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Northern California Babies
SBay "Pre" Pre-School Options
Hey Ladies...
I know I have not posted much lately but I am hitting finals starting Thursday and going into next week so it has been a busy time. I hope to be on some this summer since I am only taking 3 classes this summer instead of a full load (though the 3 classes still = 12 units which is considered full-time).
DH and I have decided that EJ is ready for some pre-pre-school. We think he could really benefit from a multi-child environment and some learning based activities within that environment. He is currently only 16.5 months old and we are hoping to wait until probably June/July to start him when he is 18 months old (originally we thought we would start him at 2, but he really seems ready for a higher level of "play").
I am looking at Montessori in particular since they seem to have programs like this for kids in his age group who are not potty trained. But am open to anything.
Any suggestions? Personal experiences? Things I should look for?
We are only going to do 2 half days a week for now, when he is 2 if it is going well we will do 3 half days and build from there depending on his and our needs.
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Re: SBay "Pre" Pre-School Options
So here's something to chew on. If he's never been in a daycare center or doesn't go regularly to dirty areas where kids infect each other with the virus of the month, expect that he might get sick a lot with an introduction to a lot of new germs. We started the kids about that age too and it seemed like every time we turned around, we were getting calls to pick them up because they were sick. So make sure that you either time it so that it won't interfere with your school work or you have a back up person to take care of him when he's sick.
The other thing to do is really research Montessori and what it means to you. We interviewed a lot of centers that claimed to Montessori but we found out that claim doesn't mean much. I think anyone can claim that. Actually ask for examples of what they do. The center we were most happy was not labeled as Montessori but their lesson plans were closest to that philosophy.
Well, I am a SAHM, and through the summer all my classes are online. In the Fall I will go back to FT and in class 2 days a week. The 2 days a week are actually DH's days off (since DH had 3 days off during the week). So even if he got sick, DH is home.
So care is not an issue. And we do know that being exposed to other kids will expose him to more illnesses. But the benefits we feel outweigh the negatives.
future, I would love more info. Anything you have!
I have found one place so far that I want to tour and get more info on. It isnt really about being a Montessori so much as what I want him to get out of it.
Things that are important to me:
1) Socialization
2) Language skills
3) Creative experiences
4) Experiences I cannot provide him
(of course I want well trained teachers who are loving and gentle people, I think those things go without saying)
I am shocked a school thought tv one day a month was acceptable. That is just crazy to me.
Money Matters The other half's blog.
EJ is growing up too fast!
I know this is hard to tell but what annoyed me about our daycare center is they did forced participation in crafts. DD hates getting her hands dirty so she started screaming when they tried to dip her hand into paint. Then they got mad at me because they couldn't produce an art project that was on the schedule. I suggested that they just give her a brush next time. They hated that idea because it wouldn't look like they wanted it to. To me, that is not creative play. That's caring more about the output of the child under false pretenses.
I did like that they had a music teacher that came in once a week and would introduce them to new instruments and the noises that they made. So it was a double edged sword. I guess the lesson learned here is that no matter how much you pay, nothing is going to match what you want perfectly.
Understand that you are getting socialization through exposure to other kids but that doesn't necessarily mean that your child is getting guidance. I feel better about socializing my kids at the park rather than the time that they got at daycare because there isn't always going to be an adult there to give the toy back or stock a kid from hitting. A kid has to learn how to walk away or how to respond to someone else who isn't playing nicely.
That looks really cool.
I am gonna check them out too. TY!
Money Matters The other half's blog.
EJ is growing up too fast!
Wow, thats looks awesome! I've never heard of this place. We will be looking into this for sure.
Cool! I actually went there for pre-school so I can say with first-hand experience that it's great.
At that age, DS was taking classes through Santa Clara Parks & Rec. That's how I first heard of the Wilson preschool. We ended up going to a different parent participating pre-school (www.scpns.org), but Wilson was a very very close second.
I wanted to do similar classes with DD, but for some reason they scheduled the classes in the evening for this summer.