Strong Beginnings Pilot Program

The MDSCAA Early Childhood Program is excited to announce that we have been selected to participate in Strong Beginnings, a preschool program for 3-year-old children. Along with our partners at the Delta-Schoolcraft ISD, we can expand access to play-based early education for local 3-year-olds!

Strong Beginnings is a state-funded pilot preschool program that gives eligible 3-year-olds a free, high-quality early learning experience — a full year before they'd typically enter Michigan's Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) at age four. Children who complete Strong Beginnings are guaranteed a GSRP spot the following year, giving them two consecutive years of quality preschool before kindergarten instead of one.

The best way to find out if your family qualifies is to apply. Strong Beginnings is designed for families who could use a little extra support getting their child ready for school. Income is the main factor. Families who are enrolled in the food assistance program or cash program through DHHS are automatically eligible, as are families who are experiencing homelessness or children in foster care.  Families may still qualify based on other circumstances, such as a child's developmental needs or other factors that may affect their readiness for school. If you're not sure where you stand, don't count yourselves out — give us a call and we'll walk you through it together!

Strong Beginnings follows the same curriculum as GSRP but adapted for 3-year-olds — the program is modeled on GSRP, with modifications made to ensure suitability for three-year-old children. So, it's not a "lite" or different program — same play-based, hands-on approach to literacy, math, motor skills, and social development — just paced and scaffolded for kids a year younger, who have fewer social-emotional skills and are often still learning to use a toilet. Expect more support around basics like toileting, shorter activity blocks, and more help with the social skills GSRP classrooms can take a bit more for granted.

For more information, please call us at 906.786.7080 or go to dspreschool.org to sign-up!