Need a Great Preschool That Won't Break the Bank!

Hi E.,

Throwing my hat into the ring here: I don't think it's a question of whether a child needs preschool for their academic development, or only because a parent is working...I think it's about the vision we see for our child's life. Let me explain...

I've been working in various aspects of childcare for years. This winter I will be opening a nursery school for two reasons: I want to get back to work and this is my passion and second, I need a way to pay for my son to go to preschool. If this sounds crazy, just listen--my girlfriend runs a preschool I fell in love with years ago. There are chickens in the backyard. There is room to run and move, places to dig and make mudpies, spaces to paint, create and breathe in. The teachers are warm and loving. I am my son's mother and love him dearly, and I also know that these teachers, this school, can give him something that I just can't---a wonderful place to be himself without mom. A great opportunity to learn to rely on others, to trust that other people are safe and caring, and a chance to experience the world without always turning around to see mom. (Teachers who work with their child in their program have told me they have found it very difficult---the child/teacher dynamic is very different from the child/parent dynamic).

I believe in this vision I have for my son--to go be his own little guy for four hours a day. I am willing to pay for this because he will never have another childhood, and this place makes great memories as well as fosters community amongst the families who attend.

Making the decision to send a child to preschool isn't always easy, and it helps us to examine our reasons. But making the criteria purely based on "working moms only" is belittling to all of the parents that work exceptionally hard at home, and takes a narrow approach. We have our children because we love them, we want them...and we can love and want them while knowing that it's also very healthy to help them foster dependable relationships with others as well. It's a lot to ask of a parent to be everything to their child, and it shortchanges our children when we insist that they only rely on us for what they need. They need other trustworthy and empathetic adults in their lives. Many teachers have a great gift of being able to connect with our little ones.

And, from a teacher's point of view, we see a lot of growth and development in the children we work with. We enjoy our work, most of the time, and hope that the care and thought we put into our work will translate help the children we care for become more empowered to pursue their goal, to experiment, to try new things and to find a way to be satisfied within themselves.

In short, each parent's reasons to send their child to preschool are personal, but there are a lot of good reasons indeed!

Portland Chritisan has an awesome program. There is a lot of social interaction and learning through activities and crafts. Check out their website for more info.

Good Luck!

You didn't say if you were looking for full or part time or some days... We do full time at Creative Minds Learning center and love it but full time is more than $500 however they do have part-time options but I don't know what they charge for them. Worth checking them out though if you are looking for a great and fun place (they have 3 centers in SE/NE area).

My son goes to Milwaukie Preschool. It is $90 a month. for Juniors that is twice a week for 2.5 hours each day. and for Seniors it is three times a week for 2.5 hours.
We love it!

Good luck:) $500 a month is actually a cheap price for full-time care in a childcare center. I pay $900 a month for 35 hours a week at an accredited(certified is not the same as accredited!:) child care center, and $400 a month for 12 hours of evening care a week with a Early Childhood Education teacher who has a degree in the field.

The YMCA has an excellent accredited program, and they do offer scholarships for tuition that you can apply for.

****I have just looked at the appleblossom site, the only thing I wonder about is why they acknowledge the NAEYC accreditation website, but are not accredited. The teachers "have studied" Waldorf and Reggio Emilio, but do not have degrees in the field. The info led me to believe that the "study" was independent and not led by an expert in the field. I think the tuition is really high for no one having a degree of expertise in the field. I guess I am a little biased:) I am in college paying LOTS of money to study Early Childhood Education(I will finally be done and have my degree in one year:) right now. I am studying under one of the developers of the RIE program. I am intensively studying everything from child development to techniques of positive guidance to interpersonal communications to child psych. to the history of early childhood education.(Waldorf, Montessori,Reggio, Piaget, etc..)PLUS about another million courses. I even have to complete TWO YEARS of internship in a child development center under the supervision of experts in the field before I can receive my degree.(It is not enough to just study the Waldorf method if you want to implement it correctly, you must see it and practice.)

