Preschool

Ania - posted on 01/29/2012

You probably can do it at home if you go out and have playdates all the time and read and do crafts etc, but personally I would love to send my kids to preschool, because I don't have this time and energy to do all these activities and I'm not that creative I guess...plus preschool = no mommy around. What Ive noticed about my son who is at home with me and friends kids who go to preschool is that they definately share and my boy....doesn't...and I can't blame him, he doesn't have enough contact with kids...he is also at 2 not potty trained yet...

Janette - posted on 06/11/2011

I am an Early Childhood Education Professional with all of the formal education that goes with but even I would not necessarily put a child in preschool. Every child is indeed different as is every family situation. If you are a SAHM and you are willing to work with your child, there is nothing that your child can't learn from you. There is a program call Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters, HIPPY for short, that is free to most children. It is an international program so it may be available in your area. It is a wonderful program that believes that a parent is a child's best first teacher. They are already in an environment that they trust, with someone they love, and have already been learning from you since the moment they were born. The curriculum is simple, easy to follow, and guided by a home based educator. They are there to teach the curriculum to you so that you in turn can teach your child in your time. The lessons only take around 20 minutes a day, but you could extend them longer if you chose, and the kids absolutely LOVE doing the lessons. It is simple things that we should learn from playing. Problem is children don't play like they used to. They are inside the home, behind TV screens being babysit by Thomas the Train, lol.
Just as an example, there are alot of comments who said their child can count to 10 or 50 etc. While that is actually a wonderful milestone for your child, can they go and get you exactely 10 blocks?
You say they know their shapes, but can they point out to you ALL of the different shapes in the environment?
You say they know all of their colors, but could you give them a rainbow and them name all the colors correctly?
Do they recognize colors like gray?
The point is YOU can teach your child everything they will learn in preschool, with a little help from some good instructions. One suggestion, if your gonna go there, go there at the library first, find you a good book on early childhood education and a good list of ALL of the milestones your child needs to reach before kindergarten. The book will explain what they are really looking for your child to be able to do. Then make it fun, take one thing at a time, don't overwhelm them, their attention span is short, but with your love and patience they will excel!

Teresa - posted on 06/11/2011

I sent my son part time for the social interaction at 3.5 because he just didn't get much time with kids his own age. He benefitted in some ways but he hated being away from home and me. So we stopped. He is so bright already and yes we do all the same things at home he does at "school".

Jenn - posted on 06/10/2011

LOL - thanks for clarifying. I understand his fears - I have a friend who wanted to send her son to the same class that my son will be in, but her husband had that same worries, so they ended up not enrolling him in it. In the end, they will have the exact same education, with the same curriculum - the only difference is that my son will be able to fluently speak 2 languages, and any advantage that I can give him in life is something I'm all for. It may not even make a difference if he ends up working in construction, or at a factory, etc., but if he did work somewhere that wanted you to be bilingual, it would give him that advantage over another fellow employee, and it generally pays more. And if it makes no difference as far as employment goes, at least he can swoon the ladies with it LMAO!!

Becky - posted on 06/10/2011

Sorry, just getting back to this. I think he means in reading and writing, not in speaking English. Yes, hopefully they will have a solid base in that! :) Although, my husband went to an English school and his reading and writing skills in English are definitely lacking, so I don't know what he blames for that! Maybe the fact that he claims he got through highschool without ever having to write a paper!

Chatty - posted on 06/05/2011

Yep, that's what all the information says that I've come across as well. What Jenn said!

Jenn - posted on 06/05/2011

Becky, wouldn't your children already have a solid base in English by the time they go to school? I would certainly hope so. :/ If it would help, you could tell your husband that kids who do Immersion programs are slightly behind in their English reading and writing skills for the first couple of years, but after that they are generally AHEAD of their English-only counterparts.

