At JSP, we think that play is vital to a child’s academic success and social-emotional development.  That is why we have an abundance of free play in every class so that the children have time to explore the classroom and their interests.  Children learn so much by playing.  They work out fine motor skills while creating art projects, they discover mathematic and scientific concepts by building a block tower, and they lay a foundation for literacy by looking at books.  When you have a group of children in a classroom together, there are going to be ample opportunities to work on compromise, cooperation, sharing, and conflict resolution.  These teachable moments would not exist without play.  As Mr. Fred Rogers put so perfectly, “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning.  But for children play is serious learning.  Play is really the work of childhood.”

Does my child need to be potty trained to attend your preschool?

We do not require the children in the T/Th or M/W/F classes to be potty trained.  We will support these kiddos and their families wherever they are at in the potty training process.  However, because we may only have 2 teachers in the Pre-K class, in order to maintain teacher-child ratios and work on Kindergarten readiness, the children in this class must be potty trained.

Do you follow the BVSD schedule? 

Yes, with some exceptions.  We start our school year later than they do (the Tuesday after Labor Day), but we end our year at the same time as them.  We take all of their big breaks (Thanksgiving, Winter and Spring breaks) and holidays (Veterans Day, MLK Day, President’s Day).  We typically take a few of their in-service days as work days for our teachers, and we are also closed a handful of days for parent-teacher conferences in the fall and spring.  If BVSD closes for inclement weather, we do as well.

What is your teacher-child ratio?

Our ratio is no more than 1:7 and our maximum class size is 15 children.

When is tuition due? 

Tuition is due on the 15th of the month.  You will receive a monthly invoice with your amount due.

How often do you take the kids outside? 

We go outside every day, unless it is below 28° or very rainy, snowy, windy, etc.  If this is the case, teachers will lead gross motor activities inside.

Are you a nut-sensitive school? 

Yes!  We always seem to have atleast one student with a severe nut allergy, so we ask that you not bring any food items containing nuts into our school.  Food items that are processed in a facility that uses nuts are acceptable.