Children attend preschool from 9 - 11:30 a.m. or 12:30 - 3 p.m. on the days of the week their parents select during the application process.
(The preschool has reached maximum capacity and is no longer accepting applications for September 2024. Please place your child on our waitlist if you are interested in being contacted if room in a class becomes available before August 15th. Registration for next year's class begins in January 2025.)
The work of preschoolers is PLAY! Join us for a year of high-quality education, meaningful friendships, and days full of fun adventures! The Brighton Preschool/Parent Program has been an educational resource in our community for over 60 years! It allows children to share and learn in a safe and nurturing environment where children are valued and accepted as unique people. Our curriculum provides creative opportunities for all children to encourage social development, pre-literacy and pre-numeracy concepts, and independence. Planned activities and teacher interaction foster early education skill-building. Through play, our students discover what they enjoy most and what makes them feel competent. Children also learn what it means to be a good friend here! We provide diverse opportunities for experimentation, which challenge thinking and reasoning abilities. Our facilities are perfect for large and small motor development inside the classroom and outside on the playground.
The preschool is located on the first floor of the Brighton Central School District’s Central Administration Building, 2035 Monroe Avenue, Rochester, NY 14618. Children meet in a large, bright classroom with interest areas that stimulate a child’s natural curiosity. Adjacent is another classroom used for large-muscle activities. Outside is a playground specially designed for preschool-aged children. The program follows the Brighton Central School District calendar and is closed when the District is closed for holidays, recess periods, and emergency school closings. Families drop off and pick up their children each day. Bus transportation is not provided.
One of the unique features of our preschool is how we incorporate parents into our program. On a rotating basis, one parent or guardian (or another family member/nanny) serves as a volunteer helper in the classroom. Each family is responsible for signing up to volunteer between six and nine times throughout the year (six days if your child attends two days a week; more days if they attend three or four days a week or if you have multiple children in the class). This commitment to being a part of the classroom gives families a strong foundation in building positive home-to-school connections. Two teachers and an adult volunteer are with the children daily, creating a warm, safe environment for exploration and learning.
The 2024-2025 preschool year begins on Monday, September 23, 2024, and ends the last week of May 2025. It meets for a total of thirty-three weeks. It is open to children three or four years old by December 1, 2024. Each preschool class includes both age groups. Having more than one age group in a class means siblings can be placed together, and the younger children can learn by watching the older children (or vice versa!) About thirty-two students are enrolled each year – a maximum of sixteen students in a class that meets from 9:00 - 11:30 a.m. Monday – Thursday and a different group of sixteen in a class meets from 12:30 - 3:00 p.m., Monday – Wednesday. A family registers their child to attend preschool two, three, or four days a week. The afternoon class meets three days a week, so any child registered to attend four days a week must be in the morning class. There are no preschool classes on Thursday afternoons or Fridays. Tuition is calculated based on the number of days a child attends weekly. The current school year’s tuition fees are located at bcsd.org/preschool (as a file at the bottom of the webpage). They are updated each March after we know how many children will attend school the following year.
Applications for the next school year are accepted on an ongoing basis beginning Friday, January 6, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. Applying online at our registration website (click here) is preferred; paper forms that can be submitted with a check or money order are available by request. On February 1, the preschool director processes all applications received in this order: Children already attending our preschool are enrolled first. Then, children who are siblings of current or previous Brighton Preschool students are enrolled. Finally, new students are enrolled in any remaining open spaces. Within these categories, applications are processed on a first-come, first-served basis. The sooner you apply, the more likely you will be enrolled with your requested schedule! All families will be notified of their placement in mid-February. If a placement is unavailable for your child at that time, you will be contacted and asked if you would like your child to be placed on our waitlist.
If you have questions or would like to schedule a preschool tour, don’t hesitate to contact the program director at Mona_Zamiarski@bcsd.org or 585-242-5200, ext. 5595. If your call is unanswered, please leave a message with your name, phone number, and email address. Additionally, include your child’s name and age. Tours are typically available at 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, or Wednesdays between November and May.
We apprecaite your interest in our preschool!