1. Early Education in Isle of Wight County Schools

2. 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).

3. 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)

4. 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)

5. 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.

6. Isle of Wight County Schools Learning Center Preschool Program Goals: 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).

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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.

10. Come Visit Our Learning Centers!