Education Questions?

La Petite Academy has some structure and age groups are separated. Fun and learning all in one, also has clean building and safe outdoors. And they are flexible. You can do half days, full days, only 2 days a week or all 5. And they are
year round.

My Aunt is an education specilicist. Her advice to me was to keep my daughter at home as long as possible and provide as many opportunities I could for supervised play with other children (supervised by parents). Parental supervision and observation is key to understanding your child and his needs.
The reasons she gave was the burn out issue that someone else mentioned; and from ages new born to five the most important thing for them is playing and developing socially. They learn a lot through playing at thier age.
Also if they are sent off to day care/school too early they become confused as to which adults are in charge of thier life. You need to bond with your child and nuture their respect before sending them to school. If you don't have that respect when you send them to school it will be harder to gain and maintain once they are in school.
Also you can "teach" them at home while they are young. Just keep it fun and don't try to teach them too much at once. Two key concepts a day is enough. Never pressure or let it get boring.
RPocai

Hi L.,
Personally, I feel that kids need to be disciplined/loved/taught at home FIRST. Colin needs to learn to respect you before he learns to respect others.
I don't see anything wrong w/ a once or twice a wk MDO program, but that should be more for play than anything else.
Active boys do need the chance to be active boys- parks, the Arboreetum, even just a walk around the block can accomplish this. Heck, in a pinch dancing to a Wiggles DVD works!
@ 1/2 y/o's don't have long attention spans- that is part of what makes this age such a challenge.
IMHO we as a society are putting WAY too much emphasis on schools and structure for the little ones. Enjoy them now, make lasting memeories, give them a firm foundation of love- school will come soon enough.
:-)

D.

L.:

I teach at a certified Christian preschool that starts at age 2 1/2. There is a great curriculum that balances needed play and learning. The rooms are divided into centers and there is scheduled learning time that is also fun. At this age, they are not evaluated for what they know. This beginning stage of preschool is an introduction to so much. By the time they leave the class, they really have learned colors, shapes, some letters, the pledge of allegiance, and following class rules. The kids do have outside playtime and they do go to body rhythmics class, which is fun, but learning requires them to loosen up and work off some energy. The socialization with the other children is so valuable and you will be so glad if you find a program like this in your area. Preschool is not the same as mother’s day out. Mothers Day Out is mostly play with some crafts and a small lesson. The preschool lessons are usually taught with more hands on learning.

My daughter is an only child and she really needed that secondary discipline. She rebelled because she is a really strong willed child but when you find the right preschool, the teachers embrace that type of child and work with it and turn into something positive. My daughter is in the three year old class this year and it is truly amazing to see her progress. She loves to be the teachers helper this year and is just doing fantastic. The children attend chapel once a week so they learn how to worship in a group setting and are able to learn beyond conventional ABC’s and 123’s.

Discipline is key and sometimes when they are new, you will find that they don’t want to go. There are rules and they are unsure if they like that but you will see a change if you stick it our. Concentrate on your child’s teacher and keep in communication with her and bring some of the rules home and show your child that you are both on the same page. The only rules they really have are cleaning up after playtime, washing hands before they eat and sitting still while they are in a circle-style learning situation. There are other children so they must learn to wait their turn and they must learn to share but it really doesn’t take that long. The 2 ½ year old teacher does this with the use of a timer and the child who has the toy is responsible for passing it off to the child who is waiting for it when the timer goes off. By the middle of the year, the timer is not even needed anymore.

Three is usually the age that many people start preschool but because you are doing this earlier, you will not have the painful transition when the curriculum is much more advanced. He will have learned how school works and will know what is expected and will learn more quickly because the transition is so minimal.

The key is a good school. Make sure there is learning and it is fun. Make sure there is time to work off steam but that there is an emphasis on learning.

You will really be glad you stuck it out.

L. - I'm not sure you can find a "school" for a 2 1/2 year old. I think the earliest you could get into any type of actual preschool is 3. I could be wrong, though.

you didn't talk about what type of daycare you have him in. That will make all the difference in the world. Is is curriculum-based? What are the days like? If you're wanting the school environemnt, maybe you could look into Montessori schools - they are very structured right from the beginning and they start at 2.

It's my personal opinion that it's a good idea to socialize your child early. This can mean full-time care, part-time care, set playdates, etc. Maybe you could do just a couple of days a week, or form a playgroup that meets twice a week or something, just to continue socializing him on a regular and consistent basis.

