In the 2014/15 school year, the city’s network of 50 such institutions consisted of 15 municipal kindergartens, 17 non-public kindergartens, 6 non-public preschool centres and units organised in 12 primary schools (including one private school).
Legnica has ensured that social needs in the area of preschool education are fully met. This is not a common occurrence across the region or the country as a whole. In the 2014/15 school year, 3,331 children aged 2.5–6 were receiving preschool education. Municipal kindergartens were attended by 1,656 children, non-public institutions by 1,186, while preschool units at primary schools had 489 children.
The preschool education rate has been rising steadily year by year and stands at 95.25% in the current school year (approximately 72% nationwide). The city fully provides preschool care for five- and six-year-old children (born in the second half of 2008).
The current school year is another in which, following the decision of Mayor Tadeusz Krzakowski, municipal kindergartens offer additional classes at no cost to parents.
Teachers conduct a total of 123 hours per week of various activities at these institutions. Children can, among other things, learn a foreign language, mainly English. At one kindergarten, children learn French, with 49 hours per week allocated to it.
The kindergartens also provide specialist care for children who require psychological and pedagogical support, in the form of speech therapy or corrective exercise classes (24 hours). Activities are also held in the kindergartens to help children develop their talents and interests. These include singing classes, games accompanied by piano, artistic gymnastics and an instrumental ensemble. Dancing is the most popular of the activities developing children’s abilities; it is offered at 9 kindergartens (21 hours). A total of 4,808 participants take part in additional activities, meaning that, on average, each preschool child in Legnica participates in three types of additional classes.
Legnica City Hall/ii