About ECE 

At a Glance

Preschool Program Offerings

  • Preschool for All (PFA) 
  • Community Partnership - Preschool Subcontracting
  • Head Start Child Development Program 
  • Collaboration Preschool Program  
  • Child-Parent Centers (CPC) 
  • Tuition-Based Preschool (TBP) 
  • Kindergarten

Program Formats

Prekindergarten

Rooms Day Length Hours
578 Half Day PFA & CPC = 2 1/2 hours/Head Start = 3 hours
26 Full School Day 5 1/2 hours
27 Full-Day Tuition 10 hours - Tuition Based Preschool
472 Subcontracting Child Care Agency Schedule (7:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.)

Kindergarten

756 Full School Day 5 1/2-hour Instructional Sessions
59 4 - hour 4 - hour Instructional Sessions
40.5 Half-Day 2 1/2 - hour Instructional Sessions

Eligibility

Must be 3 or 4 years old on or before September 1st of the current school year for prekindergarten Funding source determines specific eligibility criteria 

Must be 5 years old on or before September 1st of the current school year for kindergarten NOTE: Must reside in schools' attendance area or have been accepted to a specialty program

Program

Total Slots Classrooms Schools/Locations
  2010-2011 2010-2011 2010-2011
Preschool for All 14,800 390 240
Community Partnerships 9,700 472 238
Head Start 6,900 248 130
Child-Parent Centers 1,160 29 10
Tuition-Based Preschool 540 27 17
(Collaboration programs included
with Head Start rooms)

Community Partnership-Birth-3 4,055 370 121
PI/PT 5,224 - 29
Kindergarten (with charter school enrollment) 28,9759 855.5 Available in elementary schools serving children at age 5
Kindergarten without charter school enrollment) 25,820

Curriculum Statement

It is expected that all preschool classrooms will implement the literacy curriculum provided by the Office of Early Childhood Education. A variety of materials and curricula have been provided along with training and professional development. Literacy activities should be an integral part of the preschool day. In addition to these activities, mulitple stories should be read to each group of children on a daily basis. Children may need to be divided by age as teachers should begin to read more detailed stories to the four-year-old children.

Technology Initiatives Computer Training Labs

Computer Training Labs Location of Labs: Fuller and Doolittle West Elementary Schools
Training classes for teachers, assistants, office and administrative staff
Training classes for parents, including open Lab time for parent use

Parent Involvement Initiatives

Virtual Pre-K!
www.virtualpre-k.org 		Interactive parent/teacher resources in English and Spanish. Program includes videotapes, CD-Roms, printed activity cards, a Web site, and training support to teachers and parents citywide. Virtual Pre-K! resources are available in all CPS early childhood programs and at Chicago Public Libraries.
Virtual K!
www.virtualk.org 		Virtual K! was launched in early 2005.

*Information provided in this document is current as of July, 2011.

At a Glance (PDF)