Hi Moms, I need some detailed advice on when, where, how and who to talk to about my son's education. Here is the deal. My husband and I are both from Africa. Been marriade for four years. He is a missionary pastor currently on a long term mission trip in Africa. We have a son, who just turned 18 months. So we are both first time parents. Now, I found out that the system of Education here in the United States is totally different from my country. I even had a little problems when I wanted to enrol in college myself because the system was so different. Anyway, I guess my question is; how do I go about getting him started in school? Please someone give me a detailed explanation on how the school system works. Back in my country, kids are allowed to start Kindergarten as early as Two years old. And that's when majority of the kids in my country starts Kindergarteen. Kindergarteen is three years in my country. However, parents are allowed to skip sending kids to kindergarten if they feel the child is smart enough to go directly to first grade. Kids are allowed to start first grade as early as Four years old if they are smart enough and can cope. Most parents do not want to keep their kids in kindergarteen for three years, so they prefer to just have then start Elementary at age four. The Child is assessed and if they qualify and meet the academic standard, they can start elementary directly, without going through three years of kindergarteen. I didn't attend Kindergarteen myself. I started elementary directly. The system is totally different here. So please can someone tells me how to go about getting him started in school? I don't even know where to start from. Also, what is the diffence between PRE-K and PRE-SCHOOL? Are they the same? If not, what's the difference? I would love to get him into one of the PRES, before he starts kindergarteen. I would also love to get him started very early. Also, I would love to know where to find preparatory stuff for kids from one year and up to 5 years plus. I want to start teaching things like recorgnising alphabets, numbers, colors, shapes, e.t.c. What kind of stuff do I teach him now, that will be approriate for his age? I don't want to OVER-teach him things that are above his age. At the same time, I don't want to UNDER-teach him things that he is supposed to have outgrown. And finally, we are planning on visiting my husband in Africa some time this year and we'll be gone for a while, probably a year or two. We are very excited about that. I don't want to go and stay too long and miss starting him in school at the right/approriate time/age. If that happens, will I be penalized for not getting him started in school at the right time and age? or what is the consequence if that happens? PLEASE HELP ME OUT MOMS, I AM DESPERATE FOR DETAILED ANSWERS.
After reading your request, I want to move to your country! I bet people there are very smart for starting school that early, so sign me up! lol. Well, here you can start pre-k at 4, but it is income based, you have to make less than the average citizen. You can enroll your kid in a private school, but you will have to pay a monthly or yearly fee. A child can start public school if they are aged 5 by the month of September.
My son is 20 months, and I just work on teaching him his Alphabet. The ABC song, and how to recognize letters and numbers. He recognized a few of them on a regular basis, and he's able to sing more and more of the ABC song every day. I just read to him a lot, and make sure that he likes books and numbers, and make learning fun. He's an active little guy, so he doesn't sit still for too long, but I take advantage of the time he does pay attention!
It's so awesome that your husband is an missionary!! What a wonderful way to serve God. I hope everything works out for you guys.
-A.
Hi A.,
As the other person mentioned, pre-k is for 4 year olds, but only lower income kids qualify. In the US, most kids do not start prublic school until 5 years old, which is kindergarten.
Many kids do go to preschool, part time or full time, either because their parents work and they need a daycare, or just because the parents want their younger kids in an educational, social envirnonment at a younger age part time (sometimes these part time preschools are called Mothers Day Out programs and are run in churches). Preschools are privately run, therefore you have to pay for them. There is no free public school for kids before pre-K.
There is a wide variety of daycare/preschool options out there from some that are strictly "daycare" to others that are more educationally based, so you might want to post to get recomendations for good preschools within your neighborhood.
Children love to learn so you can't overteach so long as he is happy. Everything everyone else has said it right on, unfortunately. You may want to look for a Montessori school near you. They will start children very young. And you may want to think about Dallas International School for the future. http://www.dallasinternationalschool.org I believe they take students at age 3. I went to European schools for the first half of my schooling and was way ahead when I switched to the US system. I love this country, but schools aren't as good as they should be. Still, with a good solid background from home, students can still grow up to be very intelligent and well rounded adults.
Hi A.. I agree, I wish I could move to your country! No, there is no public education available until the child is at least 4 years old. Until then, you'll have to pay for daycare/preschool for your child. There is no huge difference between pre-k and preschool. Pre-K is usually the year prior to kinder while preschool is the schooling a child receives even before pre-k. They are mostly learning the same things in both pre-k and preschool. You are doing well teaching your child at home. I don't think you're over-teaching him. He is young so he does need breaks to play alone or nap but teaching his colors, reading to him, counting objects together are all very good things to do. Also, I write the names of familiar objects on cards and show them to my daughter. She's recognizing the words now (but she's 3). I write my name, her name, dad's name, and other familiar things on separate cards. Then I point to the name and say it. We do this before bed every night during our reading time. She now recognizes the words Lillian (her name), Mama, Daddy, I, a, and also my step-child's name. Her teacher helped her to learn to write her name but that just happened---don't push him that far yet, he'll be ready for that soon. Also, make sure he has lots of crayons and pencils and lots of paper to "create" stories on. There is a large missionary community here in Duncanville where I work. If you would like more info about them, send me a message and I'll try to help you out. I'm sure they'll be more than willing to help you with any questions you have about school.
The best situation if you want your son to start school now is to put him into Montessori school, otherwise he won't be in school until 3 (Pre-School), 4(Pre-K), and 5 (K). MOst schools that start before age 5 cost money, unless you qualify and then it is only for Pre-K. You need to research the schools and daycares in your area, as each have thier own ideas on what "school" may be. I dont' know if this is very helpful, but school here is tricky depending on what you want and are willing to spend on your child.
