4 Comments so far

1. John R on July 28, 2010 9:32 am

   I see no reason as to “why it should not be” a decent program. Both my son’s had preschool.

   Super smart people have need to adhere, and teaching is very important they learn early. The fun part is , super smart,not so smart, has no input in regards to a parents description in the child’s intellectual ability to comprehend and act .

   Young children are magnetically drawn to things that interest them,and will dwell and focus. Some are not willing to express understanding and seem to not comprehend at all, when in fact understanding is no problem. The child just may not want to voice, or act in response to being questioned.

   So, I said all this “to let you know” Public Preschool” is without doubt a good program. Go with your feelings, staff and the looks of the environment (while children are there) play a role certainly.Visit impromptu. This shows them you are alert

   When it comes to cost…we all hurt in that area, when it’s our children you are a good parent to ask!

2. Amber on July 28, 2010 10:29 am

   If the Center is affiliated with the federally and state funded programs, most likely it will follow much of the same standards. So, yes, at this age this program will be fine. But please remember that any program for 3 and 4 year olds are going to be focused on the social-emotional development vs. academics. This is very important for a child…especially one who is deemed “smart” at such a young age. He’ll be fine. If you want him to progress in academics more than what they are offering…supplement it at home.

3. Erin on July 28, 2010 10:36 am

   In a public preschool, they have to meet state goals and standards just as upper grades do. In my state, New Jersey, the Preschool (age 3-5) standards are known as “Preschool Teaching and Learning Expectations” while K-12 are known as “Core Curriculum Content Standards”. Your state likely has something similar. State preschool or Pre-K learning expectations tend to cover a large range of outcomes because at this age, school is as much about social and emotional development as it is about cognitive development and “skills”. Older grades standards are more focused on knowledge and content. Adherance to learning standards is especially strict when it comes to programs like head start.

   In this respect, public pre-k is more standardized from one preschool to another. Private preschools can be, on one end, basically a daycare or, on the other end, very geared towards academics. They don’t have a certain set of standards to follow except those implemented by the center itself. A good teacher will follow the states standards anyway as a guideline, though, since most children will go to public school from K on. Among private preschools, it can take longer to find a suitable program for you because there are no standard criteria that they must meet so they can be very, very different from one to the next. With a dedicated, knowledgeable teacher, public pre-k can be equally as enriching and as high quality an education as private pre-k and in some cases, more so. Just remember that, despite popular belief, lots of play, exploration, and social development are the hallmarks of a great preschool program, not worksheets, flashcards, and lots of “seat work”.

4. Hi on July 28, 2010 10:51 am

   First I think you need to understand that just because a program is not private that it can still be good; this idea needs to leave your head NOW.

   Moving on….

   If you want to help your child go check out the facility, meet the teacher, discuss the curriculum, and find out what is developmentally appropriate for your sons age, and then decide what you want to do.

   I work for a program such as this and yes, it will providing your son with the basic needs for kindergarten, as long as he is ready to learn.

   A child may be smart, but it does not mean that he or she is ready to learn some things.
   For example; A child I had in my room last year could speak in full sentences up to 10 words each, tell a story likle she had lived it and speak to adults as if she was 10, but had NO interest in learning to read her name, write a letter or make a prediction about any books we read because she was NOT READY!
   She is SMART!
   BUT, not ready!

   If you push a child into learning the majority of the time it will only turn them against the love that you want them to have!

   For now, send him to the public school and for heaven’s sake, LET HIM BE A KID!…… PLEASE!!!

   I have seen so many students grow to dislike school because their first 3 years were a tragic mess of forcable learning and teachers who made inappropriate desicions on how to teach.