Dilemma
>> Friday, January 14, 2011
My Marine and I are having a bit of a dilemma right now regarding Nudgie. Preschool registration is coming up pretty quickly - next month.
We need to decide whether or not to send her to the 3-yr. old preschool class or wait a year.
See, the classes start at the end of August. Nudgie's 3rd birthday is July 18th. She's only going to be 3 for a few weeks before school started. With Nani, it was different. She turned 3 in December and started preschool the following August. She was only a few months shy of turning 4 when she started school.
I'm just not sure if she's going to be ready.
We basically have 3 options:
1) Hold her back and keep her at home with me. I can work with her at home.
2) Register her for a full year in the 3-yr. old class.
3) Wait a semester and start her in January.
We're torn.
But then again - who can resist this face? Can you see why I want to keep her home with me forever and ever!
6 comments:
It's a very personal decision...
2 years of preschool won't hurt whether at home or school.
I would ask- do you think she needs the interaction with the other kids? And, remember, you can always pull her out too if she's not ready.
Another think to keep in mind (which does not sway my opinion of whether or not kids should go to preschool) is that three years old is that golden time when they realize that the world is bigger than their little world, often get fearful of where mommy goes all day. The best way to deal with this is to talk to her about what you'll be doing while you're gone and when you'll be coming back. It helps them to have a clear picture of *mommy's day* too :) And, just push through it if it happens, because you don't want to validate her fear :)
Semalee @ Nailing Jello to a Tree
In NY, the birthday cutoff for school is December 1st, if it's the same there, there will be at least a handful of kids who are even younger than she is!
Is she (or will she be) potty trained by the time school starts? Can she be away from you for a few hours? Maybe you could visit a 3 year old classroom and see how she is, if she goes off and plays with the other kids or if she clings to you and acts scared?
My best advice would probably be to go ahead and register her, and you can always pull her out later on if you decide it's not time yet. That way all your bases are covered and you still have preschool as an option and you're not left in August wishing you had signed her up!
Always a hard decision, I'm sure you will make the right one for your little girl and your family :o)
I always go the "play with them more at home" route, because they catch up anyway and get more play time that way! Good luck figuring out what's best for your family!
I agree it's a personal question for you and your family.
If it were me today (20/20 hindsight):
I'd hold off another year. Gives her time to be a little girl, not the rush, rush to learn something new at school. Some of the "new" isn't something I want her to know! I'd be a homeschooler with interactions with other homeschoolers.
It is a personal decision. I am a preschool teacher and I did NOT send my daughter to preschool BUT she has been homeschooled since she was two and a half.
She WILL be going to school in March when we move back to the UK, she will be joining the 4-5 class (she will be one of the oldest.
I 100% know we made the right decision, despite everyone arouns us throwing that horrible S word - Socialization! Why do people hook on to that anyway?
As a Preschool Teacher I am confident my little girl will enter school socialized with a good foundation of play and learning.
Good luck and let us know!
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