Portland St. Patrick Catholic School

As we enter the second semester and begin to think about next year, one of the things at the top of our list is preparation for our preschool, DK, and kindergarten students.   On Tuesday, February 28, we will host an Open House for these early education programs, which will include pre-school classes for three and four year olds, a DK/young fives program and kindergarten.  The Open House will take place in the Parish Hall and will begin at 6:30 p.m. 

Here are some of the questions that have been asked, along with my answers:

Will there be any changes to the preschool programs?

Our three-year program will not experience any changes.  It will remain on Tuesdays and Thursdays and will run two and half hours in length.  The morning classes will run from 8:30 – 11:00 and the afternoon session will run from 1:00 – 3:30.

The four year old program will continue to run on Mondays and Wednesdays with a Friday option.  We are adding a half hour to our four-year old program.  This half hour will provide more time to focus on academics for the students.  The morning classes will run from 8:30 – 11:30 and the afternoon session will run from 12:30 – 3:30.

Will there be any changes to the developmental kindergarten/young 5’s program?

Developmental kindergarten (or young 5’s as it often referred) will remain a half day program which takes place five days a week.  The morning classes will run from 8:30 – 11:30 and the afternoon session will run from 12:30 – 3:30.

The major change in this program will be the cutoff date for age.  In the past we have let any student who turns five before the end of the school year enter our program.  Next year we will use February 1 as a general cutoff for DK.  However, if a student has a birthday after February 1 but screens ready for DK they will be allowed to enter the program.   If the screening shows a child is not ready to enter DK they will be referred to our four year old preschool program.

Will there be any changes to the kindergarten program?

Kindergarten will remain all day, five days a week.  To enter our Kindergarten program, students must be five years of age by December 1 of the school year of enrollment.  This also is not a strict deadline.  If a child turns five after the December 1 cutoff but their screening shows they are ready for kindergarten and the parent agrees they are ready, we will enroll that child into our kindergarten program.

Can I as the parent choose to have my child placed in kindergarten or DK or do I have to what the screener advises? 

A child will be placed based on the screening unless the parent prefers to hold them back.  For example, if a child screens for kindergarten, a parent may request to have the child placed in DK.  A parent cannot have a child placed in a level where the screening shows they are not ready.  For example, we will not advance students to kindergarten who screen for DK.  We do not want to place students in a situation where they will be unable to be successful.

If you have any further questions in regards to St. Patrick’s preschool, DK or kindergarten programs, please contact me at (517) 647-7551 or by email at randyhodge@portlandstpats.com.   I hope to see you at the open house on Tuesday, February 28 at 6:30 p.m.  Our kindergarten screening is scheduled for Thursday, April 19.