The Hillsborough County Public Schools Prekindergarten ESE Program provides services for approximately 2,800 children, ages three to five, who have a developmental delay/disability which requires specialized instruction. This educational environment offers many opportunities for active learning experiences in key developmental areas. Intervention for individual special needs is interwoven into the curriculum as appropriate for each child. The continuum of services spans from part-time walk-in services to itinerant services in the home or private preschool to full time in a classroom at one of the district’s school sites. The program continues to increase inclusive opportunities and developmentally appropriate learning experiences for the district’s youngest learners.

The Pre-K ESE program embraces High Scope as the foundational philosophical approach to learning for all of its students. Teachers use a state approved curriculum and Conscious Discipline’s Baby Doll Circle Time as curriculum in addition to the Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) Standards. My Teaching Strategies (TSG), an online assessment tool, captures student growth through developmental domains and guides instruction.

Resources

• Child Find
• Early Childhood Council of Hillsborough County, Inc. (Developmental Screenings)
• Head Start
• Center on Social and Emotional Foundations of Early Learning