South Portland Preschools
Our preschools are located at Kaler and Skillin Elementary Schools.
Sixteen students at Kaler and sixteen students at Skillin attend our preschools, each with one Certified Early Childhood Teacher and one Certified Educational Technician.
Mission/Vision:
South Portland School Department will offer universal access to high quality public preschool for all South Portland four-year olds in school settings as well as appropriate, qualified community providers.
Beliefs:
- Every child can learn.
- Every four-year old has a right to a high quality preschool experience.
- All areas of child development - social, emotional, physical and cognitive - will be honored and aligned with Maine Early Learning Guidelines.
- Preschool classrooms utilize positive behavioral supports and strategies.
- Best practice literacy/language experiences are embedded in child-centered, comprehensive curriculum.
- Parent involvement is a key component for a successful preschool experience.
- Communication and relationships between parents and teachers are essential.
- All teachers are qualified and demonstrate ongoing involvement in high quality professional development.
- Children thrive within an inclusive environment (children with CDS services, ELL, socio-economic, etc.).
- Individual needs will be honored.
- Transition to public kindergarten is more effective when children have experienced a quality preschool program.
- Alignment of the preschool program will be planned, transparent and part of a planned relationship within the preschool through grade 12 settings.
Program Implementation:
How will preschool programs provide developmentally appropriate practice?
The South Portland Preschool program will use OWL (Opening the World of Learning) as its curriculum. OWL covers all aspects of development and its activities meet the learning needs of four-year-old children. The classroom contains a variety of learning areas that children can chose to participate in for as long as they want during Centers Time. Block Area, Water/Sand Table, Art Table, Art Easel, Dramatic Play, Puzzles & Manipulatives, Book Area/Listening Center, One Friend Space, Science/Math Area and Computer, all contain hands-on materials for children to explore, discover and play. The teacher demonstrates use of the materials during Morning Meeting so that children always know the range of ways the materials can be used. Because OWL is concept and vocabulary rich, children tend to spend longer times engaged in each activity. The whole group times are short (10-15 minutes each) allowing children to participate in activities such as songs, poems, math & whole body games, asking questions, telling stories and predicting experiment outcomes.
Class Size and Teacher to Child Ratios
Sixteen students at Kaler and sixteen students at Skillin, each with one Certified Early Childhood Teacher and one Certified Educational Technician.
Enrollment
- Preschoolers are age four by October 15th
- Family currently resides in South Portland
- Parents will agree to be actively engaged in the program and participate in training
- Parents agree to promote and model good school attendance
- A lottery will be used to determine enrollment as needed
Sample Daily Schedule at Kaler
Teacher – Typical South Portland School Department Work Day
Students – 8:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (5 days a week)
8:30 a.m. Arrival & Movement
8:40 a.m. Let's Find Out About It/Let's Talk About It
9:00 a.m. Handwashing/Breakfast
9:30 a.m. Morning Meeting
9:45 a.m. Center Time
10:55 a.m. Songs, Word Play & Letters
11:20 a.m. Handwashing/Lunch
11:55 a.m. Story
12:15 p.m. Small Groups
12:25 p.m. Closing Circle
12:35 6.m. Getting Ready/Outside
1:30 p.m. Bus Departs
Sample Daily Schedule at Skillin
Teacher – Typical South Portland School Department Work Day
Students – 8:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (5 days a week)
8:30 a.m. Arrival & Bathroom
8:50 a.m. Get Ready to Learn Exercises
9:15 a.m. Morning Greeting & Songs, Word Plays & Letters (SWPL)
9:40 a.m. Snack
10:00 a.m. Morning Recess
10:30 a.m. Morning Meeting
10:45 a.m. Center Time
11:45 a.m. Story Time
12:00 a.m. Lunch
12:20 p.m. Let's Find Out About It (LFOAI)
12:30 p.m. Small Groups
12:45 p.m. Shape/Number Talks
1:00 p.m. Closing Circle
1:10 p.m. Afternoon Recess & Departure
Family Outreach and Parent Involvement
Parents will agree to be actively engaged in the program and participate in training coordinated through the preschool staff.
Nutrition
At Skillin, preschoolers bring healthy morning snacks and lunch is provided. At Kaler, both breakfast and lunch are provided.
Transportation
Bus transportation is provided for Preschool students living in the Kaler, Skillin, and Brown neighborhoods. Parents of children attending Preschool from outside these neighborhoods or attending the Roots & Fruits program are responsible for providing transportation to and from school.
Kindergarten Transitions
Teachers will collaborate with Child Development Services, the South Portland School Department and families to review progress and individual needs for children prior to their transition to kindergarten.
Applications Have Officially Closed for the 2018/2019 School Year