I think that the appleblossom center does look to be a positive, nurturing place to have your children, but for $1300 a month for five days a week the adult to child ratio should be higher than 4:1. For $1300 a month you should not have to bring your child's meals!

Sorry to go on...I was really shocked to see that the $500 a month was for only 2 days a week. Don't get me wrong, I am a strong advocate for the raise in salary and recognition of child care providers as professionals, but I do also strongly believe that prestige should be earned with a specialized field of study that results in a degree.

Sorry about the rant, good luck:)

I have to say that in my experience, $500/month for PT care is pretty standard. But you said that your son NEEDS to start this fall. Why--are you going back to work/school? Do you think you'll be overwhelmed with him and a new baby? Do you think he just needs to interact with other kids in a preschool setting? The only reason he would NEED to go to preschool is if there is noone else to care for him. So if price is an issue for you, it might be worth it to evaluate your needs and decide if preschool really fits there.

Hi E.,

Mt. Tabor Co-op Preschool in SE Portland is a fabulous preschool. My oldest girls attended there and we loved it. I'm not sure exactly what area of SE you're in, though. Feel free to check out the SE Portland schools listed on our Portland website: http://www.portlandpreschooldirectory.com/seportland.html. Good luck!

Best,
~P. G.
US Preschool Directories
http://www.uspreschooldirectories.com

Hi E.,
If you are interested in a Cooperative Preschool, the Milwaukie Cooperative Preschool is a wonderful way to meet other preschool families and engage with your child in the preschool environment. Because you are a parent helper in the classroom, you get a great chance to see how your child interacts in school and you get to know the other families too. The tuition is very reasonable $90-100 per month depending on the age of your child. Your helper days are approx. once every 2 1/2 weeks and a grandparent/aunt can always substitute for you.
If you are a parent who would like to actively participate in your childs preschool education I highly recommend it. You can check it out at: www.milwaukiepreschool.com

In my opinion, children do not NEED preschool. Like the other person said below me, the only reason that your child would need this is if you're going back to work. From my research $500 for part time care is a pretty standard price. Would you really want someone watching your child for that many hours that got paid any less? These people are already not making a living wage, think about it? Your child is just as well off (probably better actually) with you raising him, not daycare.

I know that there have been studies that show that kids in preschool do better is school. The TRUTH is that those studies are amazingly skewed. They "studied" inner-city kids from Chicago that other-wise had very little parental involvement. They enrolled the kids in preschool, got the PARENTS really involved and low and behold, the kids did better. It really had NOTHING to do with these kids going to preschool, it had to do with someone, anyone paying attention to them... Their conclusion was that ALL kids benefit from preschool, so it should be mandatory for all. :-/

Children already go to school for 13-21 years, isn't that enough? I personally opted out of preschool and my son has been just fine. I make sure that we get out with friends, go to parks, the children's museum, etc.

Good luck!

Childswork is fantastic. It is on 42nd & Salmon in SE PDX

Hi there,

My son is starting at Flower Drum Preschool in the Fall. It is a great in-home preschool with a husband and wife team of teachers. They both seem way over qualified to be teaching preschoolers and their rates are reasonable. They have a really nice home, bug back yard, good curriculum, cook healthy mostly organic meals, and garden with the kiddos. The husband is also an after-school art teacher, and the wife is actually a teacher-trainer herself. Here is their contact info: The Flower Drum Preschool
SE Harrison Court
Portland, OR 97215

Tel: ###-###-####

Director: Tom Vredevoogd
____@____.com

Also, My boyfriends son will be starting at Creative Minds in the Fall. They have three different locations that all have a different feel. We chose the one with the 1/2 acre outdoor area even though it was a little far for us because the school and teachers all seemed great! Most of the teachers we talked to had been there for over five years each. Check out their website- they are fairly affordable, but also work with scholarship options if you qualify.

Good Luck!