Big steps in a short period of time that is the power of early learning.Alejandro Lopez Ventura just turned 5 and is thriving.He communicates a lot his feelings and it makes me very proud," said Sara Ventura, Alejandro's mom.Sh e said when Alejandro was three, theyd take him to the playground, and he so badly wanted to be around other kids. They enrolled him at Baby Fox Academy in Sarasota.We didnt think of the advantage of having him around other kids, and all the things he would learn. We didn't know really. We just put him in because he wanted to be around kids.That decision turned out to be a game-changer for Alejandros development.Eating by himself is the first thing we noticed because at home we were just babying him a lot, so he started eating by himself, putting his clothes on, he loves reading now and writing and coloring, which he wouldn't do before," she said. "He didn't like to stay still, and coloring was one of those things. And now, especially since he started VPK, he's doing that, letters, his name.Being ready for kindergarten is literacy and numeracy skills, but there are social skills involved too. Some self-sufficiency skills, self-regulation skills as well," said Alison Fraga, the new CEO for the Early Learning Coalition of Sarasota County.According to the Early Learning Coalitions 2024-25 Annual report, 1,600 kids were enrolled in voluntary Pre-kindergarten in the County. Fraga would like to get more kids enrolled.Less than half of all 4-year-olds are participating in VPK here in Sarasota, so that is going to translate to the ability to increase kindergarten readiness if we can get more awareness about the importance of VPK," she said.VPK is a free program for all families as long as their child is at least four years old on or before September 1 of the school year they enroll. Its 540 instructional hours, which is about 3 hours per day, so parents will still need to pay for the rest of the day if they need it.The window to sign your child up for VPK with Sarasota County Schools just opened this week. Click here to learn how to sign up and which schools offer VPK. You can, of course, do VPK at a private facility as well. Click here to see private facilities in Sarasota County offering VPK. The window for school preference is from Feb. 2 through March 2, 2026.How Do I Apply?1.            First, obtain a VPK Certificate of Eligibility. To acquire your Certificate of Eligibility for the 2026-2027 school year, please use one of the resources below: Early Learning Coalition (ELC): (941) 954-4830 orwww.earlylearningcoalitionsarasota.org FLDOE Division of Early Learning Family Portal:www.floridaearlylearning.com 2.           Then, complete the School Choice Application. Log in or create an account in the Sarasota County Schools Focus Family Portal. Go to the SCS website, click on Families at the top of the page, then click the Focus Portal button. Or, access the Focus Family Portal using this link. ...read more read less