Welcome to POP!
POP Community Model applications will be accepted now and at any time throughout the school year.
*Application information below.
What is POP?
The Preschool Outreach Program is located at Eli Terry Elementary School.
POP consists of 5 Connecticut certified special education/early childhood education teachers, speech and language pathologists, an occupational therapist, a physical therapist, and several paraprofessionals. The staff-to-student ratio in each classroom is low, allowing for individualized programming and support for each student.
POP is a language and literacy-based program that incorporates the CT Framework of Preschool Curricular Goals and Benchmarks into various thematic units throughout the school year. Curricular areas include cognitive, language, fine motor, gross motor, independence/self-help, personal-social/behavioral, creative expression/aesthetic, and sensory processing development. A typical preschool day consists of tabletop toys and manipulatives, circle time, snack, centers (play and exploration), story, sharing time, large and small group activities, lessons and instruction.
There are 8 POP classes; 3 morning classes, 3 afternoon classes, and 2 extended day classes (I-POP). The POP staff determines class placement for each child based on the child's age, needs, and best fit. Each morning and afternoon class meets for approximately 2.5 hours, Monday through Thursday, and follows the Eli Terry kindergarten schedule. The extended day program (I-POP) is a specialized program to meet the specific needs of children who require a more intensive teaching program. The hours and schedule for students in I-POP vary based on each individual child's needs.
Special Education Eligibility
In order to receive special education services through POP, the child must meet the following criteria:
must be a South Windsor resident
must be 3 years of age or older
must have significant educational need, determined by developmental assessment and the Planning and Placement Team (PPT)
If you have concerns about a child, please see the "Contact Information" section below to determine how you should begin the special education screening process.
Community Model Applications
Parents who are interested in having their child participate in POP as a community model should obtain an application form from the main office of any South Windsor Elementary school. Applications are accepted at Eli Terry at any time throughout the school year. The POP team will invite children who have applied for enrollment to a visitation session. During visitations, the POP team observes the children to determine if they demonstrate age appropriate communication and social skills. If more children apply than there are openings, a lottery system will be implimented for selection. Parents of community model students must arrange their own transportation. Call for this year's tuition information. Community models must meet the following criteria:
must be a resident of South Windsor, or a child of a South Windsor Public Schools employee
- must be toilet trained
must exhibit age appropriate communication, social, play, and self help skills as determined by the screening/visitation process outlined above
children age 3-5 may apply
Contact Information
For information regarding applications for community models, call 648-5020. Applications can be picked up in the main office at any South Windsor elementary school. Completed applications must be returned to Eli Terry. Children who are accepted as POP community models will need to be registered at Eli Terry upon receipt of their acceptance letter.
For information regarding a child with special needs, currently enrolled in Birth-to-Three, contact your Birth-to-Three provider about the preschool transition process. Children who are going through the transition process with Birth-to-Three must be registered at Eli Terry prior to their transition meeting. The registration packet will be mailed to you with a welcome letter.
For information about a child who is suspected of having special needs (including speech & language), and is younger than age 3, contact your pediatrician or Birth-to-Three (1-800-505-7000) for recommendations.
For information about a child who is suspected of having special needs (including speech & language), is at least 3-years-old, and is not yet enrolled in kindergarten, contact your child's home elementary school for information about the special education screening/Child Find process. Upon returning your Child Find form to the home school, you will receive a registration packet which must be completed before the screening process will begin.
POP Teachers and Therapists
Dana Vitterito, teacher: dvitterito@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Eileen Bell, teacher: ebell@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Nancy Knowles, teacher: nknowles@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Jennifer Nadeau, teacher: jnadeau@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Nicole Plunske, teacher: nplunske@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Mary Reilly, OT: mreilly@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Mary Smoragiewicz, PT: msmoragiewicz@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Marianne Goguen, SLP: mgoguen@swindsor.k12.ct.us
Lisa Phung, SLP: lphung@swindsor.k12.ct.us
