Some parents don’t’ realize why preschool education is important. Does the quality of a preschool make a difference for your child? As the mother of two kids, I can speak about the difference between a good or not so good preschool. I learned that the quality of preschool matters. The preparation given by a good preschool makes a difference in a child’s education.
My daughter, who was born with special needs, attended a great preschool that she qualified for because of her condition. However, my son attended a low performing preschool in our area.
Key Differences – Why Preschool Education Is Important for Your Child
The US Department of Education believes that when families and the institutions where children learn to partner in meaningful ways, children have more positive attitudes toward school, stay in school longer, have better attendance, and experience more school success.
Such a partnership mainly happens in preschools that have a set of criteria and learning standards. My daughter’s pre-school had certified teachers in every classroom. They engaged the family members more regularly to ensure that parents were supportive of their child’s development.
Her school communicated about student progress and the early learning curriculum that was used. Such partnership and engagement made a huge difference in my daughter’s early education, unlike what I experience with my son’s preschool.
Unfortunately, my son’s preschool did not use certified teachers to teach a curriculum. Parents were not engaged, and they followed a childcare like environment. More specifically, it seemed like they printed random worksheets to use each day with no set structure.
Preschool or Childcare
Some early learning centers call themselves a preschool when in reality they are childcare. Make sure to seek out the differences before you choose a preschool. A preschool teaches using a structured schedule and early language standards. While childcare may just focus on caring for your child and not provide an educational experience.
Some states have websites that provide a list of preschools and childcare that have appropriate certifications. This is because states recognize the importance of a quality preschool. The certifications are a set of standards that a preschool must implement and follow regularly. Such standards engage kids in a learning environment that prepares them for kindergarten.
Kindergarten Readiness
The beginning of kindergarten requires evaluations to help determine if a child is ready for kindergarten. When my daughter began kindergarten, she was well-prepared for school. However, this was not the same for my son. In Kindergarten, his in-class evaluations showed he was not ready for Kindergarten.
For example, although he learned the numbers up to 10 and some social language, his reading abilities were not appropriate for Kindergarten. It was then when I realized I had paid for a childcare program, not a preschool.
I could tell I made a mistake because of the results of my son’s evaluations. I felt horrible about these results. It was frustrating to see that I made a mistake in choosing a good preschool for my son. I began playing catch up from that day.
Although I saved some money by choosing a less costly preschool I ended up spending more in the end. When my son began to struggle I opted to sign him up for a reading tutoring program. I got desperate trying to rectify my prior decision.
Conclusion
As parents, we may not realize the importance of preschool and what to do in certain academic situations. I wish I had a better understanding of preschool and kindergarten readiness. I hope that my experience shows you why preschool education is important for your child. A quality preschool makes a difference in a child’s educational preparation.
It’s good to know that there are resources online that can help me verify the certifications of a preschool. My husband and I are starting to look for one where we can enroll our child so it’s important to properly gauge them. That way, we can ensure that safety of our child.
That’s great to hear. Good luck 🙂