Early Education in Isle of Wight

County Schools

Did you know?

• The first few years of life are critical for a young child’s cognitive development.

• 90% of a child’s brain develops during the first 5 years of life.

Exposure to early learning opportunities is KEY!

• Young children who attend high-quality preschool programs enter kindergarten with more advanced pre-reading skills, increased vocabularies, and stronger basic math skills than those who do not (Barnett, NIEER).

Benefits of a High Quality Preschool Program

• Better social skills• Fewer grade retentions• Less need for Special Education services• Higher test scores• Higher graduation rates

(Barnett & Masse, 2006)

Isle of Wight County Schools Learning Center Preschool Program

Five high-quality Learning Center classrooms:

• Carrollton Elementary (one classroom)• Carrsville Elementary (one classroom)• Hardy Elementary (one classroom)• Windsor Elementary (two classrooms)

Isle of Wight County Schools Learning Center Preschool

Program

• Each Learning Center is staffed with one highly qualified teacher and one highly qualified instructional assistant.

• There are a total of 18 students in each Learning Center classroom.

• The program is designed for children, 4 years of age – by September 30th, who may experience or be exposed to factors that could potentially have a negative impact on their school success.

Isle of Wight County Schools Learning Center Preschool

ProgramGoals: • To provide a healthy, learning

environment that addresses the academic, social, emotional, and physical needs of our preschool students.

• To provide support to our preschool families (orientation, home visits, conferences, parent education workshops).

Learning Center Standards

• The standards of our Learning Center program include the use of the Virginia Foundation Blocks for Early Learning: Literacy, Mathematics, Science, History and Social Science, Health and Physical Development, Personal and Social Development, Music, and the Visual Arts.

• Houghton Mifflin Pre-K Literacy and Math Series

Upcoming Changes from the General Assembly

• Students who are enrolled in the Virginia Preschool Initiative program for the 2015-2016 school year, should be given priority for enrollment into approved VPI slots using one of the four new criteria referenced below: – family income at or below 200% of poverty– homelessness– student’s parents or guardians are school dropouts– family income is less than 350% of federal poverty

guidelines in the case of students with special needs or disabilities

Superintendent’s Memo #081-15

Upcoming Changes

• Due to these changes, we will be looking closely at our Learning Center enrollment and waitlist information to be sure we are serving the students with the most at-risk need during the 2015-2016 school year.

Come Visit Our Learning Centers!