VPK stands for Voluntary Pre-kindergarten Education Program.
If you live in Florida, and your child turns 4 four years of age by September 1, your child is eligible to participate in Florida’s free Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) education program.
At Growing Room, our VPK program runs from 9:00a.m. – 12:00p.m. Monday through Friday. We also offer a “wrap-around” program for parents who want child care for their child beyond the three VPK hours. Our wrap-around program offers breakfast, lunch and one afternoon snacks for the children to enjoy!
Our Approach
Benefits of early education and the VPK program
- The most important growth and development in the brain happens by the age of five.
- The early years are the learning years. A child’s ability to be attentive and to follow directions emerges in the early years. Structured early learning fosters these abilities for later success in school and in life.
- VPK prepares children to be ready for school. Children who participate in high-quality preschool education programs develop better language skills, score higher in school-readiness tests and have better social skills and fewer behavioral problems once they enter school. They are also better prepared for Kindergarten, especially in the areas of pre-reading, pre-math and social skills.
- VPK promotes a love of learning in children. VPK also enhances what a child learns at home and instills a love of life-long learning.
- No registration fee for those enrolled only in the VPK program
- Early language and literacy focus