If you have a child who is already attending preschool or one that is scheduled to start later this year, the free Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program could save you thousands of dollars. The state-sponsored program aims to prepare 4-year-olds for kindergarten by helping them develop vital learning and social skills.

If your child was born between Sept. 2, 2006, and Sept. 1, 2008, you can enroll this year at one of a wide selection of public and private programs in the area. Registration started Feb. 1 for the summer and fall sessions.

There are two programs offered annually, and your child can only attend one. The school-year program begins in August and includes 540 hours of instructional time. The summer program offers 300 instructional hours and can start as early as May 1.

The application process requires all parents to have a face-to-face visit with a Family Central parent counselor to determine eligibility for the program. The main Family Central office is located at 3111 S. Dixie Hwy., in  West Palm Beach.  However, there are a couple of local off-site registration opportunities:

• 4 to 7 p.m. Feb. 7, Boynton Beach City Library, 208 S. Seacrest Blvd., Boynton Beach.  Call 561-742-6390.
• 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 25, Glades Road Branch Library, 20701 95^th Ave. South, Boca Raton. Call 561-482-4554.

Save yourself time by filling out the VPK application before heading to one of the above locations. Visit the Family Central website to download the application. You will also need to provide proof of Florida residency and an original copy of your child’s birth certificate with your application.

Once your child is approved for the program, you will receive a voucher and a list of participating providers. There is a wide selection of public schools, private centers, and faith-based programs that meet the VPK quality standards.

Family Central has identified these VPK providers in our area (click on pink center names to visit their websites):

Boca Raton

• Miss Fran’s Early Learning Center, 401 NW Second Ave. Call 561-338-7649. Read more about Miss Fran’s in the BocaParent blog.  (BocaParent sponsor)
• Congregation B’Nai Israel, 2200 Yamato Rd. Call 561-241-1484. (BocaParent sponsor)
• Advent Lutheran Church, 300 E. Yamato Rd. Call 561-395-3631.
• The Appleseed, 1300 NW Fourth Ave. Call 561-391-2171.
• Betty & Marvin Zale Early Childhood Learning Center at the Levis Jewish Community Center, 9801 Donna Klein Blvd. Call 561-852-3286.
• Bluebird Academy, 2200 NW Fifth Ave. Call 561-368-0605.
• B’nai Torah Congregation, 6261 SW 18^th St. Call 561-750-9665.
• Boca Raton Charter School, 269 NE 14^th St. Call 561-750-0437.
• Boca Raton Christian School, 315 NW Fourth St. Call 561-391-2727.
• Boca Raton Jewish Learning Center, 19801-6 Hampton Dr. Call 561-883-5439.
• A Boca Raton Montessori School, 1540 NW 15^th Vista. Call 561-368-5253
• Busy Bees Academy of Learning, 250 NW 20^th St. Call 561-620-8383.
• Capretto Place, 4800 T-Rex Ave. Suite 110, Call 561-241-3011.
• Children’s House of Boca Raton, 100 Pine Cir. Call 561-391-0074.
• Children’s Learning Center, 6450 W. Rogers Cir. Call 561-988-8288.
• Dino-Might Kids Preschool Center, 5982-F SW 18^th St. Call 561-338-1732.
• Discovery Preschool Center, 10085 Yamato Rd. Call 561-558-8600.
• Emerging Minds Montessori Academy, 9087 Glades Rd. Call 561-487-3535.
• Florence Fuller Child Development Centers, 200 NE 14^th St. Call 561-391-7274.
• Garden of the Sahaba Academy, 3100 NW Fifth Ave. Call 561-395-3011.
• Footprints Academy, 273 NW 15^th St. Call 561-395-5044.
• Global Learning of Boca Raton, 1683 NW 15^th Vista. Call 561-368-5255.
• Hillel Day School of Boca Raton, 21011 95^th Ave South. Call 561-470-5000.
• Kindercare Learning Centers, 20650 95^th Ave. South, or 6550 Broken Sound Pkwy. Call 561-488-3481.
• La Petite Academy, 10190 Calle Comerico Dr. Call 561-487-6021.
• The Learning Center, 258 NW 15^th St. Call 561-391-1140.
• The Learning Tree, 339 NW 23^rd St. Call 561-395-0593.
• Pinitos Learning Center, 11443 W. Palmetto Park Rd. Call 561-558-1488.
• Primary Learning Place, 23080 Sandalfoot Plaza Dr. Call 561-482-3772.
• Professional Learning Center, 22354 SW 57^th Ave. Call 561-487-1230.
• Puffin Learning Academy, 19635 S. State Road 7.  Call 561-470-6161.
• Royal Palm Montessori Academy, 12532 Cobblestone Way. Call 561-483-3838.
• Karen Slattery Educational Research Center, 777 Glades Rd. Call 561-297-0130. Spaces are very limited. Learn more about Slattery in the BocaParent blog.
• St. Jude Catholic Church and School, 21689 Toledo Rd. Call 561-392-9579.
• Sandpiper Shores Elementary, 11201 Glades Rd. Call 561-969-5884.
• Temple Beth El, 9800 Yamato Rd. Call 561-391-9091.
• Torah Academy of Boca Raton, 447 NW Spanish River Blvd. Call 561-347-1821.
• Torah Tots Academy, 17950 Military Tr. Call 561-241-6257.
• West Glades Montessori School, 20400 Cain Blvd. Call 561-479-4629.
• YMCA of Boca Raton, 6631 Palmetto Cir. South. Call 561-395-9622.