What it really sounds like to me, though, is that you're getting a lot of pressure from your husband and his father to put your children in daycare, and you don't want to. That is a completely different problem than should your son be in a school setting. Honey, if you want to stay home with your kids, then you do it. It's the right thing for you! Don't be bullied into making your mommy decisions. They are only little once, and if what you want is to stay home with them, there is no one on earth that will be able to make you feel comfortable with sending them off to daycare. He will learn everything he needs to know in due time, whether you have him in a daycare, a school, or at home. Let him be a kid, and let yourself be the mommy you want to be!

Good luck - S.

Hi L., Like you I didn't feel confortable leaving my son (18 months old) at a day care, so we decided to star him at a Montessori School (which is more like a school then a daycare). I just love them! They are really great. Now they are focusing on respect for each other. Kids are not supposed to get a toy if some other kid is playing with it. They should get a toy out of the shelve, play with it and then put it back... and so on...
He goes for 3 hours a day, and that's it.
From 4 up, he will go all day.
Well, I hope I helped a little!

P.

My son is 3 yrs old and just started attending Plano ISD's preschool program -- at one of its Early Childhood Schools. These programs take 3-5 yr olds to prepare them for kindergarten. I believe that Allen ISD has a similar program, go to the website or call for more info, www.allenisd.org.
In Plano, it is a half-day program. You can choose the morning (8a.m.-11 a.m.) or afternoon program (12:30-3:30 p.m.). And daycare vans can provide transportation to and from the Early Childhood School. I see daycare vans pulling up to the school all the time.

I have already seen some signs of improvement in my son. His vocabulary is building and he's learning more life skills like sharing, taking turns, computer skills.
These teachers, because it's run by the ISD, are all teacher certified and they have district curriculum, guidelines and year-long goals in mind for the classroom.

Also, since it is ISD-run, there are progress reports and parent/teacher conferences, in which you can get personalized feedback about the progress your child is making.
I've been so impressed with the whole process, how well-organized it is and how much they sincerely care about each child. They really place a high importance on education and reading and I do, too. I'm so happy with his preschool program and I know he's benefiting from it. Also, this is preparing him for the kindergarten and first grade. Plano and Allen ISDs have such highly competitive and incredibly talented kids -- I want give my son the best options out there so he can keep up with his peers once he enters school.

I recently put my hyper 3 1/2 year old daughter in a Mother's day out program. This gives her two days a week, 9-2, controlled learning away from mommy. She has been doing wonderful. I strongly recommend it if you have a good church nearby. This program actually starts kids as early as 18 mos. It's worth looking into and it usually cost around $85-$120 a month. I hope this weill help you some. -G.

In my humble opinion, a 2 1/2 yr old needs a few days a week of some kind of structure and interaction with other kids. A 1 or 2-day program, whether it's a half day or a full day (note that a full day is only until 2 or 3pm) is a great idea. I wouldn't go more than 3 days though. This is also a key age for setting boundaries and getting the kid up to speed on how your family works, so if he doesn't HAVE to be in school all day, you shouldn't feel like he MUST. Also, preschool for your older child will give you some time alone with the baby, which is priceless.
As far as formal preschool programs, it's really all "daycare" until kids are 3 years old. The 2-yr-olds can benefit from the structure and routine, but they aren't necessarily getting a lot of book-learning. It's as if the job of a 2-yr-old is to spend a year figuring out his physical and behavioral boundaries (what happens if I kick the dog? will mommy do the same thing every time I throw my plate in the floor? I wonder if I can climb that ladder? if I poke the baby's eyes, he cries...). Once he's got that under control, his brain will go back to simply exploring the world around him and gaining knowledge within his secure boundaries.
If you can afford to get him out of the house and with friends a couple days a week, do it and don't feel bad about it. Maybe you could get crazy and get your grocery shopping done in peace. Maybe you could read a book while the baby naps. Go wild and vacuum something.

Hi L.,
We just moved our kids (3 y/o and 18 m/o) from a day care to a day school really just to get a bit closer to home. I really didn't realize the difference between the two but I am amazed at how much our 3 y/o has learned at this day school. So I think the school idea is good to some degree as I feel by working in corporate America 40+ hours a week I don't get to spend as much quality time teaching. However, there is an article in Newsweek this week about the presure being put on kids to learn to read at a much earlier age, and they are burned out of learning by 3rd grade! I don't know the answer except to find a balance that is right for your child. My 3 y/o got a new teacher at the old school and it seemed to negativly affect his desire for daycare. Beleive it or not, he seems more relaxed at the 'school'. So listen to what your son is telling you. By the way, I LOVE the names Colin and Caden!

Good luck.