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Pre-K program comes to JCC
By Denise Dick
YOUNGSTOWN
When Sarra and Larry Mohn III sought a preschool for their twins, Jaxson and Caleb, 3, they wanted a program that would prepare their boys both socially and academically.
They found it at the Jewish Community Center of Youngstown.
“We wanted that social dynamic along with the academics,” Sarra Mohn said.
The JCC won an Early Learning Grant from the U.S. Department of Education to strengthen learning for pre-kindergartners.
The JCC will offer a pre-kindergarten program this fall. The program is for children who are at least 4 years old by Sept. 1.
The center also offers regular preschool for those children who aren’t ready for the new program and a classroom for 3-year-olds that includes a learning environment specific to those younger children’s needs.
Mohn also likes that the preschool dovetails with programming at Akiva Academy, a private school for kindergarten through eighth-graders.
All three of the programs couple academics with fun activities such as swimming, yoga and Gymsters, a fun, motor-development activity.
“The pre-K deals with a lot of self-care,” said Kathy Mioni, Akiva Academy principal who helped with the grant application.
It focuses on academics geared to students’ development level.
But like both the regular preschool and the 3-year-olds’ classroom, pre-K offers fun activities, too.
Pre-K learners will visit the library to foster a love of reading.
Pre-K runs from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays to prepare students for a full day of kindergarten the following year.
Both the regular preschool and the 3-year-old classroom run from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Space in the programs is limited.
Akiva also benefits from the programs for younger students.
Although it’s private, Akiva accepts students through Ohio’s EdChoice voucher program, allowing students from schools with poor academics to enroll at no cost to the student or family. The money comes from the home district’s per-pupil funding.
Just as with public schools, Akiva’s third-grade students are subject to the requirements of the state’s third-grade reading guarantee.
Students who fall short may not be promoted to fourth grade.
The JCC’s 3-year-old classroom, regular preschool and pre-kindergarten offerings all are geared to ensure students are on target when they advance to the next grade.
Mioni and Jennifer Bracken, preschool coordinator, said the programming includes a literacy initiative through a United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley grant.
Parents want to help their children become better readers, but they don’t always know how, Mioni said.
Parents through the United Way program will learn that. They’ll get suggested books as well as exercises to do with their children to guide them.
“Parents are busy,” Mioni said.