If you’re wondering whether Pre-K 3 is free in New York City, you’re not alone. The city’s Pre-K program is free and universal. Some districts, like the South Bronx, have embraced “3-K for All” as a way to provide a free, full-day early childhood education for children.
Pre-K 3 is free in New York City
New York City is introducing free Pre-K 3 programs for children. These programs give children an education years before they start kindergarten and lay the foundation for success in school, home, and life. Unfortunately, enrollment in pre-kindergarten is down 13% this year. But de Blasio is counting on widespread bipartisan support and hopes that this new program will help more children.
Free 3-K education will become universal in New York City beginning in September. The city has already launched a pilot program in some districts, but this expansion means that every 3-year-old child in the city will be eligible for free pre-kindergarten. The new program is an attempt to ensure that every child has access to a high-quality early education, and it is expected to save families about $10,000 per year.
It must be universal
The de Blasio administration has set a two-year deadline to expand universal pre-K to all New York City children. But while Mayor de Blasio will most likely reach that goal by September 2015, the program has already failed to meet expectations in the past. The state passed a law mandating pre-K funding 20 years ago, but fewer than a third of New York City’s preschool-aged children were enrolled at the time.
The mayor, who ran on a child care policy, has been criticized for not addressing the problem head-on. He has expressed concerns about a “massive bureaucracy” and pointed to the fact that not all families were eligible for the program. In fact, the Education Department says there are not enough spots for all the families who apply for it. In the current school year, about 3,300 children applied for 3-K, but only half of those were offered a spot. In addition, half of those were on a wait list.
It must be affordable
The federal government’s support of Pre-K 3 is growing by leaps and bounds, but is still limited. Funding for the program depends on federal and state policy, and mayoral approval. If the program is going to be successful, it will have to be affordable for all children in NYC. That means reworking teacher salaries and student retention systems. The city will also have to find new funding sources for the program.
One challenge that city officials face is the lack of special education pre-K seats. Some schools in the city are short by thousands of seats, leaving children without instruction or legally required services. Many programs have been shut down due to stagnant state funding.
It takes naps after lunch
The researchers found that naps are good for young children’s learning, and that preschoolers with naps are more likely to be prosocial and stick to a nap routine. However, they found that children who slept frequently and slept for longer periods were more likely to be happy. Children with high grit scores and good class behavior were also more likely to stick to a nap schedule. The study also showed that the frequency of napping varied by grade level and school geographic district.
Researchers at York University examined the brain activity of 14 children while they were napping. They found that children who napped more often had more spindles during their sleep, which is thought to happen when the brain shunts memories from the hippocampus to the neocortex. Moreover, children who slept longer were more likely to remember what they had learned the day before. This indicates that naps may be helpful for consolidating memory.
It must be a well-balanced day
New York City’s universal pre-K program costs about $860 million a year and is free for all parents. The program is considered one of de Blasio’s signature achievements. But the Catholic Diocese of New York hasn’t responded to repeated requests for a more thorough evaluation of the program. Parent Catherine Sanchez is one of those affected. Her two oldest children, who are in the first grade, are attending St. Joseph Catholic Academy, in Long Island City. She had hoped to enroll her youngest into a pre-kindergarten program.
In Brooklyn, for example, four pre-K sites are within two blocks of each other. Their demographics are incredibly different: two are majority-white, one is 100 percent Asian, and one is a mix of the two. In contrast, the Lower East Side in Manhattan has a majority-black program and one that is entirely Hispanic. Kingsbridge, Queens, and the South Bronx have a mix of three races.
