Attention parents of preschool children, what helps you decide where to enroll your preschool child?

Question

If you were to choose between 2 preschools beside each other, what would make you choose one over the other? Preschool - as in children 3-6 years old.

Answer 1

I'd want to meet the teacher first. If I didn't like the teacher, how could I leave my child with her? I would also want to see the classroom and the schedule on how it all flows. I also prefer it to be parent interactive-such as where the parent helps the teacher out (parents rotate and have a parent day) and you are able to watch your child in the classroom and how he/she is doing. Huge plus.

Answer 2

You have to physically check out the schools yourself. It is the feeling you get from the place... are the children currently there happy, messy, and having fun with the staff? One of the ways I can tell if the staff is quality is if the kids are a mess. The more fun a preschool is, the messier the kids are. When I enrolled both of my daughters in preschool, I looked at all the other indicators of a good school too; like the policies, open-door policy, ratio of staff to children (the lower, the better), price, accredidation, education requirements of staff, hours, curriculum, routines, philosophy of the school, how much time was devoted to outside play vs. "teaching" time, discipline and sick policies, etc. Then, I rated the schools based on my own personal feelings and impressions of what I had seen. I highly recommend observing a class for 20-30 minutes to get a feel for how the teacher operates and the dynamics of the class. I took a checklist with me with all of the pertinent information that I wanted to know about the school, that way I could also write down any notes I wanted to be able to review later. Ultimately, it was the feeling I got from the whole "vibe" of the center that made me lean towards one school over another equally qualified preschool. You have to trust your gut... there will be some centers out there that you will immediately say to yourself, "No way is my kid going here!", and when you find the right one that will suit the needs of both you and your child, you will know it.

Answer 3

Well, personally I haven't and won't choose w/ my next one to enroll my kids in preschool, I figure in another year they're gonna be starting Kindergarten anyway and then it's the next 12 or more years!

But if I had to choose between 2 schools next to each other it would be the one that had the best people, how do you feel around the teachers? You don't get that "slightly off" feeling do you? Are they friendly even when faced with the child crying or being overly 'active'? How are the other children? Is there a bully in the class? (I've seen kids as young as this already bullying) & last I guess would depend on what they teach and the way they teach it. You could also try and take your child to visit both schools and see which one they felt most comfortable in.

Answer 4

I literally was posed with this question myself the last couple of years. I originally put our daughter in the school that "looked" better. They were more up to date, has a cirriculum. Stated goals they had for your child, and other parents had told me they were great. The teacher there was very forward & knew exactly what she was doing. The other preschool next door was just a small little place, the teacher was sweet, but it was a little "hokey" looking, they seemed way to simple for what I wanted for our daughter.
After a year in the "premier" school, where they gave apple notes to get into the treasure box at the beggining of class, but took them away if you did ANYTHING wrong (talking out of turn, etc...) my daugter & I were both in tears every night. I could not wait for the school year to end. I had already got her on the waiting list for the "hokey" school. As soon as they called, I started her. They have a summer session also. Within 2 weeks, I saw a tremendous change in her behavior, she was happy again, she wanted to go to preschool again, there was no more crying. I didn't have any nasty notes waiting for me when I picked her up. What a difference a school can make.
My advice is pick the school that when you walk in, you see nuturing. You see the teachers laying on the floor playing games with the kids, or there's 6 kids piled into one teachers lap while she's reading a book. I wish I would've known this before.
I felt awful about picking the wrong school. I have recently talked another mom from the old school to switch her daughter to the new school. The little girl has been at the new one about a month now & her mom is so grateful. She has noticed an incredible difference in her daughter.
The irony to all this is, the old "military"(that's what I call them)school, barely taught my daughter anything. If you didn 't catch on, they left you behind. At her new school, she's trying to read, and can write her whole name.
I hope this info helps, it's heartbreaking if the wrong decision is made. Best of luck to you !!!

Answer 5

accreditation--how long they have been in business and known throughout the community

class size--what is the ratio of students to teachers

demographics--percentage of races compared to one another which one would fit your child the best

policies--what is the schools policies on sorting teachers to make sure their qualifications are legit, and that they do not posses a criminal background, do they run national background checks

parental involvement proceedures--what is the schools "open door" policy, do they allow you to come in and check on your child when you like, or do you need to make an appointment

staff--first impressions of the staff the day that you go to the school to personally decide to gain further info will help as well. was the staff friendly, did they offer to assist you, did they show you the facility

facility--is the facility big or small, do they have a play land, is it clean

eat in school policies--do they serve lunch/breakfast to the children, do you have to pay for the meals, do they provide free meals

before i could consider any location, those are just a few questions that i would have to consider before i would choose to place my child anywhere.

Answer 6

I have had my almost 4 year old attending an NAEYC accredited school for the last 2 years. It is amazing.

First, I would look for accreditation, the standards and follow up give you a minimum standard. But that's not enough.

Next criteria for us was stability. How long has the director been at the school? Most teachers? Your child's teacher? Assistants? The director at our school has been there for 20+ years, as have several teachers. My son's teachers have been there 10 and 12 years (2 yr/3yr classes). Everyone that works there loves it... that's a really good sign.

And, finally, a key decision point for me would be how does what the school hopes to accomplish match with what you hope the school will do for your child? I wanted our child to be safe, to have fun, to learn to care about others, to understand his emotions, to get along in various settings, and to encourage a variety of interests. I've found that while focused on play they have been able to help him in each of these areas. They don't teach subjects, but encourage exploration, label items with their names, and learning naturally accompanies their fun.

BTW, not coincidental, he has also learned how to count to 20+, understands the concepts of adding and taking away and does simple math, knows his ABC's, has a phenomenal vocabulary, and shows interest in reading/spelling. (He will ask me to write a word, then type it on his computer to hear the computer read it to him.)

Answer 7

Ask other parents about the schools before you place your child in them. If you are a churchgoer, then ask the people within the congregation what they are comfortable with, for their own children. I bet you will get some good recommendations there. Check out the schools and their relationship with the Better Business Bureau and other social agencies, that the bureau can recommend to you. Don't limit yourself to any one school. Ultimately, you must be satisfied and then you can make the appropriate decision. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" - Romans 8:31. Peace and God Bless.

Answer 8

1. First of all check which school is nearest(or easily accessible).
2. Secondly take heed of the opinions of the schools reputation.
3. See whether your child likes the environment.
(Sorry if these ideas already came to your mind.I could think of nothing else for now.)

Answer 9

It's like you were choosing a daycare...Were the faculty and staff friendly? Did they welcome you and make you feel comfortable. You want to make sure you would feel safe there. Your kids are your everything. Although we all have to send our kids off to school, we shouldn't have to worry about them while they're there.