New preschool promises ‘exciting concept’ for students when it opens in September

A preschool with an “experimental” education model is opening up just in time for the new school year in Jasper County, and applications are already open online, according to the school’s executive director.

Jubilee Co-operative Preschool will serve a maximum of 50 students in western Beaufort and Jasper counties when it opens on Sept. 6, according to executive director Amy Dungan, who previously oversaw the First Presbyterian Day School in Beaufort County. As Jubilee prepares to open, it is offering a “sliding scale” scholarship based on annual household income. In some instances, Dungan said, families could be paying $100 monthly for tuition.

“It is such an exciting concept,” Dungan said. “It is fulfilling a desperate need in Jasper County, western Beaufort County.”

At first, the school will be located in a Red Dam Church building in Hardeeville as it transitions into a free charter school that will eventually serve students up to high school. That school, Jubilee Charter School, is set to open in 2023 with a preschool and kindergarten class, then it will add two grade levels each year.

The education model for the Jubilee Co-operative Preschool is a combination of Montessori and Reggio Emilia concepts and involves students rotating in five rooms overseen by five instructors.

The Montessori model, created in 1929 by Italian educator Maria Montessori, focuses on hands-on learning that encourages children to play in groups and on their own to foster creativity and exploration.

In the Reggio Emilia approach, students are encouraged to pursue their own interests, creating a learning experience that is catered to the individual and allows them to go at their own pace.

“Your typical preschool is you go into your one cinder block room and that’s where you are all day,” Dungan said. “There’s a lot of unimaginative learning in many programs ... We’re trying to bring a love of learning to children and we are going to do that by being as engaging as we can.”

‘Future Success’

The first room, the “nature room,” will have “live specimens, animals and dead specimens” and is a place where children can participate in science experiments. The second, the “words room,” focuses on stories and reading. Reading to children, Dungan said, sets them up for the future. Children who are read one book a day know 290,000 more words by 5 years old than those who are not read to, according to data from Ohio State University’s College of Education and Human Ecology.

“We are going to be reading with children in a way that is fun and engaging, not copy this letter,“ she said. “You can give children Japanese characters and have them trace it; they don’t know what that means. They can trace, you can trace anything.”

The “romp room” will focus on helping children develop gross motor skills and self-control. A martial arts instructor will come to the school twice a month to teach the children.

“Martial arts is a discipline,” Dungan said. “There are many children ... have a hard time listening to somebody, an adult, and senseis for some reason can get through to the children. They pay attention and then they understand when you have to listen and how you have to control your body.”

Students also will learn yoga in the “romp room.”

The “maker space” specializes in teaching students about science, technology, engineering and math. In the final rotation, the “outdoor space,” students can play outside under a covered pavilion with tricycles and playground equipment.

“We’re creating a unique model, this is a new Montessori, a new Reggio Emilia a new concept,” Dungan said. “Our goal in the end ... is to bring this to other communities that need it.”

Learn more about Jubilee

For more information about Jubilee Co-operative Preschool, visit the school’s website at www.jbpreschool.org.