Community› The Bump Message Boards› Pre-School and Daycare
Pre-School and Daycare
New Discussion

Traditional preschool (1/2 day) vs full-day preschool at daycare

UpNorthGalUpNorthGal
in Pre-School and Daycare

A search on this board proved fruitless (is it just me or is the search capability on TB horrid?) so I'm hoping I can get input from those who have experienced both.

Has anyone had experience with both a traditional 1/2 day preschool and daycare preschool? I'm wondering if there is a difference in curriculum between a "traditional" preschool class (in this case, offered through our public school district) and daycare preschool?

We are thinking of placing DS in the district's 1/2 day preschool this September mostly so he can begin to interact with the kids he'll eventually go to pre-k & K with come 2013. We expect to have more flexible schedules this fall so after-school care is not an issue.

TIA for your input.

 

Report Reply to Post

Re: Traditional preschool (1/2 day) vs full-day preschool at daycare

  • gr8fulaagr8fulaa
    I think it will depend on the school's themselves and your child's individual readiness. It seemed that Dominic was ready for our district's full day preschool, however it started very early, and they had no naptime- IMHO this is not age appropriate for 3-4 year olds. They had all the kids 'rest' for 20 minutes, just long enough for my LO to fall asleep, then they'd wake them all up. Dominic was a MESS! He was so tired, that it didn't matter if he was intellectually ready, he couldn't handle the practical demands of full day- we had to move him to half day.
    Lilypie 1st Birthday Ticker Lilypie First Birthday tickers
    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • rsd12rsd12 member
    I am home with my kids so it would not make sense for us to put them in daycare or an all day preschool. We put them in a 2 mornings a week 3yr old program for 2 and a half hours and a 3 day 2 and a haf hour program 3 days a week 4 yr old program. Well, my middle son has an iep throught the town school and goes 4 morning a week this year, and will go 5 afternoons a week next year. And then start kindergarten (not sure if anyone from his class will be at his elementary class either - we have 4 elementary schools in our town). But my oldest got in a magnate school in our area for free, but in the afternoons they had naps and open play which he could do at home. So it was not the right fit for us. (As a side note: Plus we were not guarnteed a spot for our 2nd and 3rd children. And we would have pulled him out for kinderarten. And they require you to send the older kids to k, 1st, etc... to guarantee that spot).
    Boy 1 2/06 - Boy 2 12/07 - Boy 3 9/09
    Report Reply
  • KathrynMDKathrynMD member
    My DD's daycare/preschool offers both a full day - 9-4 option and half day9-12.  I pay for FT daycare so we get 6-6 coverage.  Most of the activity/preschool parts of the day are in the morning.  From 12-3 is lunch and nap time.  Then 3 is another snack and then outside play and they start with "enrichment" activities at 4 or so - extras like science, dance, cooking, etc.  Some of them are included and some you can pay for.  If were home all day, I'd probably only pay for the 1/2 day b/c all the extras aren't really that educational, but they are good for a group setting. 
    Lilypie Third Birthday tickers
    Report Reply
  • brightningbrightning member
    My DD only goes to half-day preschool, but I will say that all the preschools we toured (public and private) had the morning sessions very structured and the second half of the day was lunch, nap and free play time. My DD does not nap and I'm a SAHM, so mornings-only made sense for us.
    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • UpNorthGalUpNorthGal

    Thanks, everyone, for your responses so far. Both kids are in daycare FT now but I was struggling with either keeping DS in the preschool at daycare 2-3 mornings a week or going with the district's 4yo preschool which runs 4 mornings a week. We plan on touring the district preschool this spring, but it sounds like preschool curriculum is the same ("lessons" are in the mornings at both) regardless.

      

    Report Reply
  • NoobMommyNoobMommy
    This is a great question, because I think it really does affect how enjoyable the school experience is for your child. My 3.5 year old attends full day (9-3) 3 days a week. This was a large transition for her having come from being with me 24/7. I think if your LO is socially and emotionally ready, a full day can be quite rewarding. The school must offer a nap time for this age range I believe. With that said, the naptime was a source of anxiety for my girl in the beginning. She really didn't look forward to it because she had essentially dropped her naps. (Funny thing is now she takes naps at school, but not at home). I think a 1/2-day program is great for kids needing a little transition into the school experience, but may need the extra support at home as well. Like you mentioned, you do still have the year of Pre-K to get him ready. Good luck!
    Parenting Tips and Quips from a New Mom www.noobmommy.com
    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"