational Systems and Services, LLC to provide curriculum and training to support early learners.

Dr. Marta has trained more than 1,500 certified teacher candidates, mentored 40 doctoral students, coached over 250 in-service teachers in classroom management, classroom design and curriculum and instruction across the State of Arkansas with a focused concentration on the Arkansas Delta Region.

In addition to her teacher training work, Dr. Marta has also been involved in advancing practitioner-focused research involving play and culturally-competent early literacy interventions in both formal and informal learning environments. This work includes literacy programming within the Marshallese community of Northwest Arkansas, collaborative early literacy outreach with community-based organizations, tele-literacy interventions for home-based learners and the intersection of literacy and music education in early childhood development.

Dr.Marta’s special recognitions for academic excellence and service include: University of Arkansas College of Education and Health Professionals Department of Curriculum and Instruction Outstanding Teacher Award (2005), Phi Delta Kappa (1995), Arkansas Alumni Association Wyatt Weems Memorial Service Award (2017), Friend of Springdale Public Schools Award (2013), the Arkansas Women’s Giving Circle (2007 & 2008), Guest Reviewer for The Reading Teacher (2003)

TEACHING SPECIALITIES

Dr. Marta’s teaching specialties include: classroom design, classroom learning theory, early childhood curriculum and instruction, early literacy, children’s literature, Chapter I Literacy and Mathematics Interventions and STEM literacy

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Dr. Marta’s research interests include: play as a central mechanism for teaching and learning with young children, family literacy learning to support parent engagement and school readiness, early STEM literacy and connections between early literacy and music.

PUBLICATIONS/PRESENTATIONS/MEDIA

Collier, M.D. and Youngblood, M.C. (2022) Can We Play Now?: The Importance of Play in the Success of Literacy Acquisition for Black Children. The Journal of Intercultural Disciplines (Under Review)

Collier, M.D. and Youngblood, M.C. (2022) Can We Play Now?: The Importance of Play in the Success of Literacy Acquisition for Black Children, Preliminary Findings.” Invited Presentation at the International Congress of the Americas, 19-25 June 2022, Panama City, Panama.

Collier, M.D. and Youngblood, M.C. (2022) “Can We Play Now?: The Importance of Play in the Success of Literacy Acquisition for Black Children.” Invited Presentation at the National Association of African American Studies National Virtual Conference, 16 February 2022.

Collier, M. and Collier, W. “SMART Play My Way: Summer Enrichment Program Pilot.” Southern Conference on Children, 26 January 2019, Georgia Southern University Nessmith-Lane Center, Statesboro, Georgia.

James, C. “Small Business Week in Georgia celebrates UGA’s economic vitality efforts.” UGA Today, 14 March 2017. https://news.uga.edu/georgia-small-business-week-2017/ Collier, M. and W.R. Collier.

“Culturally-Competent Resources For Early-Childhood Interventions: An Introduction to M.C.E.S.S., LLC.” Georgia Department of Education 21st Century Community Learning Centers Region 3 Brown Bag, 7 December 2016, Walton County Board of Education, Monroe, GA.

Wiggins, D., & Collier, M. (2010). A Musical Adventure In Literacy Land: Unlocking the Musical Door to Reading. Invited presentation at the 57th Annual Study Conference of the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children, Raleigh, NC.

Hughes, C., Preyan, L. and Collier, M. (2010). Leveraging diversity through faculty perception of their power to influence diversity. International Journal of Human Resources Development and Management, 10(3) 208-223.

Getting a Head Start Childhood Education Students Design Activities for Preschoolers. The Colleague (2008)

Cultural Aspect Makes Literacy Project Special to Islanders. The Colleague (2007) https://scholarworks.uark.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=coehpcol 

Collier, M., Murphy, Y. (2007). A Culturally Sensitive Community-Based Approach to Literacy Engaging the Marshallese Population. Hawaii International Conference on Education, Honolulu Hawaii, January, 2007. (refereed paper)