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Unregistered 02:42 PM 12-02-2012
Some issues I have with your statements:

Originally Posted by jojosmommy:
How many of you encourage kids to attend a "real" preschool once they reach a certain age
if the teacher is quilified and teaching the same things they would learn in a school/center preschool then that IS a real preschool

Originally Posted by jojosmommy:
In our area you can either attend preschool 2-3 hours per day a few days a week OR attend a daycare center, in a preschool age classroom up to 12 hours a day.
I am taking ECE classes at College that does preschool and they say that most studies say that a few days a week is not enough to be consistant with the child's learning and 12 hours for 5 days a week is too much because kids get cranky being in a center and forced to learn how to sing the ABC song (when they are just remembering the words to the song; NOT the letters)

Originally Posted by jojosmommy:
I personally think all kids benefit from classroom experience, even if their daycare provider does curriculum. I don't think a traditional mixed age daycare home can provide the same environment as a preschool with 15 kids. This can be good or bad I guess depending on the child and their needs.
In my classes they promote child advocating, and that means doing promoting what is good for children as an individual- not just a random group. Not ALL kids do well in the same environement! And in my state home daycares can have up to 12 non-schoolaged children at a time if their is 2 adults present. And home daycares provide more flexability in scheduals and curriculum than most centers. I am taking a preschool curriculum class where we are learning about how to do a "creative curriculum" for individuals and groups- very NON TRADITIONAL! Because the TRADITION way that people are teaching children (even up to high school) are making them "surface thinkers" so they can just barely answer questions on a one-time test but we need to teach them to be "deep thinkers" who will make the future better.

Originally Posted by jojosmommy:
I am sending my own son to preschool (2 days for 2.5 hours) next year. I also have a difficult 4 yr old dcb whos mom is entertaining the idea of sending him to preschool next year but doesn't like that she will have to pay for daycare and preschool. Here in this area that is pretty much the norm. This child needs more structure, stimulation, and real traditional classroom experience than I can offer with only a few dcks here however because he gets so overstimulated a 10 hour day at a center would not be good either.
That is why there needs to be different options that just preschool centers. Just because one kid needs a certain structure doesn't mean all kids learn that way. Some parents like the fact that they have a chance to learn to work in small groups other than just a big group all the time (my ECE instructor says it is what is missing in most PreK-6th grade classes) because while you need to learn how to work with a big group of people; you also need to learn how to work one-on-one because you may one day have trouble working with only one person and need to learn how to resolve you issues with them one-on-one. Children learn from hands on expieriences not just things the teacher tells them to say! (http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=9745&page=182) All my ECE teachers say that while sitting down and hearing a lecture and taking notes may help some schoolaged kids, teens, and adults learn- that children need to use all of their sense to learn (hense the sensory stage) this is to make sure it is hardwird in their brains.

Originally Posted by jojosmommy:
Ok so what about a child who NEEDS to be in preschool? A 4 yr old very difficult dcb here needs structure. He needs to learn he isnt the only being on this earth, he needs to learn how to wait, how to listen to somone besides me, he needs to learn how to make friends, not annoy them so much that they still like him after ten minutes, not cry if he isnt first evrytime, etc.
Who says that a home preschool has to automaticly be less structured than a center? There are some home preschools that are very stuctured and some centers that are very unstructured- there is no black and white- because everyone (espesually children) are different! If the director/owner wants structure it will be structured if they don't want it to be stuctured it won't be! if you did take any classes in child development you would understand that most kids don't fully grow out of this phase until about 5 or 6. You were technicaly his "toddler teacher" so you could have done some things to help him start to phase out of this stage sooner by trying to teach him empathy: helping take care of someone who is hurt/sad or helping him right his wrongs other than just teling him "say you are sorry!"- not saying you do or don't do these things just examples. for turns you can try sharing games or turn taking games or even dramatic play (sharing diologe and taking turns talking).


If some of this sounds a little harsh sorry, I think I just got a little iffy with your comment because it's like say "Oh because it's at home so they aren't really learing" that like saying that because you do daycare in your home you just a babysitter (providers are usually called this but I am NOT saying you are). Overall, I say that as long as the teacher is qualified and educated on how to create effective curriculums and is willing to work with each child individually to help the child progress than that is a REAL preschool. I don't consider it a REAL school to just teach them the ABC's song forward and backwards if they can not point out most of the letters in the alphabet (meaning other than "A,B,C" and the ones they need to spell their name) that's why many children in school are illiterate because some people assume "oh, they can sing the ABC song so they can read and write". What YOU think is right for YOUR child is fine, but you shouldn't be so closed minded in saying that ALL children need this and it should be the only optin- it is up to the parents to decide what is write for their child.

What I DO advoacate is for a requirement that anyone who teaches and advertises their business as a preschool (whether in a home or a center) at the very least have to take some classes (curriculum, observation, priniciples of ECE/CD), if not have an ECE/Child Development certificate (ususally about 24 ECE credits) or AA (60 credits of 18 ECE which include a student teacher class and the rest in general Ed). Because while it may be easy to just print out a curriculum you find on the internet every day for the group it would be more benifitial for the child if you understand their learning style and what they need in their environment to benefit most from it.

If you want to convince mom that HER child would do BETTER in a larger class room, one thing you can do is try to look up a DRDP- for preschoolers (they do have them in other age groups) (http://www.wested.org/desiredresults...rguide1012.pdf)
and observe him (using non judgemental and NO opinions just facts and verbs {"he walked/ ran/skipped to" instead of "he went to the door"). Then have a parent teacher conference with his parents and give them advace and suggestions you think will help him.
You may decide to use this with other kids to help you build curriculum that would help them improve. These are great to measure how well a child is doing in one area of development (learning foundations and domains) some children are better with language but still need help with social and emotional.
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