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Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K)

Registration, Lottery, and Screening Dates (2024-2025)

Pre-K Lottery Pre-registration - March 4 - 22, 2024
Pre-K Lottery - March 26, 2024
Pre-K Screening - May 9 & 10, 2024

Falmouth Public Schools is pleased to offer a Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) program that aspires to meet the needs of our students and community. 

What is the Enrollment Process?

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for Pre-K, a child must be four years old on or before October 15. Students turning five before October 15 are not eligible for our Pre-K program, but would be eligible for Kindergarten. 

Parents/caregivers must commit to sending their children full-time (5 days/week, 8:30am-3:05pm).

FES Pre-K Program Highlights

  • A full day of programming (8:30am-3:05pm), 5 days a week
  • Transportation to and from school 
  • 3 dedicated Pre-K classrooms
  • Meals for students during the school day
  • Play-based curriculum based on Maine Early Learning and Development Standards (MELDS)
Three pre-k students playing with puzzles on a table
Child smiling at camera with their eyes closed, snow in the background
Four pre-k students playing with toys on a table
Three students playing with building blocks on the floor
Two students playing with a doll house
Two boys sitting at a table with pizzas in front of them
A student coloring
Child sitting on classroom floor reading a book

Sample Pre-K Schedule

8:30am Arrival
8:55am Read Aloud/Morning Meeting
9:20am Snack
9:40 SWPLN
9:55 Small Groups
10:15 Enrichment
11:05 -11:35 Outside free play
11:45-12:15 Lunch
12:15-12:45 Rest
12:45 Intro to Centers, Centers, Thinking and Feedback
2:05 Snack/pack up
2:30 Outside free play
3:05 Dismissal

Pre-K Family Engagement

Falmouth Elementary School recognizes that parent/caregiver involvement is a significant factor in improving the educational experience for all students. Falmouth Elementary School encourages parents and caregivers to become involved in their child’s education and participate in programs and events offered. The following are examples of Falmouth Elementary School’s programs and events for Pre-K families:

  • Spring Parent/Caregiver Pre-K Information Night

  • Spring Pre-K Screening/Parent Survey

  • Late Summer Pre-K Family Meet & Greet

  • Early Fall Open House

  • Fall Conferences and Progress Report

  • Mid-year Feedback Survey

  • Winter Progress Report

  • Spring Conferences 

  • Year-end Progress Report

  • On-going

    • Parents/Caregivers are welcomed into the building as volunteers and for special events

    • Weekly communication with families (classroom newsletters and Principal Notes) 

    • Various PTO events and engagement opportunities

Frequently Asked Questions

Program Development Background

One of our Strategic Priorities was to investigate, plan for, and implement a Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) program that met the needs of our community and integrated effectively into our schools.

In October of 2022, Falmouth Public Schools submitted a formal grant request to the Maine Department of Education (DOE) for funding to start a public Pre-K program. The Maine DOE grant allowed us to cover a wide range of start-up costs for the establishment of the Pre-K program. That support, coupled with the annual revenue received from Maine DOE’s Essential Programs and Services (EPS) per-pupil education funding allocation, will provide substantial annual funding to support ongoing program costs.  

 We share the aspiration to meet the needs of any and all families who wish to enroll their children in a Pre-K public school experience. To that end, we continue to look for ways to expand the number of students we are able to serve, while also recognizing the importance of fiscal prudence and managing within current space demands and constraints.

Our Pre-K classrooms must reflect the demographics of our school in the areas of socio-economic status, multilingual learners, and learners identified for special education .