YWCA Rhode Island Preschool Opens Enrollment for fall session in Woonsocket

YWCA Rhode Island is enrolling children age 3 through 5
for preschool that begins with the fall school year at their 514 Blackstone St. facility.

The local YWCA has been offering a preschool since 1932, and the
current program meets all of the Rhode Island Early Learning
Standards. Those standards were developed in conjunction with
nationwide education reform and spell out expectations for what
preschool children should know and be able to do.  The preschool is licensed by the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families and provisionally approved by the Rhode Island Department of Education.

Mary Anne Deslauriers oversees the preschool as YWCA’s director of
early childhood education. She has a bachelor’s degree in education
from Rhode Island College and is certified in early childhood,
elementary and special education.

The preschool comprises four classrooms with similar programs but with
age distinctions: Rainbow Station, for 3-year-olds; Circle of Friends
and Henny Penny for 4- and 5-year-olds; and Stepping Stones, a
transitional program for 5-year-olds who are too young to meet the
December 31 birthday cutoff for kindergarten attendance. Classes are
limited to 15 children, and there is a teacher and an assistant in
each. YWCA has a school nurse on site.

While the state’s early learning standards outline eight “domains”
with specific methods and approaches to learning, social and emotional
development, language development, literacy, mathematics, science,
creativity, and physical health and development, the hallmark of YWCA
preschool classrooms is attention to individualized education.

Activities are geared to the different ways and varying paces at which
children learn, but each day includes busy and quiet times, stories
and songs, and physical activity. YWCA not only has an outdoor
playground but also a full-sized and equipped gymnasium so physical
activity is not curtailed by inclement weather.

An important part of every day is called “Center Time,” when children
move among different learning centers. Mathematics might involve
counting the spots on a construction-paper ladybug and matching them
to the numerical representation. Reading and writing begins with
children learning to write their first names and recognize the
letters. Once a child has mastered any skill, Deslauriers said, the
teacher makes sure there is a way to progress, like moving on to a
last name and new words.

Time to pretend is also time to learn. Children might play dress-up
with outfits from different cultures and “cook” with different tools,
like a frying pan and a wok. On a recent day, a group of children
built a cage out of blocks and became the animals inside it, while one
child was content to play at the water table. A loft area is set aside
for a library and quiet area. There is lots of choice.

“Our goal at YWCA’s preschool program is to make sure that every
child’s first school experience is safe, joyful and enriching,” says
Deslauriers. “This is accomplished through teachers thoughtfully
preparing the environment, materials and activities for purposeful
play experiences.  In addition, genuine child-teacher interactions and
conversations promote higher-level thinking and learning.”

Events also are available to families. The annual Family Fun Night
brings parents and children together for special activities at the
YWCA. A free series of classes shows parents how to adapt the Rhode
Island Early Learning Standards for activities at home.

Endorsements for YWCA preschool come not only from the Rhode Island
Department of Education, which has cited the YWCA preschool for its
programming, but also from parents.

“I can’t say enough about it,” says Tara Clifford of Blackstone. Her
two older children, Patrick, 10, and Abigail, 8, attended, and
Clifford says, “They were very well prepared for kindergarten, which
now is like first grade. They could write, they knew their numbers --
and they had friends. Abigail still is friends with girls she met
there.”

Now her youngest, Ella Rose, 3, attends and “loves to go to school,”
Clifford says. “My kids flourished there, and I recommend it to
everyone.”

Sandra Borges of Woonsocket says the YWCA preschool gave both her son
and her daughter, now college graduates, “an excellent foundation for
the future.” Her daughter, Amy, loved her preschool experience so much
that she returned as a teenager to volunteer as an assistant to her
former teacher -- and went on to become a teacher herself.

“I have always been so impressed with the YWCA,” Sandra Borges added.
She not only enrolled her children in programs beyond preschool but
also has volunteered and taught classes there and now is a member of
the board of directors.

Parents are encouraged to call YWCA Rhode Island at (401) 769-7450 for
information on schedules, fees, or to arrange their own tour of the
preschool. Registration must be done in person at YWCA located at 514
Blackstone St., Woonsocket.