3pm-6:15pm Preschool session?

anna7602

We're moving to Paris in January and finding a preschool for DD has been really hard. The French preschools run from 8am to 5pm and you have to pick your child up at noon for lunch and bring her back 2 hours later. That seems like a long and complicated (because of the mid-day pick-up) day, even though in principle, I am all for public education.

So far, the private bilingual schools all seem to be full and we've only been offered an afternoon slot at one of the schools. But, the slot is from 3-6:15pm, 4 days/week. DD's school day right now is 9am-3pm/3 days per week. We usually have play dates or just hang out at home afterwards and I'm making us dinner by 6pm or so.

Does 3-6:15pm sound terrible? I won't be working much while we're in France (at least, I am trying not to since I have no idea what the deal with DD's care will be), but if we're out and about exploring, it seems like DD will be a tired mess by 3pm. She doesn't nap and hasn't for over a year.

FriskyPanda

If you do end up going with the 3-6:15 her friends will end up being on the same schedule, so play dates and such would end up being earlier in the day.

treble_clef

I don't know anything about the school system in France, but like pp said, I would do the French way.  3-6:15 is possible, if you successfully manage your daughter not to get too tired by then, which can be challenging.  Does it have to be a bilingual school?  If you are eventually coming back to America, it sounds like a great opportunity for her to study in French.  You can teach her English at home.

Good luck!! 

anna7602

treble_clef:

I don't know anything about the school system in France, but like pp said, I would do the French way.  3-6:15 is possible, if you successfully manage your daughter not to get too tired by then, which can be challenging.  Does it have to be a bilingual school?  If you are eventually coming back to America, it sounds like a great opportunity for her to study in French.  You can teach her English at home.

Good luck!! 

We don't speak English at home. This has been one of my big hesitations, especially since we're coming back to the US for kindergarten (DH has a fixed-term contract for the job in France).

Anyway, I will continue mulling this over.

franciscaz

That is really difficult.  I guess for me the thing would be "when in Rome..."  Here that would see really odd but in Europe that might be more normal and fit well with other students her age for playdates and things like that.  I know when I was small and my family would go to and fro from Mexico it was a very different type of schedule (wake up later, lunch at 2, dinner at 8, etc while in the states it was wake up at 7 lunch at noon, dinner at 6 and bed a 8:30).

The english thing is tougher.  I have many friends who didn't learn it until they were in grade school (my mother was in high school when she needed to learn English).  It will be difficult BUT it is doable.  Young kids are very resilient and the life lessons you are teaching them through traveling is worth so much! 

jlw2505

My first thought is you are not going to be in the US and they do things different in France. A HS friend of mine lived in Spain for 10 years with her DH and her now 3 year old DS.  She had a huge culture shock when she moved there and another huge one when she came back.  I would try to adapt in your mind what your lifestyle is going to be like when living there - not comparing it to your life now.  I personally would do the public school option, bringing your child home for the 2 hours during the day for lunch and quiet time. 

jsugrin

I would do the public school, it seems less complicated than having DD have to be focused at a late hour and screwing with your dinner prep every night.