Pre-Kindergarten

Pre-Kindergarten Program Pre-Kindergarten is a whole lot more than just playing games and drawing pictures! There are so many benefits to an all-day Pre-Kindergarten program. Not only does it prepare your child for all day Kindergarten, it also provides your child the opportunity and time to really become immersed in their learning. Our early childhood educators engage and nurture each child through a well-balanced curriculum that focuses on the development of the whole child as they explore in a safe interactive learning environment that offers a balance of free choice and instruction. Our interactive learning community provides a foundation where children continue to build upon skills that are vital to success in Kindergarten. Our diverse curriculum aligns with the NH Kindergarten Readiness Indicators and has been designed to ensure that all children reach and master significant milestones and indicators that will help them be successful in school and in life. Our early childhood educators utilize observation and assessment tools to help gain an understanding about the strengths and abilities of each child so they can better support learning across 5 developmental domains.

• Social and Emotional
• Language and Emergent Literacy
• Cognitive Development
• Physical Development and Health
• Creative Expression and Aesthetic Appreciation

The skills and knowledge acquired in each domain are essential for children’s success but are also deeply connected to the real world and to how children learn most effectively. All children are natural learners who gain knowledge by actively doing and communicating; making those direct connections between diverse skills and concepts is how they learn best. Jack and Jill School offers ample opportunity for child-initiated play so each child has an abundance of first hand experiences with real objects, pretend play, social situations, early reading an writing activities, STEM learning, health and physical fitness activities, creative expression with music, art, dance and theatre, and social interactions with family and community members of all ages. We encourage cooperative play, self-management, the recognition of feelings and showing kindness towards others. Through problem solving and responsive listening, the children develop and demonstrate confidence in approaching new tasks and experiences, demonstrate increasing competence in recognizing and describing their own emotions, show empathy for others and sustain positive relationships with their peers. We honor and embrace diversity that exists in children and families and in our community. At Jack and Jill School we believe there is such a richness in learning and play when seniors and children are brought together. Both groups have so much to teach and learn from each other that the result of these programs is always magical. We have several programs that bring seniors and children together to form fun and meaningful relationships. We invite “Grandfriends” in our community to come to Jack and Jill and participate in a variety of planned intergenerational activities. These fun activities include playing Buddy Bingo, Gardening, participating in Laughter Yoga, Tai Chi, Sing-A-Longs, Story-Art Hour, and any other group activity or project the children and seniors may want to participate in… the sky is the limit! We encourage and promote family involvement through active Family Fun Nights, holiday get-togethers, multicultural and literacy celebrations, art, theatre and music shows, science and math events, and interactive sing-a-longs. We encourage family-teacher interactions and maintain an open-door policy where parents and family members may stop in and join their child for some fun in the classroom at any time during the day or come in and share a family tradition or interest they would like to share with the class.