Best Preschools in Plano and North Dallas urgent! (Paris, Andrews: credit, daycares)

[London29]

My youngest is 2 and a half, will be turning 3 in April. She has been going to a MDO for the last year and so.
I now need to put her in a more academic environment. MDO was cheap and convenient, time to move on…

It need to be in West Plano or North Dallas, don't mind driving. Possibly a feeder to the privates but not obligatory. Why? Because My eldest will be going to a private school ( Greenhill or similar) soon and I assume that they all give priority to siblings.

The other option is DIS but not convinced about their academics… I may be wrong though
The thing that bothers me in International Schools really is that the majority of parents are not paying for the fees, companies are obviously! Therefore, the teachers just don't care when an after school program is missed, they think that it is not a big deal because the company is paying for it! We had an issue about that in the UK and I ended up moving my daughter to a normal British private school where there were no expats.

Money is no object. I guess around 20K per year, perhaps a little less or a little more.

Thank you all in advance.

[London29]

Just wanted to mention that I did go through previous posts but none of them were about West Plano and North Dallas.
The most recent one is about HPISD which is not what I am looking for. Thanks.

[GripeWater]

American Montessori & Primrose on Plano Pkwy are popular in area parents.

[TurtleCreek80]

Greenhill, Parish, Lamplighter, Alcuin, Meadowbrook, & ESD are all North Dallas privates that start at age 3.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

Greenhill, Parish, Lamplighter, Alcuin, Meadowbrook, & ESD are all North Dallas privates that start at age 3.

I think Prince of Peace Catholic in Plano (just west of Plano Parkway and Preston) takes 3yos as well - as always being Catholic helps but is not mandatory.

[nsumner]

Originally Posted by London29

The other option is DIS but not convinced about their academics… I may be wrong though
The thing that bothers me in International Schools really is that the majority of parents are not paying for the fees, companies are obviously! Therefore, the teachers just don't care when an after school program is missed, they think that it is not a big deal because the company is paying for it! We had an issue about that in the UK and I ended up moving my daughter to a normal British private school where there were no expats.

Money is no object. I guess around 20K per year, perhaps a little less or a little more.

My kids attended DIS and I have currently about 8 friends that have their kids attending DIS and none of them nor us had the tuition paid by the employer. I would imagine that very few do such as Canadian consulate employees or so. The French consulate has only a satellite office here.

Montessori has a good curriculum as is Creme de La Creme but many people here think that only "pretentious" parents send their kids there. Creme de la Creme Preschool | Best Childcare Facility | Daycare

I would suggest taking a tour of all the schools you consider and make the decision for what's right for your family.

Naima

[jennifw]

Originally Posted by London29

The other option is DIS but not convinced about their academics… I may be wrong though
The thing that bothers me in International Schools really is that the majority of parents are not paying for the fees, companies are obviously! Therefore, the teachers just don't care when an after school program is missed, they think that it is not a big deal because the company is paying for it! We had an issue about that in the UK and I ended up moving my daughter to a normal British private school where there were no expats. .

My daughter attends DIS and this is not true. It may have been in years past, but that isn't true in today's economy. Most of the parents I know are actually NOT French but want a multi-lingual education for their children. I can only think of a very small handful who have their tuition paid by their employer.

The academics your child receives would be different from a traditional American school. The academics are strong, but since they are done primarily in French, sometimes things are done in a different order than an American school. (Geometry before Algebra, European geography instead of American geography, etc) It has not been a problem for us. Imagine all of that AND getting two other languages (French and Spanish) At the upper school levels there are other language choices like Chinese, German, etc.

Would it fit your location criteria? The lower campus is near Preston and Forest, not really Plano or North Dallas. (Grades 6-12 are at the upper campus in North Dallas)

Good luck with your search.

[fndmom]

Greenhill does not start at 3 they only have pre K for 4 year olds. Another north Dallas feeder preschool is The da Vinci school. Preschool programs that are accredited by the NAEYC and in the West Plano/Far North Dallas area are the Children's Weekday Program at St. Andrews United Methodist Church ( CWP | St. Andrew United Methodist Church ) and Holy Communion Christian Academy ( Holy Communion Christian Academy - Home ). Both Prince of Peace schools (Catholic and Christian) offer preschool. Popular full time daycares are Primrose and Creme de la Creme. I have been happy with the program at PSHS for my kids (Early Learning Centers : Plano ISD)

January is the time to register for next fall. Good luck on your search.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by jennifw

My daughter attends DIS and this is not true. It may have been in years past, but that isn't true in today's economy. Most of the parents I know are actually NOT French but want a multi-lingual education for their children. I can only think of a very small handful who have their tuition paid by their employer.

The academics your child receives would be different from a traditional American school. The academics are strong, but since they are done primarily in French, sometimes things are done in a different order than an American school. (Geometry before Algebra, European geography instead of American geography, etc) It has not been a problem for us. Imagine all of that AND getting two other languages (French and Spanish) At the upper school levels there are other language choices like Chinese, German, etc.

Would it fit your location criteria? The lower campus is near Preston and Forest, not really Plano or North Dallas. (Grades 6-12 are at the upper campus in North Dallas)

Good luck with your search.

That's lot of great info. but the Preston/Forest area most definitely is part of North Dallas.

[jennifw]

Originally Posted by EDS_

That's lot of great info. but the Preston/Forest area most definitely is part of North Dallas.

Fair enough. It is but I always think of North Dallas as north of 635. If the OP was bunching Plano together and had ruled HP out, this location might be too far south.