Parents,
THANK YOU all for taking time to consider our program! We are VERY excited to move forward with our program. Please see below for additional information. If you still have questions, please feel free to email our Director of Operations, Mary Beth Lowery at
Dates and Times
The first day of class will be announced soon. We plan on following the Unit 5 school calendar. We will also participate in the 1/2 days listed on their calendar. We will begin each school day promptly at 8:00 am and end at 2:15 pm. There will be an Open House in the evening 2 days before school begins.
Location and Class Size
Class will be held at our Little Jewels facility on Oakland Avenue, near the former Ovation Theater. The class will include a minimum of 10 students, and a maximum of 20. IF THE MINIMUM NUMBER OF STUDENTS IS NOT REACHED BY MAY 15th, 2023 THE PROGRAM WILL NOT PROCEED FOR THE UPCOMING SCHOOL YEAR.
Qualifications
For the Private Kindergarten Program:
Must turn 5 years old, on or before September 30th, 2023.
To move on to First grade in the school district for the 2024-2025 school year:
Must turn 5 on or before September 1st, 2023
Would need to repeat Kindergarten in school district for the 2024-2025 school year:
If your child does not turn 6 on or before September 1st, 2023
Pricing
Kindergarten Only: We will be charging $194 per week for the year. Payments may be set up weekly or bi-weekly. A deposit of $194 covering the first full week of class will be due at the time of enrollment to save your child’s spot. A registration and tech fee of $65 will be added for students new to Little Jewels. The payment will be due the first day of school for the partial week. The last weekly payment will be due by the Monday of the last day of school.
Including Little Jewels After School Care: an additional weekly fee of $65 will be added if you choose to utilize the afterschool program at one of our three locations. (Total of $259 per week.)
Days off of school: The weekly cost that we are charging does include care during Kindergarten hours (8:00am-2:15pm) for days off of school, EXCLUDING the two weeks off for Christmas/New Years and one week off for Spring Break. If you plan on your child attending those weeks there will be a fee of $259 per week. If you have two or more children that attend Little Jewels, the sibling discount would also be applied to those weeks.
Registration and Tech Fees: These fees will be included in the deposit if your child is new to Little Jewels. We will continue to use the Brightwheel App to communicate with parents, as well as making payments if you choose to use this avenue.
Meals
We will provide lunch for your child every day we are in session. We will ask that you provide a healthy morning snack for your student. Afternoon snack will be provided if you utilize our afterschool program.
Transportation
We are planning on having transportation to our other two centers for afterschool care. . This will be available only if there is room, or you are already registered for the afterschool program.
Full time Care for days off of school/summer
If you are enrolled in afterschool care at one of our locations your child would have a spot reserved for days off of school and for the summer program the following summer at that location. You would work with that center’s director to communicate when your child would attend those days and when they would not need care.
If you are not enrolled in the afterschool program, spots would be available on a first come first serve basis, and a fee of $33 per day/$259 per week would be charged.
Accreditation
At this time our program is not accredited. We have spoken with both DCFS, Illinois State Board of Education, and Unit 5 to ensure our program is cohesive with the curriculum used in the Unit 5 school district. As for myself as the instructor, I have a degree in Elementary Education. I have also worked in both the school districts and with pre-kindergarten age children for over 20 years.
Supplies
You will be asked to provide school supplies for your child. A list with specifics will be available once enrolled in the program.
What’s the plan for closure due to weather?
Snow Days: If Unit 5 School district closes down for inclement weather, Little Jewels will most likely still be open as we have in the past and your child is enrolled in before or afterschool a spot will be available for these days. We will not participate in ‘e-learning’ days with the district, as we do not feel that this is developmentally appropriate for the kindergarten students. When possible I will provide the students will hands on materials to use during these days.
