By MICHELLE NUSSEY Staff Writer

Four-and five-year-olds are going to have to get out their notebooks because they now have the option of going to school for a whole day.In the fall, full-day kindergarten and junior kindergarten will be implemented in several Niagara region schools.

The provincial government says this will strengthen education in Ontario and produce a better-educated workforce. McKay Elementary School in Port Colborne will be implementing full-time kindergarten in the fall. Rhonda Grenier, principal, expresses her excitement as well as that of other faculty.

The program will allow children to get a head start and instil a love of learning in early years. Grenier says, “It really helps with the transition to formal education in Grade 1.”Grenier says the full-day, everyday classes will help children develop socially.

There are more children so the teachers and Early Childhood Educators (ECE) are working together to provide them with the skill sets needed in the early years of formal education. Mary Robinson, kindergarten teacher at McKay, says, “I’m really excited about it. It’s going to be great for the children.”

The Ontario Early Years Centre is co-ordinating a school readiness program.Program Co-ordinator Nancy Lisi explains it educates parents about the important role they play in their children’s education and helps prepare children for the transition from home to school.

“Parents have lots of questions, and our role is to provide them with the information they need,” says Lisi.With the change to full-time kindergarten, parents have even more questions.Because kindergarten classes will be filling up, means local daycares are emptying.

A Child’s World Family Child Care Services of Niagara has 17 child-care facilities in the Niagara region and deals with children ages three months to 12 years.Executive Director Barb Sockovie says the full-time kindergarten will have an effect on the number of children at their facilities, but since they have such a broad age range the change will not be detrimental.

The staff at A Child’s World also create an environment to learn in and help prepare the four- and five-year-olds for school.Sockovie says, “We work in collaboration with the school board and we will continue to do so.”