The following programs are offered to children ages three and older at no additional fee. Toddlers and two year olds only participate in the speech program.

READING SPECIALIST

Beginning each September, Edith Fisher, M.Ed., a former Bright Beginnings teacher of 11 years, and currently a Reading Specialist in our schools, visits each pre-kindergarten class to bring specialized lessons to enhance your child's language and literacy achievement. Reading aloud provides a strong foundation in language by strengthening vocabulary and print knowledge of how words form sentences and how sentences will tell a story, so each lesson will begin with a book that will reinforce the language experience.  The activity that follows will not only relate to the book, but will also be based on the State of Virginia Kindergarten Standards of Learning. The lessons will provide phonological awareness (sound structures of words) through activities that focus on rhyming words, beginning sounds, and syllables.  Music, movement, and creative dramatics will also be incorporated into the lessons to help explore language.

SPEECH PROGRAM

Our consult speech language pathologist, will perform articulation (speech) screenings in the classrooms with children age three and up as well as performing small language groups to enhance language and articulation skills, introduce language skills with sign language to the younger children, and work on phonemic awareness skills to enhance early literacy.

MUSIC PROGRAM

Each class consists of music and movement as a learning tool to focus on skills they are already using in school as well as enhancing other aspects of their development. Songs about numbers, letter, colors, and shapes are incorporated as well as silly fun songs to get them emotionally charged. Concepts of opposites or even incorporating sign language is presented almost every class. Most classes will include small rhythm instruments like egg shakers or jingle bells to add to the learning process.

(Miss Melissa, Music Teacher, is currently the owner/director of FootNotes Music & Dance Studio in Charlottesville. She has a B.A. in music from Rowan University and has been a certified Kindermusik instructor since 1998. She is a member of the Charlottesville Music Teacher Association and has been teaching in the area for 8 years.)