From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A nursery school is a school for children between the ages of three and five [1], staffed by qualified teachers and other professionals who encourage and supervise educational play rather than simply providing childcare.^[1] It is generally considered part of early childhood education. In some jurisdictions the provision of nursery school services is on a user pays or limited basis while some governments fund nursery school services. Nursery school is also called preschool or nursery depending on how it is used.

Contents 1 United Kingdom 1.1 England and Wales 1.2 Scotland 2 United States 2.1 Head Start programme 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

In the UK, preschool education in nursery classes or schools is fully funded by the government and is generally available to children aged over 3. Preschool education can be provided by childcare centres, playgroups, nursery schools and nursery classes within primary schools. Private nursery education is also available throughout the UK and varies between structured pre-school education and a service offering child-minding facilities.

Each child in England and Wales is entitled to a five two and a half hour sessions per week, this entitlment is subsidised by the government. ^[2] Preschools in England and Wales follow the Early Learning Goals for education produced by the DFES which carries on into their first year of school at age of 4, this year of school is usually called Reception. The Early Learning Goals cover the main areas of education without being subject driven. These areas include^[3]:

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development,
• Communication, Language and Literacy,
• Mathmatical Development,
• Knowledge and Understanding of the World,
• Physical Development,
• Creative Developement

In Scotland children are entitled to a place in a nursery class when they reach their third birthday. This gives parents the option of two years of funded pre-school education before beginning primary one; the first year of compulsory education. Nursery children who are three years old are referred to as Ante-Pre School whilst children who are 4 years old are termed Pre-School. Pre-school education in Scotland is planned around the document "A curriculum framework for children 3 to 5"^[4] which identifies learning intentions around the following five areas of development:

• emotional, personal and social development,
• communication and language,
• knowledge and understanding of the world,
• expressive and aesthetic development,
• physical development and movement

Responsibility for the review of care standards in Scottish nurseries rests with the Care Commission.

In the United States, nursery school is provided in a variety of settings. In general pre-kindergarten work to develop children through planned programs.

Pre-kindergarten is defined as: "center-based programs for 4-year olds that are fully or partially funded by state education agencies and that are operated in schools or under the direction of state and local education agencies"^[5].

The goal of Head Start and Early Head Start is to increase the school readiness of young children in low income families. These programs serve children from birth to age 5, pregnant women, and their families. Head Start was started by the Federal Government in 1964 to help meet the needs of disadvantaged preschool children.

The office of Economic Opportunity launched Project Head Start as an 8 week summer program in 1965. It was then transferred to the Office of Child Development in the US Department of Health, Education, and Welfare in 1969. Today it is a program within the Administration on Children, Youth and Families in the Department of Health and Human Services. Programs get administered locally by school systems and non-profit organizations.

• Services provided by Head Start

1. Disabilities - All programs fully include children with disabilities
2. Education- The goal of Head Start is to ensure that those children enrolled in the program are ready to begin school. Activities are geared towards skill and knowledge domains.
3. Family and Community Partnerships - both groups involved in operation, governance and evaluation of the program. Both groups make vital contributions.
4. Health - Health is seen as an important factor in a child's ability to thrive and develop. Program provides screenings to evaluate a child's overall health, regular health check-ups, and good practices in oral health, hygiene, nutrition, personal care, and safety.
5. Program Management and Operations - "focus on delivering high-quality child development services to children from low-income families."

• Childcare
• Steve Biddulph, author of Raising Babies: Should Under 3s Go to Nursery? ISBN 0-00-722192-4

1. ^ http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/nursery%20school
2. ^ BBC Parenting, Help with Child Care
3. ^ QCA Foundation Stage
4. ^ A curriculum framework for children 3 to 5, Scottish Executive
5. ^ http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~ncedl/pages/pre-k_study.cfm

• http://www.upkflorida.org/index.cfm?Section=TheResearch&Page=WhyPreKImportant#2
• http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/hsb/
• http://www.sangford.org

• QCA Foundation Stage
• BBC Parenting Information on Child Care
• Early Years information at Learning and Teaching Scotland