Becky - posted on 06/04/2011

I would imagine there are a lot of children in French Immersion whose families don't speak French. I'm sure there are community resources to help as well. I used to tutor a little girl who was in French immersion. I'd like to put our boys into French immersion, but my husband doesn't like the concept, because I guess they teach French before they teach English, (grammar, etc), and while he has no problem with them learning French, he wants them to have a solid base in English first. So, we'd prefer a bilingual school where it's 50-50, but I'm not sure there is a French one here. My niece is in a German bilingual program, which we might consider for our boys as well, even though I'd prefer they learn French. But, we do have a lot of French-speakers in our family, including my brother-in-law who is from Quebec, so hopefully, we can teach it to them anyway.

Chatty - posted on 06/04/2011

Ya, sometimes I can see you, April and sometimes I can't. I was thinking, "who the heck is this person? they seem to know me fairly well!"

Makes sense now! Thanks for the encouraging words

April - posted on 06/04/2011

un-schooling is when the children decide what they're going to learn that day. it is different from homeschooling in that, most of the time, homeschooling follows a certain curriculum.

Sarah - posted on 06/04/2011

Ok, am I just dumb?? What is un-schooling?

Lady Heather - posted on 06/04/2011

We're doing French immersion too and our skills in that area are pretty ummm...sad. I can read and understand a lot, but my pronunciation blows and it takes me forever to think of a response. The husband just sucks at it entirely. But my stepdad is french and so there's a whole branch of Freja's family that she'll never be able to talk to without it. Plus most of my extended family are french speaking and their kids are being raised that way too. So it just makes sense.

I'm hoping I'll pick some up from her.

Sapphire - posted on 06/04/2011

Hey!! April has a name & picture now! I can see you :-) And assuming that is Grandma too in the pic?!

Sapphire - posted on 06/04/2011

Hey!! April has a name & picture now! I can see you :-) And assuming that is Grandma too in the pic?!

April - posted on 06/04/2011

i am always nameless and faceless, lol. just a COM glitch that never resolved itself...

Jenn - posted on 06/04/2011

April is above me. :)

Chatty - posted on 06/04/2011

I'm slow sometimes......what of it? LMAO

Mary - posted on 06/04/2011

Dana, you're right - Jenn's observation is brilliant in it's simplicity, but damn if it isn't spot-on! she would have no need of a French immersion school if you and/or Chad were fluent!

Chatty - posted on 06/04/2011

......and, Jenn -- who commented above you, in between yours and Sara's comments? I can't see a picture or a name.

Chatty - posted on 06/04/2011

"If you were already speaking French at home, what would be the point of French immersion?"

OMG! Jenn, a light bulb just went off in my head. Thanks....

Jenn - posted on 06/04/2011

My son will be going to French immersion next year for SK (the program is just starting next year at his school), and we don't speak any French. The only French I know is what little I remember from school, which isn't much. The French Immersion program is actually designed for non-French speaking families, so that the child has an opportunity to learn the language. If you were already speaking French at home, what would be the point of French immersion?

April - posted on 06/04/2011

Dana, I think you are underestimating Roxanne here! She is a very bright child. I think she would do well in the French Immersion program. Even though you and Chad don't speak it fluently, you could learn along with her. IMO, I don't think anything can hold back Roxanne when she puts her mind to something!

In my own experience, I learned sign language at the age of 5 and I am fluent. My parents don't know much more than "What is your name, My name is". Their lack of education on the subject didn't hurt me. I was immersed in the language of ASL 5 days a week, 6 hours a day. I can speak well and clearly enough without signing, but my classmates could not. If I wanted to carry a conversation with anyone my age, I HAD to learn to sign. It was a way of life.

Good Day! - posted on 06/04/2011

I don't know Dana. But the only language immersion school I know of is pretty crappy. The teachers talk at the little kids in a foreign language and it all goes over their heads. Have you visited the school or talked to other parents? That'd be the place to start. You could always put her in, and if its not a good experience then take her out. If she's young when/if you switch out of the program I'm pretty sure she'll be fine.

