FAQs
Preschool Frequently Asked Questions
What ages do you accept in your school?
We have one infant/toddler classroom that accepts children ages 6 weeks up to the age of 2 years old, one 2 year old classroom, and 8 preschool classrooms that accept children ages 3 and 4 years old.
How many children and staff are in each classroom?
Our infant and toddler and 2 year old classrooms have 8 children with 2 teachers. Our preschool classrooms have 15-16 children with 2 teachers.
Do the students get to visit the museum?
Yes, the museum studios are an extension of their classrooms and are a part of the student’s curriculum. Each week, the children have small group lessons in the museum with their teachers, museum educators, and do self-exploration with their class.
What kind of training do the teachers have?
Our head teachers have Bachelor’s degreesand must be designated as a "Qualified Staff Mmeber", or QSM, by the State of Connecticut Office of Early Childhood, and most of our assistant teachers have a minimum of an Associate's degree, CDA, or are working towards their degree. Many of the staff have more than the required minimum degrees. They also have ongoing continuing education throughout the year in curriculum and classroom management. Staff also receive CPR, First Aid, and Medication Administration certifications.
Do you serve lunch and snacks?
Yes, we have a morning snack and an afternoon snack. Students are required to bring their own lunches. We do participate in the summer free lunch meal program. Check with the school office for free summer lunch program dates.
What are your hours?
Our school is open Monday-Friday, 7:30am-5:30pm year round. Our core hours are 9am-3pm, during which all children should attend. Extended hours (8am-5pm) are reserved for working families, and early/late hours (7:30am and 5:30pm) are available on a limited basis for working families. All extended hours and early/late hours must be pre-approved by administration and families must provide documentation of their work schedules to attend these hours.
Our infant and toddler and 2 year old classrooms have 8 children with 2 teachers. Our preschool classrooms have 15-16 children with 2 teachers.
Do the students get to visit the museum?
Yes, the museum studios are an extension of their classrooms and are a part of the student’s curriculum. Each week, the children have small group lessons in the museum with their teachers, museum educators, and do self-exploration with their class.
What kind of training do the teachers have?
Our head teachers have Bachelor’s degreesand must be designated as a "Qualified Staff Mmeber", or QSM, by the State of Connecticut Office of Early Childhood, and most of our assistant teachers have a minimum of an Associate's degree, CDA, or are working towards their degree. Many of the staff have more than the required minimum degrees. They also have ongoing continuing education throughout the year in curriculum and classroom management. Staff also receive CPR, First Aid, and Medication Administration certifications.
Do you serve lunch and snacks?
Yes, we have a morning snack and an afternoon snack. Students are required to bring their own lunches. We do participate in the summer free lunch meal program. Check with the school office for free summer lunch program dates.
What are your hours?
Our school is open Monday-Friday, 7:30am-5:30pm year round. Our core hours are 9am-3pm, during which all children should attend. Extended hours (8am-5pm) are reserved for working families, and early/late hours (7:30am and 5:30pm) are available on a limited basis for working families. All extended hours and early/late hours must be pre-approved by administration and families must provide documentation of their work schedules to attend these hours.
Do you offer part time care options?
Unfortunately, no. Since we are a School Readiness Funded program, there is an attendance requirement of a minimum of 6 hours per day, 5 days a week. All students are expected to arrive at school by 9:00am per School Readiness attendance policy.
How much does it cost?
Our infant/toddler classroom is $265 per week for full time care. Our preschool classrooms have a tuition rate of $195 per week, however there is a sliding fee scale for preschool provided by the Connecticut School Readiness Grant. Depending on household income and family size, preschool tuition rates may be lower than the full tuition rate if you qualify (families must provide documentation of gross household income).
Do you accept Care4Kids funding or any other kind of daycare subsidy?
Yes, we accept Care4Kids funding for our infant/toddler, 2 year old, and preschool classrooms. The preschool classrooms are also subsidized by the state of CT School Readiness Grant, which bases tuition on a sliding fee scale according to gross household income and family size.
Is your program licensed and accredited?
Yes, we are a state licensed program and NAEYC accredited.
Are you affiliated with any other institutions?
We are a division of the Boys & Girls Club of Bristol Family Center.
Do you have a school nurse?
No, we do not have a school nurse on site. We do have a nurse consultant that visits our program on a weekly basis and is available for questions by phone.
What kind of curriculum do you use?
We have designed our own curriculum based on our unique environment with our education consultant. The CT Early Learning and Development Standards (CT-ELDS) are embedded into our curriculum. We follow the Reggio-Emilia Approach to Early Learning, which focuses on play-based, child-led curriculum using authentic, meaningful, tangible learning experiences for children.
Do you do any kind of assessment on the students in the program?
We have several developmentally appropriate methods of assessing the children in our program. These include the CT Documentation and Observation for Teaching System (CT DOTS), Devereux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA) for social-emotional resilience, and the Ages and Stages Questionnaire.
Do you have parent teacher conferences? We hold conferences two times per year, in January and June.
Do the children have to take a nap in your program? We are required by Office of Early Childhood licensing to provide a “rest time” each day for the children. They are not required to sleep, but children must relax and rest their bodies during the designated time.
Do the children go on field trips? The children in our preschool program do have the opportunity to go on fun and educational field trips throughout the year, free of cost to families. Parents are welcome to chaperone field trips.
Do you offer any incentives for families in your program? Each enrolled child receives membership to our parent organization, The Boys & Girls Club of Bristol, which offers programming discounts.. We also often have referral incentives for families who refer others to our program.
Do you accept children with special needs? Yes, we accept children with special needs and will work with outside services such as Birth to Three and the Bristol Board of Education.
Do you have to be a Bristol resident to attend? No, you no longer have to be a Bristol resident to attend our school. We do however, give priority to Bristol residents and families with children already enrolled in our program.
To schedule a tour or speak with one of our staff members,
call 860-314-1400 or email lyndsey.martin@imaginenation.org
