Junior Kindergarten (5 years)
Welcome to the Junior Kindergarten Program at Discovery Station Learning Center! A child’s early experience in school helps form their attitudes toward learning throughout their lives. Exposure to Music, Art, Literature, and the Sciences in a fun and secure environment at an early age has been shown to have a significant impact on their interest and performance in school. The Junior Kindergarten Program at Discovery Station was created to help set your child up to achieve success throughout their academic career prior to their admission to Kindergarten. Our program incorporates the importance of self-reliance, socialization, decision making, and the development of self-esteem into our advanced academic curriculum. Working together, the classroom team in our Junior Kindergarten Program will help your child on to the first stop on the track to learning.
Primary Educators and Ratio:
Each child enrolled in the Junior Kindergarten program will have an assigned Primary Educator to help ensure a positive schooling experience from their very first day. Your child’s Primary Educator will ensure that your child is exposed to activities that suit his or her learning style, and that they are exposed to a variety of one-of-a-kind experiences during their day. In addition, your child’s Primary Educator will keep you informed of their developmental and education goals for the school year, and will provide progress reports (through conferences and written reports) several times a year. Discovery Station always adheres to the Adult to Child ratio mandated by the State of Virginia for this age group (1:12). However, the presence of our additional assistant teacher allows us to follow a lower Adult to Child Ratio of 1:10 throughout our academic day.
Curriculum and Schedule:
Enrollment in our Junior Kindergarten Program affords your child many special opportunities throughout their day. In addition to a program rich in art, science, math, and languages, Junior Kindergarten students spend time every day in our Discovery Labs. Students may create and illustrate stories on the computer in our Technology Station, learn about hypothesis and problem solving in the Science Station, or create a one-of-a-kind masterpiece in our Creation Station. Our Junior Kindergarten students are also given the opportunity to take their learning on the road during regularly scheduled field trips to the Public Library, where they will be able to participate in story hour and will have access to their own personal library cards. Their daily schedule features alternating periods of child directed play and teacher led activities to help foster both group and individual interactions. Exposure to nature and outdoor play are both critical elements to the Junior Kindergarten curriculum, and students are given ample outdoor play time each day to help them thrive. When you enroll your child into our full day Junior Kindergarten Program, you can be assured that they will have the experiences they need to become happy, healthy, successful Kindergarteners!