Delray Beach

• A Reading and Math Academy II, 326 NW Seventh Ave. Call 561-276-2990.
• Achievement Centers, 555 NW Fourth St. Call 561-276-0520.
• Ana Younger Care Years, 216 SW Second Ave. Call 561-243-3755.
• Bar & Fergs’s Academy, 200 Sterling Ave. Call 561-278-8669.
• Children’s Nest, 117 SW Third St. Call 561-265-1848.
• Daughter of Zion Jr. Academy, 250 NW Third Ave. Call 561-243-0715.
• Girl and Boy Land Day Care Center, 115 SW 11^th Ave. Call 561-278-1564.
• Kids World of Delray, 219 N. Dixie Blvd. Call 561-279-4100.
• Kidsville Early Learning Center, 2200 Lake Ida Rd. Call 561-274-0208.
• Mt. Olive Baptist Church of Delray Beach, 40 NW Fourth Ave. Call 561-274-0947.
• Oxford Academy, 600 N. Congress Ave. Call 561-279-9717.
• Pine Grove Elementary, 400 SW 10^th St. Call 561-969-5884.
• St. Vincent Ferrer School, 810 George Bush Blvd. Call 561-278-3868.
• Seacrest Christian School, 2703 N. Seacrest Blvd. Call 561-276-5552.
• Stepping Stones Learning Center, 601 SW Sixth Ave. Call 561-276-6201.
• Village Academy, 400 SW 12^th Ave. Call 561-969-5884.

