Fischetti.
Covid masks are finally off this year in Pine Plains schools, and that means 4- and 5-year-olds will be able to see each other’s facial expressions — a key tool in socialization, according to Kristen Fischetti, the principal of the Pine Plains school district’s Cold Spring Early Learning Center.
Registration for pre-K and kindergarten for the 2023-24 school year is scheduled for March 1-3 at the early learning center, located on Homan Road in Stanfordville. Children who will be 4 years old on or before Dec. 1, 2023 can register for pre-K; children who will be 5 years old by that date can register for kindergarten. Both are full-day programs.
Fischetti has worked in Pine Plains schools for 13 years, but this is her first year as principal at Cold Spring. She described the pre-K program as play-based learning. She said mornings begin at 9 a.m. and are devoted to simple academic activities introducing students to numbers and letters as well as social concepts like meeting new people and making friends. Afternoons involve recess, rest and a snack before children head home at 3:15 p.m. Breakfast is available at no charge, but lunch must be brought from home or purchased at school.
To register a child, a parent must make an appointment by calling Renée Shea at (845) 868-7451 ext. 2201 or emailing her at r.shea@ppcsd.org. Appointments will be available between 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., but Shea said she can accommodate other times if necessary.
The only requirements for registration are a child’s age and residency in the Pine Plains Central School District – which in addition to Pine Plains encompasses portions of Ancram, Clermont, Gallatin, Livingston, Clinton, Milan, North East, and Stanford. Children are not required to attend the registration appointment, but parents should come with their child’s proof of residency, the child’s birth certificate or baptismal record and current immunization record.
Fischetti said the center has resources from Dutchess County to assist children with special needs, and a staff member, Lillian Cedeño, to work with children for whom English is not a first language.
Fischetti said Cold Spring currently hosts 47 students divided among three pre-K classrooms, each led by a teacher and a teacher’s aide. There are 53 kindergarten students, in addition to all of the district’s first-graders. Children attending pre-K are automatically registered for kindergarten the following year.