<strong>What's cool about Preschool at Ray?</strong>
<ul type="disc">
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span>Students are learning about stories, their own and      other peoples.</span></li>
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span>Students learn about writing: <span> </span> how it works, what it’s used for, and how      to do their own writing.</span></li>
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.fossweb.com/modulesK-2/index.html" target="_blank"><span class="yshortcuts">Science</span> </a> topics include animals, fabric, wood &amp; paper, concepts in chemistry and physics, nature, and the scientific method (observation, recording observations, recording changes, experimentation, etc.).</span></li>
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span><a rel="nofollow" href="http://everydaymath.uchicago.edu/" target="_blank"><span class="yshortcuts">Math</span> </a> includes number recognition, understanding and manipulating quantity including adding and subtracting, and the foundations of algebra, measurement, geometry and <span class="yshortcuts">data collection</span> .</span></li>
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span>Social Sciences include our neighborhood, cultures      around the world, and <span class="yshortcuts">character education</span> .</span></li>
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span>Art, music and movement are all important parts of      our program. </span></li>
	<li class="MsoNormal"><span>We also have gym and library
</span></li>
</ul>
<p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-size: 24pt">Pre School Information </span> </strong></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Ray has <strong>two</strong> types of preschool programs. One is a<strong> half-day</strong> program and the other is a<strong> full-day</strong> , <em>tuition based program.</em> <span> Both are <strong><em>play-based</em> </strong> which means we understand that children learn best when they are emotionally engaged in their learning and have some control over what they do and learn. We follow the teaching principles mapped out by the <em><span class="yshortcuts">National Association for the Education of Young Children</span> </em> and their roadmap, <em><span class="yshortcuts">Developmentally Appropriate Practice</span> </em> .</span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>The half-day program is called &quot;Preschool For All&quot;. It is open to children in the <span class="yshortcuts">Ray School district</span> . Morning class is from 9:00 to 11:30 am and the afternoon class is from 1:00 to 3:30 pm. Contact Bethanie Smith in Room 405 for more information.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>The full-day, Tuition-Based program operates out of two separate classrooms. The hours of operation are from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. You can contact Jane Averill in Room 413 for more information or call <span class="yshortcuts">773-535-0954</span> and leave a message.</span></p>

We are accepting applications for the next school year. You can find it under our Blogroll and submit it to the Ray School Office, along with a deposit and photo id. If you have any questions about our program, feel free to contact Jane Averill at javerill@cps.edu or leave a message on our classroom phone, 773-535-0954. To be eligible, child must be 3 years old by September 1 of the year they are starting and they must be toilet-trained.