And maybe this will help? I had a student whose parents only spoke Vietnamese. The child was brilliant and did well in school. His parents put him in our school's aftercare program so that he could get homework help, since they couldn't help him at home. Not totally the same situation...

Chatty - posted on 06/04/2011

I figure this is a great place to ask this question.

As some of you know, I've been considering French Immersion for Roxanne when she starts kindergarten. I REALLY want to put her in it, and we're lucky enough to have two schools that offer it nearby. My concern is that we don't speak french in our home. I'm pretty good at written french, and can understand most basic stuff, and Chad hasn't got a clue. Do you think it's productive or common for parents in our situation to want our child in a French Immersion program?

I'm worried that we won't be properly equipped to help her as she gets older AND because we don't speak it fluently, I'm worried that it will hold her back?

Kate CP - posted on 06/04/2011

I did Montessori preschool for two reasons:
1) To get her used to a Montessori environment and curriculum.
2) To get her out of the house and out of my hair for a few days a week. Momma needs what little sanity she has left. :P

Becky - posted on 06/04/2011

We're very fortunate in the friends with kids close in age department too. A big part of that is that I've attended the same church for 15 years or so now, so a lot of my friends and I have grown together and are at similar places in our lives still. In our Bible study group, all 5 couples have 2 kids, and they're all 5 or under - and all boys except 1! One of the moms has arranged family activities for the summer so our kids can play together and we can visit. All the boys' cousins, most of who live within about 15 minutes of us, are close in age to them too - the oldest is 6 and the youngest is 5 months. My sister runs a dayhome too, where the boys go once in a while, so that's why I don't worry too much about socialization. If we didn't have all that, I'm pretty sure Cole would be going to preschool this fall.

Good Day! - posted on 06/04/2011

My friends with children close to my daughter's age range from ages 20 to 40. I'm 27. But my husband is 36. I'm sure that our age difference plays a part in why we have friends who vastly vary in age. My friends became his and vice versa.

Sapphire - posted on 06/04/2011

@Jenn-yes, you are very lucky to have friends with the same age children! What a wonderful way to connect!

Yeah, I didn;t start to meet other moms until Matt went to preschool. In the daycare setting, it was pick-up/drop-off no hangin gout really. In the preschool, parents were more than encouraged to get to know each other. So while I didn;t form long lasting friendships with some of the other moms, I do know who they are when we run into each other in public. The friends I do socialize with have older children, but that's OK with me. Matt loves hanging with the older kids and they are so good to him!

Mary - posted on 06/04/2011

Krista, I was sort of in the same boat. By the time I had Molly, most of my friends had kids that were already in school, so I really didn't know anybody with a child in her age range. It was only when I stopped working, and started taking her to all of these mommy-and-me activities that I began to make friends with women who had toddlers. As well, I am sure that we will develop another group of friends when she starts preschool. I see it as another advantage of sending her to preschool - it will be another opportunity for me to meet new moms, and offers the potential of new friendships for both of us!

Krista - posted on 06/04/2011

Yeah, I'm in that boat. I don't know any other mothers of young kids around here. There is a playgroup here every Tuesday morning, but I work, so I can't go. If we have another baby and I go on mat leave, I'll start bringing Sam to that playgroup though, and so hopefully will meet some other moms of toddlers. And will hopefully hit it off with at least one of them. I'd love to make some more friends around here.

And yes, Jenn...you are very, very fortunate.

Jenn - posted on 06/04/2011

That's too bad that some of you don't have friends with kids to hang out with. I guess I never realized how lucky I am to have such a large group that I can reach out to - especially for living in a small area (I actually live out in the country, but the biggest town around has a population of about 15,000).

Stifler's - posted on 06/04/2011

I just want to offload my offspring, to be perfectly honest. I thought preschool was compulsory. I think it's prep here anyway now.

Sapphire - posted on 06/03/2011

"Why can't you give them the social part?"

