I had just completed my Master's in early childhood education and nine months later, gave birth to my first child. As you can imagine, I took the responsibility of finding a school for my son very, very seriously. I wanted a place that reflected all of the things I now knew about how children learn, the importance of developmentally appropriate instruction, interdisciplinary curricula and an environment of psychological safety, care and concern.
On the surface, many of the preschools I visited looked the same: nice teachers, happy children, playdough and blocks, maybe a water table. But when I took the time to look below the surface the differences in quality were astonishing. First of all, many preschools were staffed by inexperienced, underqualified teachers who didn't have the basics of working with children: i.e getting down to eye-level to speak with children, not shouting instructions from across the room, showing the pictures while reading a book to a group... Then there were safety issues: some schools had children doing projects with chokables, the outlets weren't covered, etc... At some schools, the art projects were basically a craft with the result of 22 identical snowmen or spiders, instead of true, messy, exploratory, creative art. Pre-reading and math skills were "developed" through flashcards and drill and superficial means, rather than inspiring a fascination and passion for the subjects. I even saw, "Time Out" chairs (oh the horror!) I wanted to see explorers. I wanted to see kids making a mess, digging down deep, asking questions, wondering, being kind to one another, trying out new things, feeling good about themselves and their efforts--not just being told what to do by a teacher, or being told, "good job." (I hate "good job..." but more on that later.)
Ok, so long story short, I also so many wonderful schools who were close to what I was hoping for, but I finally chose The Long Ridge School. It's a small school tucked away in the woods of North Stamford that I hadn't heard of before I began my research--but it's been there for 70-something years. It has been three years since I signed my first contract and have never looked back. I joke that I learned more about early child education watching the teachers at LRS than I did during my my very long and expensive graduate studies. Speaking of expensive, yes, the school is pricey. It is part of a larger K-5 private school and charges as such. I had to spend many long hours convincing my husband that "preschool is more important than you think," and that "it is worth every penny." After our first parent-teacher conference he said, "I hate it when you are right," and I haven't heard another peep! When I look at my happy little boy at the park, looking under the rocks, asking why the swings keep swinging after he jumps off, and caring for a little girl who just bumped her knee, or at home, turing off the tv to look at a book, asking to cook with me, and telling me about his detailed plans to be a concert violinist/veterinarian/author/soccer star, I know I really was right :)
