Good Shepherd Day School

Florida's Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten Program 

 

The Voluntary Prekindergarten Program (VPK) was implemented in 2002 by the Florida State Legislature and the voting public to give Florida families of four year old children access to Pre Kindergarten, especially benefiting those who might not otherwise afford sending their child to preschool.

 

Our VPK Schedules

We currently offer two types of VPK programs.

 

The 540 hour school year VPK program is for children who will be turning four by September 1 of the current year.  The school year VPK hours are Monday through Friday from 12:30-3:30 and lasts from August through May.  It is designed to be a supplemental time period to our regular morning hours (which are 7:30-12:30).  During "VPK Time," we provide the children with extra experiences to practice their math and language arts skills.  We also use this time to finish art, science and social studies projects they began in the morning.  The ratio is 1 teacher to 11 children.  Although the fall VPK program is looked at as an extension of our morning program, it is a separate program in the sense that the VPK program is governed by the state of Florida and we must adhere to their rules and regulations.  Priority for this program goes to the children already enrolled in our PreK-4 morning program.

 

**GSDS will not be offering SUMMER VPK for 2023**

The 300 hour summer VPK program is for children who will be turning five of the current year and entering Kindergarten in the fall.  Our Summer VPK program runs Monday through Friday from 8:00-3:30 during eight weeks during the months of June, July and August.  Priority for this program goes to currently enrolled children who did not use the school year “VPK Time”.  Community children are welcome to apply to the waiting list.    Our Summer VPK program is designed to give children an introduction to a longer day with more teacher directed time in the morning to allow them time to practice the skills they learned during the school year.  However, because it is summer, we try to keep a fun, “summer camp” feel to the children’s day with lots of outdoor time, water play days and arts/craft activities.  The ratio is 1 to 12 children.  Please fill out the Summer VPK application to reserve your spot for summer: 

​

Families enrolled in these programs must agree to all state VPK policies and procedures for attendance or be dropped from the program.  Our VPK curriculum is based on the Florida state and national learning and development recommendations for four and five year old children.  For more information, please visit:

 

Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards (VPK Guidelines):

 

Kindergarten National Core Curriculum Standards

 

To enroll your child in VPK, visit the ELCHC website for instructions.