preschool choice

Post Reply New Topic

We have the most complicated childcare solution for my son right now. Every week, he goes to the school district's preschool to get his 3 hours, 3 days service, has a nanny for the rest of three days, and goes to a regular preschool to two full days. We moved last year in the middle of school year. The new school district's preschool did not has full time opening at that time, so we only got 9 hours IEP service. We filled up the blanks with nanny and a second preschool. Everything worked out fine. My son loves both schools. He did very well in the second school, which was a very traditional church based preschool.

Now the district's preschool opens registrations for the next school year. We can put our son to their full time program if we want to. I feel it is really hard to give up the church school. The church school is more structured and their program seems really make children interact more. Children in the church school are more social and more friendly to my son. He seems fit in the group better in the church school. The district's preschool their teacher is against highly structured program. Their classes have children with different function levels and NT children, and I understand this may serve children with special needs better. Children there are more independent. My son is equally happy in the district preschool, but I hardly see him interact with other kids. He gets his therapy and extra support in the district preschool,at the same time, he blends in well in the church school without any help.

We can't give up his IEP. What I can't decide is, should we keep two schools or just the district's preschool? I worry that going to two schools in the same time won't do any good, although both school are good, they are very different, and being part time at both schools doesn't help making friends. Can anyone help me decide?

If he is truly happy with the situation you have, and is moving comfortably from one to the other, with each providing something the other does not ... I'd stay the course. Have you asked him what he would like in an "ideal world?"

We were always hopscotching things together for my son in the preschool years, and there are actually parts of that schedule I find I miss now - like the one full day a week I was with the kids. Our nanny was wonderful. The preschool ... well, that wasn't our best choice, and we knew it at the time.

If there is any piece of the schedule that isn't working for your child, or is likely to stop working for your child, this is the opportunity to fix it. Beyond that, I don't know what to tell you. I HATE trying to read into the future with schedules and teachers and situations that are, by nature, constantly evolving, but all of that is part of raising children.

He seems happy with both schools. Every morning I tell him which school he is going to today and he reacts equally happy. I asked him which school he like most and got mixed answers all the time. I guess either he doesn't really understand the question, or he like them both. I just love that my son gets greetings from other kids when he steps in the church school, something we never get in the district school.

My son has a similar set up. 3 days a week at the special needs pre-k at the public school. He goes 2 days a week to a private pre-k. I wanted to have him around typically developing kids. He too likes both schools, but next year I have opted to go ahead and sign him up full time at the public school. I sort of feel like he is outgrowing the other school. He will be 5 next year and I just feel that he will get more help in preparing for kindergarten in public school. If we see that he will need to go to a private school later, we will do that. I agree with DW, it is so hard to predict what your child will be doing a year from now! I say if he is happy with both schools, let it be until you feel it isn't working.
Best of luck to you!

I talked with the district's preschool and found it doesn't has a 3 full days option. It has to be 5 days a week or 9 hour only. We decide to go there full time, because we don't want to use our nanny next year. Our nanny is loving, but my son doesn't think she has the authority to discipline him. The poor old lady has no choice but spoiling him.