New Lynchburg program takes a hands-on approach to pre-K

By Annie McCa
Lynchburg News & Advance
Published: August 27, 2008

Community collaboration has brought an inclusive pre-K environment with both developmentally delayed and typically developing children to Presbyterian Homes & Family Services.

“We’re excited to have small children here,” Presbyterian Homes president Bob Dendy said with a smile, noting it’s been almost 20 years since preschoolers have been a part of the campus off Linden Avenue in Lynchburg.

Little Wings Preschool, which serves children ages 3-5, had its first day Monday. The new program is possible through a partnership between Presbyterian Homes, Lynchburg City Schools and Randolph College.

Little Wings is housed in a campus building that had been used previously in another collaborative effort, with New Vistas School.

The building was renovated over the summer to accommodate tiny tots,

including small bathrooms better suited to pre-K students.

“We only had one summer to turn one thing into another,” Dendy said.

Since Presbyterian Homes had the space for pre-K education, he said, it was just a matter of partnering with other community entities to make it a reality.

“Preschool is such an important aspect,” Dendy said. “That’s something we believe in.”

There are nine spaces still available in the program. Little Wings can accommodate up to 24 children, with 12 in each class.

Children can attend for half or full days. The cost per month for a full day is $500, or $300 for a half day. A sliding-scale fee, based on ability to pay, also is available. Dendy said his organization wants quality pre-K education available to everyone.

At Little Wings, Dendy said considerable planning went into the program and the High/Scope curriculum that is used. Little Wings also makes inclusion a priority, which means placing developmentally delayed children and typically functioning children in classes together.

The High/Scope curriculum, widely used in pre-K education, emphasizes active learning through hands-on experiences.

Gail Brown, Randolph College education department chair, sat on the committee that organized Little Wings. She said High/Scope is another approach to learning.

“High/Scope is a program that children have the opportunity to make some decisions and take some control of their learning to some degree,” she said. “It’s very physically, socially and emotionally developmentally sound.”

As part of the collaboration, Brown and Presbyterian Homes officials hope in the future Little Wings can serve as work-study or volunteer opportunity for Randolph students.

For its contribution to the partnership, Lynchburg City Schools offered Little Wings funding, expertise and staffing.

In addition, eight developmentally delayed children from Lynchburg’s Hutcherson Early Learning Center attend Little Wings. Hutcherson students placed at Little Wings had to meet a variety of criteria, including previously being in a self-contained class.

Gerin Martin is the Lynchburg City Schools teacher who works at Little Wings. Martin, previously at Hutcherson, said the inclusive environment not only teaches typically developing students empathy, but also helps developmentally delayed students who look to the other children as role models.

Being with typical children helps developmentally delayed students with their speech, social skills and ability to follow directions, she said.

While Little Wings isn’t the only inclusive pre-K program within the city, Martin did say there is one thing that sets it apart from other offerings.

“It’s the collaboration piece,” she said. “It’s the community working together.”