Full Day Learning for Kindergarteners Set for Fall

Applications for the lottery for district’s full-day learning program began Tuesday, though district officials note that the program will not be an all-day academic program.

That’s because the program cannot offer an academic advantage for students who receive a slot in the program and those who attend the half-day program. As a result, the program will be called the Children at Play Learning Program (CAP) to distinguish it from the existing program. It will include themed, play-based activities for those attending.

“It became very serious concern very quickly to the Steering Committee that whatever we came up with, this program did not provide an unfair academic advantage to those students who were not chosen for the lottery,” Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Lisa Antunes said. “  .  .  .It is very different from what we are already providing.”

Parents with children entering kindergarten will be able to apply for the program, which is a full day, paid program.  The application period began Tuesday and runs until May 12, with the lottery taking place at 9:00 a.m. May 20.

The program’s anticipated running cost $57,014 per section and would include teacher salaries, estimated at $27,500, health benefits at $13,000, supplies at $1,000, paying lunch aides, a cost of $2,464 for the 50-minute period, and transportation costs, estimated at $13,050, according to Assistant Superintendent for Personnel Scott Rocco. The estimates include the addition of an extra bus route, though Rocco noted that program enrollment would determine whether the district adds a route.

In order to reach the anticipated “break even point”, the program would need at least eight students per section if the district does not need additional transportation.  If the district does need additional transportation routes, the “break even” number rises to 10 students per section.

After reviewing costs for area kindergarten programs, the district determined CAP would cost $35 per day, which is about $609 per month, Rocco said.

The program would be offered in all district elementary schools, using the schools’ existing facilities, according to Rocco.  In most cases, schools would use existing kindergarten classrooms, though Hillsborough Elementary would use a room across from the existing classroom and Sunnymead Elementary would use the school’s preschool classroom.

At Amsterdam school, the Transitional Primary program would move to Hillsborough Elementary School, since that school has additional space for the program.  In addition, the preschool program at Triangle School would also move to Hillsborough Elementary School because of extra space in that building.

Woodfern Elementary School and Sunnymead Elementary School have space available for additional sections, should the program expand, Rocco added.

Any child in the program would need to be in the morning kindergarten session. CAP program students arrive and dismiss at the same time as the school’s transitional primary through fourth grade students.  At the end of the day, students can take their school bus home or to an aftercare center, or parents can enroll them in the school’s aftercare program.  The school’s aftercare program is an additional cost, however.

The program would run about three hours and 50 minutes each afternoon, whereas the current half-day program runs about two and a half hours. Lunch, recess and transportation would be provided for the students.

When planning the program direction, the teachers, administrators and principals considered the activities from their own experiences that don’t fit into the existing day, Antunes said.

The resulting program includes extended outdoor play, projects, crafts, cooking opportunities, music, show and tell and free choice activities.

“Right now, some of the teachers do show and tell only for the star of the week,” Antunes said.  “They will actually schedule show and tell .  .  .so that each student will get the chance to enhance their public speaking skills.  .  .It will utilize teachable moments without the need to rush.”

While the committee is still finalizing the curriculum, possible units include painting, singing, dancing, public speaking, author spotlights, drama, building and other activities.  

Parents of kindergarten students will receive an introductory letter and program brochure that includes a lottery entry form.  The forms need to be returned to the child’s elementary school by May 12.

The district will hold lottery drawings for each school on May 20, though parents do not need to be present to accept a placement.  Though each section has 22 slots, the district will continue pulling names until all names are pulled.  The students who do not receive a slot in the program will be placed on a waiting list in case of a mid-year opening or a family that decides against taking the program slot.

The school’s secretary will notify parents of the lottery results, and a tuition deposit will be due by June 8.