508.580.7950

Precisa de ajuda em Português or Crioulo?

Fernanda Andrade
fernandaandrade@bpsma.org
ext. 1307

Julia Blanchette
juliablanchette@bpsma.org
ext. 1308

Eliane Navarro
elianenavarro@bpsma.org
ext. 1320

Besoin d'aide en Créole Haïtien?

Florcy Bosquet
florcybosquet@bpsma.org
ext. 1313

Ketura Lacouture Desir
keturalacouturedesir@bpsma.org
ext. 1309

¿Necesitas ayuda en Español?

Millie Guzmán
millieguzman@bpsma.org
ext. 1306

Blanca Soto
blancasoto@bpsma.org
ext. 1322

您需要中文帮助吗？

Lara Correia
laracorreia@bpsma.org
ext. 1325

Do you need help in English?

Sheila Philbin
sheilaphilbin@bpsma.org
ext. 1301

Gale Lutz-Henrickson
galeflutzhenrickson@bpsma.org
ext. 1310

Shoghig 'Shole' Merian
shoghigmerian@bpsma.org
ext. 1302

WE HAVE AVAILABLE SEATS FOR THREE YEAR OLD PEERS!

We have a waitlist for four year old PreK peers.  Families will be called as seats become available.

As the 2023-2024 school year opens, we will offer a total of 31 universal pre-kindergarten classrooms to better accommodate the needs of our eligible students with disabilities. A select number of seats in those classrooms are made available to typically developing pre-school students (peer models) along with students with special needs.

Our specialized early learning classrooms are open to qualifying three- and four-year-olds based on seat availability.
Transportation is not offered for peer models.

Brockton’s early childhood programs are located throughout the district and serve pre-school students with disabilities (children with special needs). 
We have both morning and afternoon sessions.

Peers serve as models of age-appropriate skills for children demonstrating delays in their development. For this reason, we seek peers who demonstrate most or all of the skills listed below.

· Completely toilet trained
· Separates easily from parents
· Able to follow rules and routines
· Can attend to a preferred/self-directed activity for at least 8 to 10 minutes
· Can attend to an adult-selected activity for at least 4-5 minutes
· Plays with a variety of toys appropriately
· Able to play beside and/or with other children while sharing the same bin of toys
· Speaks in clear sentences
· Talks to other children while playing
· Speech is clear and understandable by unfamiliar adults
· Can understand and answer simple questions
· Demonstrates an ability to use crayons, scissors and glue to complete a project
· Is well-coordinated and able to walk, run, jump and climb

If you have any concerns regarding your child’s speech/language, social, behavior, gross motor, fine motor, cognitive or adaptive behavior, please contact the Special Education Office at 508 580-7525 to speak to someone about the possibility of an evaluation.

Due to budgetary constraints and the need to realign programming with existing regulations, the district can no longer offer a general education pre-kindergarten program.  We will always keep the vision for expanding our universal pre-kindergarten options in our view, but space and financial resources cannot fully support that vision at this time.

2023-2024 KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION BEGINS MARCH 1, 2023!

Children eligible for Kindergarten for the 2023-2024 school year must be 5 years old by August 31, 2023. 

Children who miss the cut-off (born September 1 - December 31) will be prioritized for our full day Pre-Kindergarten.

Transportation Guidelines

Transportation is provided to students only within their zone of residence. Elementary school students are eligible for transportation if they live more than 1.5 miles from their school and the school is in their zone. Middle school students are eligible for transportation if they live more than 2.0 miles from their school and the school is in their zone. Students assigned to a special program at a school outside of their zone of residence will be transported if they live beyond 1.5 miles for elementary students or 2.0 miles for middle school students.

Out-of-Zone Assignment Requests

A request for a transfer to an out-of-zone school will be considered on a yearly basis only if there are seats unfilled by students within the zone

English Language Learners

Students whose primary language is not English and who have been identified as eligible for sheltered English immersion classrooms will be assigned to a school that provides these services.

Two-Way Language Program

The two-way language program is based upon a model of dual immersion programs that exist nationwide in various different languages. The design of the program is also based upon current research about how children best learn languages. Achievement results of students in such programs also indicate a much higher level of academic performance. A two-way language program includes a group of English speaking and also Spanish speaking students, preferably in equal numbers.

If parents are interested in the program for their child, both Spanish and English speaking parents will be asked to sign a letter of commitment stating that they commit to keep their child in the program up through fifth grade.After committing initially to the program, a lottery will be held in a public forum.Acceptance to this program will be contingent upon the screening and interview process.Parents will receive a letter by mail informing them of their child’s status.