I can honestly saw for me, it was VERY difficult to find antother mother that I felt compatible with who had a child the simialr age as my son. Many if the mothers i nmy area were much younger than me. Hell-I even had 2 former students have kids teh same age as my son! So in regard to socializing with my son, yeah that's all good and all but I also needed to have conversations with the moms who I was on the same page with as well. So local mom groups weren;t for me. Also, I was still a working mom teaching 3x a week, and it was really hard for me to relate to SAHMs.

Joy - posted on 06/03/2011

I'm a SAHM and I put Jacob in preschool in April of this year. He's 3 (will be 4 in October). Since April and through the summer, he goes part time (noon til 3pm). In September, he'll be in Pre-Kindergarten from 9 til 3. That's when Momma can finally get a JOB lol! Why do I love preschool? For starters, he NEEDED the socialization and that is something that I simply do not have access to in this town without school or daycare. The majority of the women I know who have kids around his age are....on CoM, and as sad as that sounds, that's just the truth. I'd LOVE nothing more than to have play groups and Mommy time with my girls on CoM's but until they invent a "Beam me up Scotty" machine, ain't gonna happen lol Aside from the socialization aspect, I also feel like, even though I've taught him the majority of what he knows (ABC's, and most of the OP's list), I don't have it in me to be an actual teacher. I just don't have the patience and I think that me knowing that about myself is a benefit to my son because it means that I can trust a professional to do this for him. I love my son's teacher. It's written all over her face and every ounce of her body language that she LOVES what she does for a living, and she's good at it. I've seen so many improvements in Jacob since he started in April, so why would I try and stop his progress? He's learning to share, which is something he knew how to do with me and his Daddy but, since he's an only child and has no friends his age, he knew NOTHING about sharing with little kids until school. His speech issues have also improved a LOT. In a way, his teacher is teaching me as well, giving me tips on how to help him....and it's working! So, as much as I respect anyone who has the patience and diligence it takes to teach their own children at home, I feel confident in my decision to not leave that part of his life in my hands.

Edited to add: I also like him being in preschool because those 3 hours do me a world of good as well. He's off learning and playing with his new friends and I'm allowed to listen to the peace and quiet, read a book, do things I never get the chance to do with him here and up my butt 24/7. I know that sounds selfish but it's true. Up until April 25th of this year, I can literally count on one hand the number of times he's been to a babysitter. The rest of the time, he's been with me. His favorite time of day (and mine too) is when we see the school bus coming down the street and it's time for him to put on his "pack pack", as he calls it ♥

Jenn - posted on 06/03/2011

Why can't you give them the social part? I get together with friends and their kids, we go to the park, the girl next door comes over to play, just being out doing things like grocery shopping is still teaching social skills. Or you can find Mom groups in the area, or reach out to someone you know, but maybe not that well. Like this one girl that I used to work with, we never hung out together before, but thanks to social media (aka Facebook), we started chatting a bit, and then got together. Well, we really get along and we are now good friends. She has kids around the same age as mine, and they play together too.

Kimberly - posted on 06/03/2011

i want to be the one that teaches my son alot of different things but i want him to still go for the social part that i cant give him

Jenn - posted on 06/03/2011

I am a huge believer in preschool. Not only because of all the benefits you listed but also because I didn't want my girls to start kindergarten at five days a week, seven hours a day without any prior adjusting to time away from me. The solution for us was two days a week, five hours each day. It worked well for my 6 year old (who completed a stellar year in kindergarten) and my 4 year old who looks so forward to going to the same preschool class big sis was in next year. They learned to be a little more independent, confident away from me and felt safe with their teachers because I am very involved in their schools. Also...my kids will listen to teachers in a classroom environment better than me in our home. Life lessons, sure, I am good for that. ABC's and early math? They zone out completely with me at home but run to me with pride for what They learned in school that day. I was very picky while choosing their preK and it definitely helped my oldest prepare for her aggressive kindergarten which taught reading and math on a 1st grade level. I am very grateful to her preK for teaching far more than ABC's and counting.

