About Our School
The
The Dryden Street School is the center for Westbury's "Early Childhood "Program with a half day Pre-Kindergarten Program and a full day Kindergarten Program. Our Pre-Kindergarten Program focuses on oral language development and is organized around themes that integrate the various disciplines of learning mandated by the New York State Learning Standards. Our Pre-Kindergarten Program, follows a "Hands-On"/ Exploratory" science program and a hands on early childhood mathematics program, "Saxon" our Pre-Kindergarten uses not only the Kindergarten "Open Court" reading program which is an interdisciplinary program but also the "Weekly Reader" publication. Each classroom has two computers and a printer, and a variety of learning materials including components of "Leap Frog" Program. A visit to any Pre-Kindergarten Program will reveal our students engaged in wonderful learning experiences such as working on cooperative learning activities, listening to or creating their own stories, and working with exciting hands on materials.
Our Full Day Kindergarten Program has an a rich language arts program focused on the Harcourt-Brace District reading program and uses a variety of supporting materials in the room such as leveled libraries and "Weekly Reader" and "Scholastic" newspapers. Our materials are all focused on our "Phonics" based approach that introduces our students to classic and award winning children's literature to enhance their writing skills and verbal language. Our Kindergarten classes follow a theme based interdisciplinary learning agenda that is interactive in design that addresses individual student needs in focused workshop periods. Our students are taught not only to draw and write creatively to express themselves but to listen for information as others speak. In each classroom, there are a variety of excellent learning materials that include computers and a printer, and components of the "Leap Frog interactive learning system. Our Kindergarten students work on laptops during their computer period using excellent learning materials. Our Kindergarten students use the "Math Investigations" mathematics program that stresses application and higher level thinking skills.
For our Kindergarten students, we have a variety of after school and before school programs. Our "Twenty-First Century" program has morning and afternoon components - computer, soccer, karate, and interdisciplinary academic enhancement sessions where the students work in small groups with our teachers. We also have a special six-week "Enhancement" program of 18 students that meets once a week for 2 and one half hours to work on theme related projects. For our students requiring focused AIS intervention we have an "Enrichment" program that meets two afternoons a week for three hours and works with small groups of students including our Occupational Therapist who works on strengthening small motor skills. We now have a morning math enrichment class that we call "A.P. Math". Our students work in small groups with a teacher to enhance their problem solving skills using hands on materials.
Dryden Street School has an outstanding support staff in our school such as a social worker, psychologist, two resource room teachers, a language development teacher, an ESL teacher, a speech teacher, and an on-staff OT and PT providers. Our students also have a physical education program, library program, and music program.
It is the mission of our school to make each child's introduction to education a productive and highly successful so that he or she begins to move up their education ladder with the skills and concepts necessary to become a successful "Twenty-First" Century learner.
The entire staff of the Dryden Street School faculty of professions strives diligently each and every day to make our school "The Place Where Children Come First and Parents Are Involved."