UNIDOS One Way Language Immersion Program - George School

The One-Way Immersion English-Portuguese program is a dual language program structured as a collaborative learning community fostering the growth of English and Portuguese with a vision of bringing students and families from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds together to become bilingual, bi-literate and multicultural. The UNIDOS program is beginning its second year with our first Kindergarten class preparing to transition into grade 1 for September of 2017. A year-long collaboration with state agencies, district, schools and city, and the dual language steering committee lay the foundation for this next generation of dual language programming in Brockton. Using the experiences of the Two-Way program, careful examination of other DL programs around the country and studying the models of successful Portuguese-English dual language programs in Massachusetts and around the country, UNIDOS was launched. The support for UNIDOS and the one way immersion dual language programming is widespread beginning with the local community, Portuguese and Brazilian officials, consulates and the larger language learning community which distributed information and received press coverage in the U.S and abroad.

Based on national research and recommendations, the program follows a 50%-50% model whereby students spend half of their schedule/time with the English teacher and half schedule/time with the Portuguese teacher. Kindergarten students follow, participate and engage academically with the age-appropriate standards, curriculum and developmental milestones for early childhood education in all subjects: reading, math, social studies, science etc. Additional grades will be added each year to the Portuguese language program to Grade 5 and the UNIDOS program has become part of larger dual language immersion network in Brockton.

Resources are available in both languages and teachers are fluent speakers in the languages of instruction. Academics, projects, cultural themes, activities, formal and informal testing are conducted in both languages and students take all district and state mandated assessments. The UNIDOS One Way Immersion program adheres to the national Guiding Principles for Dual Language programs, CCSS, WIDA, ACTFL standards.

Interested students/families request consideration for entry into the program through the Kindergarten registration process with a public lottery held in mid-May following the scheduled Kindergarten registration process. A lottery has been established due to the large number of interested Brockton residents. Class sizes conform to the district’s guidelines for kindergarten class sizes. A waitlist will be established after the lottery and is in effect for one year. A current Frequently-Asked- Question (FAQ) information page is available at Parent Center and the Bilingual-ESL Department with updated information, schedules and procedures.

Special Education Student Assignments

In accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the educational placement of a special education student is determined by the student's individual education planning team and cannot be unilaterally determined by the parents. Therefore, students who have been identified as requiring special education services will be assigned only to those schools containing the special education program required by their Individual Education Plan (IEP).

Integrated Kindergarten Classroom

The integrated and inclusion classroom models bring together children with special needs and typically developing children or role models. Early integration experiences are known to be beneficial to both the special needs child and the typically developing child. Both groups learn from one another and develop a better understanding of each other's strengths and needs. The program uses the same curriculum and materials as the regular kindergarten program. In each integrated kindergarten classroom there will be one special needs teacher and two full time paraprofessionals for a maximum of twenty children. Classes will have up to ten role models and up to ten children with special needs. Parents may apply for the integrated programs during the kindergarten registration process. Typically developing students are screened and selected by the Special Education Department from enrollment requests and by zone address. If you wish to receive more information, please contact Laurie Mason, Director of Special Education at (508) 580-7525.

BPS offers a dual language program where students learn to read, write, and speak in two languages English/Portuguese, English/Spanish or English/French. All three dual language programs are located at the George Global Studies School. Due to high demand incoming Kindergarten students are selected through a lottery. The lottery will be held on June 1st.

Entry into the DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM is offered in Kindergarten only, unless the student is transferring from a Dual Language Program (depending on seat availability).

To learn more please click the Frequently Asked Questions links below.

                   FAQ ENGLISH            FAQ PORTUGUÊS            FAQ ESPAÑOL              FAQ FRANÇAIS

BPS now offers online registration. Please click here to complete the process. Below, please find a video that explains how to use our new online system. Once your registration is submitted, you will be placed in the queue for one of our registration specialists to contact you.

Transfer Due to a Move:

Currently enrolled PreK-12 students who have moved within the city and wish to transfer to a school closer to their new address must update their address using the CHANGE OF ADDRESS FORM located above.

Students moving to a new address within their zone may continue attending their current school but must submit proof of their new address.

Students moving to an address in a different zone are permitted to remain at their current school for the rest of the school year, but transportation will not be provided. At the end of the school year, parents must apply for an out-of-zone placement if they wish to keep their children at that school. Otherwise, they will be asked to select a new school within their attendance zone.

Transfer Other Than a Move:

A parent may request a voluntary transfer. Parents/Guardians should first try to resolve any concern with the school principal prior to seeking a transfer. A transfer must be requested using the link below.  Once reviewed by district administration, the parent/guardian will be notified of the decision.

TRANSFER REQUEST FORM