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Not all children really need preschool, and some definitely aren't ready by that point. I've known kids who couldn't handle preschool at age 4 but who were just fine in kindergarten at age 5. I don't know if that's always the case, though, and it probably depends on how much the kid is learning at home.
Personally, I'd much rather have extra time with my kid at home, if at all possible. Let the kid learn from me, from books, and from the pets. I'll be especially wary of sending the kid off if it involves computers or television in any way.
One thing about kinder that surprised me is that children are expected to know how to read when entering it. My son did and I thought it was amazing. My daughter didn't, at all. They didn't teach her and flipped out about it at our first parent teacher meeting. So keep that in mind when getting your child ready for kinder.
One thing about kinder that surprised me is that children are expected to know how to read when entering it. My son did and I thought it was amazing. My daughter didn't, at all. They didn't teach her and flipped out about it at our first parent teacher meeting. So keep that in mind when getting your child ready for kinder.
This varies from school district to school district. It has been my experience that most do not expect a child to enter kindergarten knowing how to read. However, it is not unusual for a few (even quite a few) children who can read when they start. Often, many or most children know all or almost all of the letters of the alphabet and other readiness skills by the first day of school.
All the schools that I know, actually teach children the skills that they need and not "flip out" and blame the parents as HighFlyingBird stated.
One thing about kinder that surprised me is that children are expected to know how to read when entering it. My son did and I thought it was amazing. My daughter didn't, at all. They didn't teach her and flipped out about it at our first parent teacher meeting. So keep that in mind when getting your child ready for kinder.
No, they aren't expected to read when entering kindergarten. They are expected to learn to read which is still different from back in my day when we were not learning to read until 1st grade.
Listens with interest to stories read aloud
Shows interest in reading-related activities
Retells information from a story
Sequences three pictures to tell a logical story
I don't think kids NEED to go to preschool. You can teach your own child shapes, numbers, opposites, songs, abcs, etc. You probably do this already.
You instill the socialization skills you want your child to have and let your 3 year old play with other children. I am teaching my 3 yo how to eat, clean, dress, speak in proper sentences, etc. She just plays with her cousin or friends. Sometimes they tell each other what to do because they hear it from us. She also knows every family member by name and can carry on a conversation with them, too.
I am teaching my child the social skills I believe are important, just and make her a caring human being. She won't get this from her peers.
If you are not working, there is simply no need to send your child to preschool. I am an elementary teacher and from experience, I can tell you it is the parent that prepares the child for life and to succeed. The more parental involvement a child has, the better a child does in life.
When I was working, my daycare provider told me all the time that my daughter listened. Yes, of course she did. My provider was raising and taking care of her five days a week, nine hours a day. My child spent more time with provider than me or my husband. If a child has to go to daycare or preschool, someone else is essentially raising the child. I am actually leaning towards homeschooling, too.
Public education is not the "end all of education." Sometimes, lots of times, homeschooled kids do better than publicly educated kids. You can do some research on this topic and learn about how well homeschooled students can do. HSLDA: Homeschooling Advocates since 1983 has a lot of information on homeschooling and teaching your own children.
I was fortunate to have a homeschooled student in my class a few years ago. He was one of the brightest, well spoken and articulate, and well behaved student I ever met! He even called me ma'am.
Public education pushes for inquiry skills and student-centered learning, but one teacher simply cannot do this with 20-30+ students properly, and do all the other requirements of being a teacher. Instead, one parent can do these things for their children. A parent doesn't need to be a teacher to homeschool.
So back to your question, one does not need to send a childcare to preschool. Plus, you will never find a better teacher than yourself!
Last edited by in_my_travels; 08-04-2015 at 08:46 PM..
I was fortunate to have a homeschool student in my class a few years ago. He was one of the brightest, well spoken, articulate and well behaved student I ever met!
I want to comment on this - homeschooling can be great or it can be awful or anything in between. My neighbor has been homeschooling her son since he was 6. He is 6 months older than my granddaughter and much of his education is lacking. He is also now a young teenager and resisting, so his mom is sending him back to public school and the testing shows him a year behind, so he will be a year behind my granddaughter. I am not sure whether the testing is only math and reading because he is also well behind in science (not sure about history). I hope he does well. He is a bright boy, but has adhd.
Most daycares call themselves preschools these days, so that is the difference. When calling, make sure you ask if they are a preSCHOOL or daycare. Real "preschool" starts at age 3 and there won't be any infants in the facility. Most daycare centers also have a 2 or 3 hour preschool program for their 3-5 year old built into the 12 hours they are open.
Many daycares do both preschool and daycare. The YMCA daycare program had daycare classes and separate part day preschool classes for 2 to 5 year olds. Each classroom was separate. The daycare kids did also have a preschool curriculum for part of their day once they were 3, 4 and 5.
I want to comment on this - homeschooling can be great or it can be awful or anything in between. My neighbor has been homeschooling her son since he was 6. He is 6 months older than my granddaughter and much of his education is lacking. He is also now a young teenager and resisting, so his mom is sending him back to public school and the testing shows him a year behind, so he will be a year behind my granddaughter. I am not sure whether the testing is only math and reading because he is also well behind in science (not sure about history). I hope he does well. He is a bright boy, but has adhd.
I totally agree with this. The problem is that homeschooling is really a LOT of work. You have to be very devoted to keeping up with the curriculum in all subject areas and teaching it! Yes, it is possible to do it well, and hats off to the people who really devote the time and energy toward doing it right. The problem is that there are way too many people who either can't or won't devote that energy toward it, don't have the right set of skills to synthesize and teach the information, or are unfortunately too dumb or ignorant to be of much use imparting the information. Home schooling really has to be much more highly regulated.
It's great for the kids whose parents do it well, but a travesty for those whose parents don't.
I sent all three of my kids to a part-time preschool at age three. Two out of three of them absolutely loved it - it was social time, arts & crafts that I didn't do, science projects, small classes, caring teachers. It was also a nice break for me. I don't think it was absolutely necessary, by any means, though. It was fun for them, but they would have been fine without it, too. The oldest one did not go to preschool as a 4-year old due to our family travel plans, and she did great in kindergarten.
My youngest didn't love it like the other two did. He preferred to stay home with me, as a three year old. He was fine once he got there, but it was a bit of a fuss each day. I still enjoyed the break, though. He is four years old now, on summer break, and is talking happily about his friends he expects to see in the fall, so I guess he's okay with the idea now. He's also my child who probably learns the most there - it is play-based, but they did practice letter recognition, and counting, things he wasn't particularly interested in, when he was at home with me. My other two didn't get anything out of preschool, academically, but this one probably will.
I agree, it sounds like you are finding Day Care and not preschool. I would look for a place that does NOT have full day options and that will eliminate those that are in the business of making money instead of providing early childhood education.
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She also knows every family member by name and can carry on a conversation with them, too. 
