Enrollment and Eligibility

JumpStart welcomes children from six weeks old up to twelve years, eleven months. Our full-time program provides 10 hours of care per day, five days per week (50 hours total). Care needed beyond this schedule will incur an extended care fee.

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Curriculum

At JumpStart, children achieve their long-range goals through many small steps taken almost playfully. Each child is encouraged to progress at their own pace and rhythm, according to their unique capabilities, learning styles, and personalities. This approach builds confidence and inspires a lifelong love of learning. We focus on celebrating the success of each individual child rather than emphasizing what they have yet to master.

Children are natural explorers and eager learners. To support this, JumpStart incorporates both the Creative Curriculum and the Spanish Language Frog Street Curriculum, which together challenge and nurture children’s changing interests as they grow. The curriculum is theme-based, developed on a weekly basis, and designed to be both engaging and enriching.

Our focus areas include:

• Sensory awareness

• Creative and expressive arts

• Dramatic play

• Block building

• Fine and gross motor development

• Language and reading skills

• Outdoor play

• Music and movement

• Science exploration

• Discovery learning

Every activity is carefully designed to give children a sense of ownership as they learn and play, while also exposing them to a variety of cultures. Creativity and imagination are encouraged through the use of diverse materials and mediums. Since each age group has unique needs, our teachers are experienced in adapting the curriculum to meet those needs with care and expertise.

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Diversity

At JumpStart, we embrace and celebrate diversity in all its forms. We welcome families of all faiths, ethnic origins, and races, while also recognizing that diversity includes differences in physical, cognitive, and social abilities.

We strive to create a developmentally appropriate classroom environment that reflects each child’s unique strengths while incorporating their home culture and experiences. One of the most meaningful ways we can teach children about diversity and respect is by modeling it ourselves—treating all people with kindness, fairness, and dignity.

While it is impossible to list every way we promote acceptance on a daily basis, here are some of the intentional practices we use to incorporate diversity into our curriculum at JumpStart:

• During enrollment, families are encouraged to share their home traditions with us.

• We collaborate with the Child Care Network and the State of Virginia to ensure that families eligible for tuition assistance have access to high-quality care.

• Families and community members are invited to share ideas or information that can enrich the services we provide.

• Our teachers integrate props, books, and materials that reflect diversity into all classroom learning environments.