PROGRAMS FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN (AGE 3-5) HEAD START Free preschool for qualifying families. Children must be 3 or 4 years old by the school district cut-off date. Classrooms available throughout Butler and Armstrong Counties. LEARN MORE HOME-BASED HEAD START Free preschool for qualifying families. Children must be 3 or 4 years old by the school district cut-off date. Home Based services in Butler County. LEARN MORE PRE-K COUNTS Free preschool for qualifying families. Children must be 3 or 4 years old by the school district cut-off date. Classrooms available in 4 locations in Butler County. LEARN MORE CHILD CARE Child Care available for children 6 weeks up to 5 years old at our Bon Aire location in Butler County. LEARN MORE EARLY LEARNING RESOURCE CENTER REGION 3 Need help with child care costs? ELRC3 can help. NOTE: This link will take you to a separate webpage. VISIT ELRC REGION 3'S WEBSITE HEAD START DESCRIPTION Head Start is a comprehensive preschool program for children from ages three through five. Preference is given to four and five-year-olds and to children with special needs. Head Start first launched as an eight-week summer program in 1965 and was designed to help break the cycle of poverty by providing preschool children from low-income families with a comprehensive program to meet their emotional, social health, and psychological needs. An emphasis is on child-initiated activities by providing materials, equipment, and trained staff to assist in creative growth. There are 4 main major components to the Head Start Program Education Health Parent Involvement Social Services Head Start will assist families in receiving transportation to medical/dental appointments and parent involvement activities. Head Start is free to all. Ninety percent of the children who are accepted must qualify under the income guidelines. Ten percent of the children may be accepted over the income guidelines when all income-eligible children are serviced. ELIGIBILITY Families will be considered eligible if they meet the following criteria: Must be 3 or 4 years old by school district cut-off date Meet income guidelines or Meet Homeless or Foster criteria or Receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) LOCATIONS Armstrong County Apollo (Apollo, PA) Dayton (Dayton, PA) Ford City (Ford City, PA) Kittanning (Kittanning, PA) Shannock Elementary School (Rural Valley, PA) South Buffalo Elementary School (Freeport, PA) Butler County Bon Aire Early Learning Center (Butler, PA) Bruin Elementary (Bruin, PA) Center Avenue Elementary (Butler, PA) Dassa McKinney Elementary (West Sunbury, PA) Emily Brittain Elementary (Butler, PA) Mt Chestnut Early Learning Center (Butler, PA) North Street (Butler, PA) Oakland Learning Center (Butler, PA) Rowan Elementary (Cranberry Twp, PA) South Butler Primary Center (Saxonburg, PA) INTERESTED IN HEAD START? APPLY (BUTLER COUNTY) APPLY (ARMSTRONG COUNTY) DOWNLOAD APPLICATION CONTACT US HOME-BASED HEAD START DESCRIPTION The Home-Based Head Start program for 3-5 year olds consists of weekly home visits with a Parent Educator that last 90 minutes. Together, you will plan activities for you to do with your child during home visits and during the week between visits. Over time, as you get to know one another, you will become partners in helping your child grow and learn. Twice a month, you and your child will meet with other children and parents at our Mt Chestnut Site in a preschool classroom setting. This is an opportunity for you to meet the other families in the program and for the children to interact with one another. Your Parent Educator will be there too. We call these meetings “Center Days” ELIGIBILITY Families will be considered eligible if they meet the following criteria: Must be 3 or 4 years old by school district cut-off date Meet income guidelines or Meet Homeless or Foster criteria or Receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) LOCATIONS Butler County Oakland Learning Center (Butler, PA) INTERESTED IN HOME-BASED HEAD START? APPLY (BUTLER COUNTY) DOWNLOAD APPLICATION CONTACT US PRE-K COUNTS DESCRIPTION Pre-K Counts is a full-day, five days per week high-quality early childhood education program that is regulated by the PA Office of Child Development and Early Learning. Highly qualified teachers with specialized training in Early Childhood Development and Education provide a wide variety of educational experiences that are intentionally designed to foster the attitudes, skills, and concepts young children need to make social and academic progress. Eligible children live in families earning up to 300% of the poverty level and may be affected by other risk factors such as special needs or learning English as a second language. Pre-K Counts classrooms are taught by certified teachers who have specialized training in early childhood education. The research-based curriculum is linked to ongoing child assessment and results in individualized learning plans for each child. The individual plans are carried out one-on-one, in small groups, and in large groups. The maximum group size is twenty children. The Teacher and an Assistant Teacher facilitate growth and development in a classroom setting that is furnished with a wide variety of age-appropriate learning materials. Classrooms operate six hours per day and follow the calendar of their school district. ELIGIBILITY Families will be considered eligible if they meet the following criteria: Must be 3 or 4 years old by school district cut-off date Meet income guidelines up to 300% of Federal Income Guidelines LOCATIONS Butler County Bon Aire Early Learning Center (Butler, PA) Connoquenessing Valley (Zelienople, PA) Dassa McKinney Elementary (West Sunbury, PA) Sugarcreek Elementary (Cowansville, PA) INTERESTED IN PRE-K COUNTS? APPLY (BUTLER COUNTY) DOWNLOAD APPLICATION CONTACT US Copyright © 2021 Early Learning Connections - All Rights Reserved. HOMELEADERSHIPGOVERNANCEEMPLOYEE LOGINTHANK A STAFF MEMBER