How Early to Start Looking for Preschool

M.,

Personally I would, did, and am waiting until the year before my kid(s) start kindergarten to put them in preschool. My son is 5 1/2 and will start kindergarten in the fall, he's in a district affiliated preschool now. My daughter is 2 and she'll be in the same preschool in a couple of years.

There is too much pressure from society to get our kids into school so early that our kids don't get to be kids. They're little for such a short time, let them BE little.

M.

Hi M.,
I have a friend who was told to put her child on the list for a local preschool right after she was born. My friend laughed and thought it was ridiculous. 4 months later, that preschool put her on a waiting list - they were already full for a preschool class that didn't start for 3 more years!

So....not all preschools are the same and the best ones fill up fast. Do your research and start looking now! The good thing is that his birthday is in September, so that gives you an extra year. He may be able to start as young as 2-1/2, but probably only for a day or two a week. You can check out my site for a comprehensive list of Portland area preschools. Good luck!

~P. G.
The Portland Preschool Directory
http://www.portlandpreschooldirectory.com

Hi M.,

I agree with the mama, who said you should find a school you like and then call them about their policy.

My daughter's preschool also has a daycare for babies and toddlers. When a toddler is about 2.5, they begin to bring them into the preschool activities, depending upon the child's readiness. After joining the "big kids" for circle time and a few art projects here and there, my daughter was moved over to the preschool room about 4 months from her 3rd birthday.

I personally liked this approach because it wasn't an abrupt change for her - the toddler room one day, the preschool room the next.

It also allowed for the teachers to carefully evaluate each child's readiness before moving them into the more structured preschool environment.

One more thing - many preschools require children to be fully potty-trained. Some are more relaxed about this. When you're calling around, be sure to ask about that as well, so that you have all the facts.

Best of luck!

M.,
You will just have to find the place you want him to got to and call and ask them how old he has to be. My son had to be 3 before he could start preschool. I am in the same boat as you and the last poster, all my sons (all 4) have Oct. birthdays, so he is older than all the kids. I found when I was calling around that most places in my area were verystrict about what age they have to be before a certain date to join. You wont know till you call.
---This is just my opinion but...if you do find one that takes your son at 2 I would think long and hard about putting him in then...that would mean your son would have 3 years of preschool before K...thats alot!

K.

So it sounds like he would start in fall of 2010 if he begins at age 3, or in 2011 if he begins at age 4?

I just started looking into preschool options for my son who is just about 4 months older... I've found that one of the schools I'm interested in has a pretty long waiting list, but another school I like doesn't have one at all. If you want your son to start at 3, it's not a bad idea to start checking around. Also so that you'll know how much to budget, if there are volunteering requirements, etc.

M. - Your son is still pretty young to be looking at going into preschool. Is there a reason you want to put him in so early? You can probably get him socializing and what-not by joining a mothers group or something along those lines.
BUT, if you do want to do preschool....both of my boys are September birthday's as well. One is Sept. 1, and one is Sept 19. If you were to sign him up they normally sign up based upon birthdays. Usually it's "if the child is 2 by August 31". Where does that leave you?? With a two year old in the one year old class!! I HATED THAT!! A lot of Co-ops are that way since a lot of them go with a community college or something. It was difficult for us.
BUT, whatever you decide, I am sure it will all work out!
L.

Some schools have preschool for 2 year olds too! Most schools you can tour anytime and open houses and registrations are typicall January-April for the following September. I don't think it's ever too early to start researching the best fit for your family! There are some good articles online about the different types of preschool programs (ie, co-op, pre-k, etc) that you can compare. Good luck!

Dear M. T
If you have other siblins for him to play with & interact
with its ok to wait but I found when my children were young
they had daycare then headstart & thats like preschool & if he is an only child at this point you wont to make sure he
is around other children there are programs that when you start this you can be a part of it I was at daycare,preschool & headstart volunteering all the time as
so I did not miss anything then when they got into what I
call BIG school it was not so scary to them & I could also
volunteer there. the daycares,preschools,headstart programs
&schools love it when parents volunteer it helps them help
you & your child fell safe I loved it when I did it with my
children & now with my grandchildren I think if you are a
stay at home Mom this would be perfect for you but your going to have to look at a lot of places to find the one that fits you & that you trust good luck & God Bless
Me A Mother of 4 & Grandmother of 9