Boynton Beach

• A Step Above, 1114 SE Second St. Call 561-732-8126.
• Bright Horizons, 1490 Gateway Blvd. Call 561-734-3388.
• Burk’s Academy, 510 NE Second St. Call 561-369-1045.
• Calvary Christian Preschool, 3190 Hypoluxo Rd. Call 561-966-7490.
• Deliverance by Faith Day Care, 416 NE MLK Jr. Blvd. Call 561-739-8939.
• Edward & Thelma Glantz Preschool, 8500 Jog Rd. Call 561-732-7620.
• Faith United Methodist, 6340 W. Boynton Beach Blvd. Call 561-738-5422.
• First Impressions, 2214 S. Seacrest Blvd.  Call 561-737-4373. … 3250 Old Boynton Rd. Call 561-734-2000. …  7053 High Ridge Rd. Call 561-585-5300.
• First United Methodist Church of Boynton Beach, 101 N. Seacrest Blvd. Call 561-732-3435.
• Galaxy Elementary, 301 Galaxy Way, Call 561-969-5584.
• Jewish Early Childhood Center, 10655 El Clair Ranch Rd. Call 561-742-1083.
• Kindercare Learning Centers, 4947 Le Chalet Blvd. Call 561-734-7412.
• La Petite Academy, 4885 Windward Passage Dr. Call 561-736-0011.
• Lake Worth Christian School, 7592 High Ridge Rd. Call 561-493-3100.
• The Learning Experience, 10160 Lyons Rd. Call 561-200-4243.
• The Learning Place Preschool, 1400 SW Third St. Call 561-742-4441. … And  8518 Lawrence Rd. Call 561-742-3236.
• Lighthouse Academy and Child Development Center, 202 W. Boynton Beach Blvd. Call 561-734-1880.
• Little Blue Academy, 2701 Quantum Blvd. Call 561-742-3373.
• Miss Little’s School, 201 SW 23^rd Ave. Call 561-734-3206.
• Professional Learning Center, 6661 Boynton Beach Blvd. Call 561-375-9999.
• St. Thomas More Preschool, 10935 S. Military Tr. Call 561-737-3770. Open house 6 p.m. Feb. 23.
• Tiny Tikes Academy of Boynton Beach, 393 Miner Rd. Call 561-547-0576.
• Treasure Chest Early Learning Center, 101 NE Fifth Ave. Call 561-737-6067.
• Westside Baptist Church, 3721 Old Boynton Rd. Call 561-732-4636.
• Wiston Family Torah Tots, 8600 Jog Rd. Call 561-572-2381.
• YMCA, 9600 S. Military Tr. Call 561-536-1438.

MORE ON PRESCHOOLS

Read more about other local preschool programs – and how to find the right fit for your family in the BocaParent Preschool Guide.

Can you recommend any of these programs? Share your advice in the comments.

- MERCEDES COPPIN

EDITOR’S NOTE: This  was originally posted on March 14, 2010.

If you want to take advantage of the state’s free voluntary prekindergarten program, now is the time to enroll for summer and fall. It’s a muli-step process to get in. First: Are you eligible? For the summer session, your child must’ve been born between Sept. 2, 2004, and Sept. 1, 2005. For fall, they must’ve been born between Sept. 2, 2005, and Sept. 1, 2006.

To enroll, start at the Family Central website, where you can download the forms and get details on how to proceed. You will also have to go meet face to face with a Family Central counselor. After that, you’ll get a voucher and a list of all the local VPK providers. To enroll, you have to register with the voucher at your selected school.

The Family Central office is in West Palm Beach. But closer to home, you can register on March 20 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the Boynton Beach City Library, 208 S. Seacrest Blvd. Check the Family Central website for all the documents you will need to bring.

The list of schools offering VPK in the fall hasn’t been released yet (though we know the Boca Raton Charter School is offering it).

These are the Boca schools offering summer VPK:

• Betty & Marvin Zale Early Childhood Learning Center, at the Adolph and Rose Levis Jewish Community Center, 9801 Donna Klein Blvd. Call 561-852-3200 or visit its website.

• Primary Learning Place, 23080-B Sandalfoot Plaza Dr. Call 561-482-3772 or visit its website.

• Royal Palm Montessori Academy, 12532 Cobblestone Way. Call 561-483-3838.

• Bluebird Academy & Preschool, 2200 NW Fifth Ave. Call 561-368-0605 or visit its website.

• Busy Bees Academy of Learning, 250 NW 20th St. Call 561-620-8383.

• Footprints Academy, 273 NW 15th St. Call 561-395-5044 or visit its website.

• Jewish Learning Center, 19801-6 Hampton Dr. Call 561-883-KIDZ (5439) or visit its website.

• Children’s Learning Center, 6450 W Rogers Cir. Call 561-988-8288.

• Discovery Preschool Center, 10085 Yamato Rd. Call 561-558-8600 or visit its website.

• Ruth and Edward Taubman Early Childhood Center at B’Nai Torah Congregation, 6261 SW 18th St. Call  561-392-8566 or visit its website.

Are we missing any? Have you used any of these programs? Click on Comments and let us know.