Talking Preschool at Drop Off

[Jazzii]

It seems like I'm going to be the odd the one out here, but at my center, we think preschool is great! The prek program in my district is a great program, nap time and play kitchens included

We are play and arts and crafts based but there's a point in time where what we can supply is not what our kids need.

We have prek registration dates posted, and we help parents whenever they ask us.

Right now, our 2 year olds can recognize 15-18 letters and most numbers from 0-10

This is one of the disadvantages of a home daycare- mixed age. I feel like once children are at a certain age they need to be challenged to develop their critical thinking skills, this does not mean sitting down and doing worksheets but rather engaging in more sophisticated play with same age peers.

I cannot stress the importance of APPROPRIATE play and learning (I have an education background)

So in short, I get so excited when parents talk about preschool and I often join right in.

[Blackcat31]

It seems like I'm going to be the odd the one out here, but at my center, we think preschool is great! The prek program in my district is a great program, nap time and play kitchens included

We are play and arts and crafts based but there's a point in time where what we can supply is not what our kids need.

We have prek registration dates posted, and we help parents whenever they ask us.

Right now, our 2 year olds can recognize 15-18 letters and most numbers from 0-10

This is one of the disadvantages of a home daycare- mixed age. I feel like once children are at a certain age they need to be challenged to develop their critical thinking skills, this does not mean sitting down and doing worksheets but rather engaging in more sophisticated play with same age peers.

I cannot stress the importance of APPROPRIATE play and learning (I have an education background)

So in short, I get so excited when parents talk about preschool and I often join right in.

That is not a disadvantage. :confused:

My kiddos get to play and learn (without worksheets) with kids their age.

AND they get to play and learn and teach kids older/younger than them.
I'd say that's an advantage in many ways.

I (and most in-home providers) also support and stress the importance of appropriate play and learning. Neither of which have any requirements for or restriction to same age classmates/playmates to qualify as developmentally appropriate. I too have an educational background.

There are many in home child care programs that prepare children for and beyond school just as well, if not better in some instances, than brick and mortar preschools.

[Unregistered]

In most cases I respectfully disagree with your statement about mixed age groups. I have had a handful of children for whom I recommended a preschool rather than a mixed age group, but it's a rarity.
I absolutely agree that they need a deep level of play with peers, but that happens and is facilitated here.
Critical thinking, empathy for others including children at different ability levels, and constant assessment of both verbal and nonverbal communication occur naturally in a mixed age group. The youngest receive love, motivation and modeling of language and behavior from the older children. The middle children begin to realize that they are no longer babies and that little ones look up to and copy them. The older children become aware that they are models for the children younger than them and relish that role, often becoming active "teachers" by their own choice.
Children who are in care with the same children over a number of years, with a consistent caregiver develop an extraordinary bond with each other and with their caregiver. This promotes deep extended play and in-depth learning, where one child's question or statement spurs a friend's curiosity. If a caregiver allows this to happen, children think of questions and possible answers that are well beyond what is typically expected of preschoolers. It goes far beyond rote learning.
I'm sure others will add more details of how things happen in their child care homes.
This is the "magic" of family child care. Of course there are sometimes families that consider preschool a necessity, or succumb to the societal pressure to use a "same age" program. (And sometimes they return for a visit and parents wonder why they felt the need to make that choice.)

[laundrymom]

It seems like I'm going to be the odd the one out here, but at my center, we think preschool is great! The prek program in my district is a great program, nap time and play kitchens included

We are play and arts and crafts based but there's a point in time where what we can supply is not what our kids need.

We have prek registration dates posted, and we help parents whenever they ask us.

Right now, our 2 year olds can recognize 15-18 letters and most numbers from 0-10

This is one of the disadvantages of a home daycare- mixed age. I feel like once children are at a certain age they need to be challenged to develop their critical thinking skills, this does not mean sitting down and doing worksheets but rather engaging in more sophisticated play with same age peers.

I cannot stress the importance of APPROPRIATE play and learning (I have an education background)

So in short, I get so excited when parents talk about preschool and I often join right in.

I respectfully disagree w the line about mixed age being a disadvantage.
However, I completely agree w the importance of appropriate play and learning. And I've been an early childhood educator for almost 30 years. My educational background is specialized in children from birth to first grade.

[Jazzii]

Definitely didn't mean to step on anyone's toes!