Lady Heather - posted on 06/03/2011

No, my daughter doesn't need preschool. I need her to go to preschool. Hahaha. As soon as she's toilet trained she's heading to the little French preschool down the street a couple of mornings a week. Methinks a few hours with only one little one will be most welcome. And one of those mornings I will be taking the baby to the library for a one-on-one mum and baby group that I did with Freja. I can't do it with two kids!



Anyways, I went to preschool and I loved it. I went for the same reason. Mum wanted to have just my brother and get some stuff done. Of course I did not know this. We had lots of learning materials at home and my older sister taught me to read around the time I started preschool anyways. But it was a fun place to go, I liked playing with the other kids and we got to do little outings and stuff. I don't know about anyone else, but my toddler loves to head out into the world and see new things. My dad took her to work while I went to my ultrasound the other day and she cried when she had to leave. HA. So I'm thinking preschool will be a hit.

Jenn - posted on 06/03/2011

Our cut-off here is December 31st for kindergarten. So long as the child is 4 by December 31st - they start school in September, and my girls birthday is December 3rd. My son on the other hand, didn't turn 4 until January, so he started later than a lot of kids. It's kind of funny, especially with the JK/SK split - you can have kids that are 3-6 in the same class.

September - posted on 06/03/2011

Do they NEED pre-school...no. Could it be beneficial...sure. We plan for our son to go to pre-school. We are just back and forth about when. He will be 3 in October so we are planning to keep him at his current day care which has been super awesome until the following preschool year just prior to him turning 4. We’ve actually already put down our deposit to hold our spot because the one we’ve chosen is super hard to get into.

Chatty - posted on 06/03/2011

My daughter's preschool didn't require that she be potty trained. The teacher said, "she doesn't feel it's right to deprive any child of the experience just because they can't use the toilet".

It WAS a concern of mine so I was grateful to have been able to enroll her even though, at the time, she wasn't trained. Now, thankfully, she is during the day.

Krista - posted on 06/03/2011

I'd like to put my son in preschool, when he's old enough. He's only 2.5 now, but he could go in the fall as he'll be almost 3 (it's only 2 half days a week for 3 year olds and 3 half days for the 4 year olds). I won't be taking him this year, though. He doesn't seem ready, and I don't think I'm going to have him potty trained in time (it's not going well lol!).

I don't think it's necessary, but I like the idea of him getting used to a new environment (he's kind of afraid to try new things, so I hope it'll help him out) and he'll get to make new friends. We work on the alphabet, numbers, shapes, colors, at home in a fun way, but it can't hurt to have those concepts reinforced in preschool. It's not like they're sitting in desks, with their heads down working all day...it's learning in a fun way, with games and songs. I don't see the harm!

Chatty - posted on 06/03/2011

Hahaha, "eleventeen"......that's awesome! Roxanne has never said that. So cute!

Chatty - posted on 06/03/2011

"A, B, C, D, ......... ELLEMINOO, P -- Q, R, S (and then she just completely skips T, U & V) W, X, Y & Z....now I know my A, B, C's.....sing with me!"

Rosie - posted on 06/03/2011

lucas used to do eleventeen as well mary!! that's so funny!

Mary - posted on 06/03/2011

Molly is still really fond of "eleventeen", but seems to have a huge aversion to 15 (fiveteen, if she includes it!) and 16!

Rosie - posted on 06/03/2011

eminemopie is the awesome part in the middlepart of lucas's alphabet, there's also like 3 b's in his version, lol.

Rosie - posted on 06/03/2011

lucas stops at 13 as well, lol.

Chatty - posted on 06/03/2011

Ya, she's got her own version of the alphabet too! ;)

Teresa - posted on 06/03/2011

Dana, counting to 20 is actually one of the only things my girls learned in preschool. They could already count to 100, but ALWAYS skipped 14 and 16..... lol

My son can get to 13 w/out any trouble, but skips several numbers before getting to 20.