Right now we have a wide array of mixed ages, unfortunately most of them fall within the infant (under 2 in my state) age group. While yes they're able to play with another many of my infants are new to words, for them I think its beneficial however, my older kids not so much. Right now we have 3 that will moving to prek, and then we have 3 that will be moving next year. Other than those 6 the rest are mostly babies. We have 16 daily.

Maybe its the space constraints of the home, but I see a lot of frustration among the older kids as the infants are learning to explore (mouthing and dumping out bins especially )

There are, without a doubt some preschools I would NEVER recommend to my parents but we are familiar with very good ones, my district is UPK and the teachers are NYS certified (which is a pain in the ass!!).

And while I know the craziness surrounding public education, I feel like maybe my kids need more than what I can provide, not because we are unable, but with 7 infants on different schedules we have a hard time doing it all. I recently completed some time in a kindergarten class and there's a definite difference between those who were in prek and those who were not, in many ways!

I'm confident that we have successfully created a solid foundation and by the time a child in our care is preschool age, they would flourish with such a change. Some things like manners and routine along with independence are things that we very much pride ourselves on, and I can see them learning things like letters though our read aloud and the like but then I find myself in the pace of "now what?" And I think that's where we struggle

[Jazzii]

I may also start a thread to avoid hijacking this one

[Fiddlesticks]

Definitely didn't mean to step on anyone's toes!

Right now we have a wide array of mixed ages, unfortunately most of them fall within the infant (under 2 in my state) age group. While yes they're able to play with another many of my infants are new to words, for them I think its beneficial however, my older kids not so much. Right now we have 3 that will moving to prek, and then we have 3 that will be moving next year. Other than those 6 the rest are mostly babies. We have 16 daily.

Maybe its the space constraints of the home, but I see a lot of frustration among the older kids as the infants are learning to explore (mouthing and dumping out bins especially )

There are, without a doubt some preschools I would NEVER recommend to my parents but we are familiar with very good ones, my district is UPK and the teachers are NYS certified (which is a pain in the ass!!).

And while I know the craziness surrounding public education, I feel like maybe my kids need more than what I can provide, not because we are unable, but with 7 infants on different schedules we have a hard time doing it all. I recently completed some time in a kindergarten class and there's a definite difference between those who were in prek and those who were not, in many ways!

I'm confident that we have successfully created a solid foundation and by the time a child in our care is preschool age, they would flourish with such a change. Some things like manners and routine along with independence are things that we very much pride ourselves on, and I can see them learning things like letters though our read aloud and the like but then I find myself in the pace of "now what?" And I think that's where we struggle

I would say the problem with *this* mixed age model is that there are way to many infant/toddlers for this group. I am licensed for 12, of which no more than 2 can be under the age of 2. So my current mixed age group consists of 2 one-yos, 2 two-yos, 2 three-yos and 5 four-yos. I can think of no other setting than a mixed-age small group setting that takes better advantage of scaffolding and teaching to the zone of proximal development. When you are already preparing lessons for every developmental stage, it is easy to allow children to explore the stage just above (or just below) their own. Also, it takes advantage of the old adage "the best way to learn is to teach," nothing makes a four-yo prouder than teaching a two-yo some numbers, or how to hold a crayon, or how to play fireman. When I taught 5th grade, lessons were aimed at the middle, with accommodations made for the struggling students. When there was time, the lesson was extended to challenge the high achieving students. There was never time. Never.

[Mad_Pistachio]

I share with parents at interviews about how I feel about preschool not being developmentally appropriate. I don't understand the rush to push kids into formal education when there is so much proof that free play is what they need.

as a parent, I agree. it rubs me the wrong way to see study after study on benefits of play for early childhood period in a person's life and then see worksheets and standardized tests being pushed onto 4-5-6-year-olds.

[Ariana]

"How would you feel?"

Sorry for the kids. Sorry for the Moms.

There is so much peer pressure right now on young Moms about the right early childhood experience for their kids.

They are made to feel like they are half-@$$ing it if they stick with traditional care.

The same way we are shamed if we choose to stay traditional.

All for jacked up educational spending dollars and the spin doctors.

Standing ovation!! happyface

I would tell the moms this too!

[Ariana]

as a parent, I agree. it rubs me the wrong way to see study after study on benefits of play for early childhood period in a person's life and then see worksheets and standardized tests being pushed onto 4-5-6-year-olds.

I know right?! It is sooooo frustrating!!