Underground Pre-K Groups

There are plent of people who take care of children in their homes that can offer an excellent pre-school experience! My son goes to formal pre-school but has been going to a ladies house that runs a daycare and used to be a pre-school teacher. It certainly is not as formal but I can imagine how expensive preschool can be in the city! So...how exactly do you think you can homeschool if you work full time?

Preschool isn't the same as homeschool, so not sure if you mean homeschool through later grades or just homeschooling for the preschool years.

But myself and about 6 of us moms do a preschool program and none of us pays, our payment goes towards the day we host (we provide a lesson, snack, crafts, activities and a small lunch) . We rotate houses we go to so I get the kids every 6th time and we do it once a week. Most will only allow you in if you are also able to teach a class, and classes are usually i the mid morning of a weekday, otherwise what is the point?

At the kids preschool age, the gymboree is promoting socialization and basic skills, like sitting as a group, waiting for instruction... which is perfect for what a child needs. You can easily just do some letter and number tracing and teaching at home yourself. There are tons of worksheets and ideas online for free, or even little preschooler manuals you can buy at practically any big box or even dollar store. Since you both work full time and your child is already in daycare, or at least will be, he/she will learn a few of these things anyways.

A co-op preschool, similar to the one mentioned in this NYT piece here might work for you. However, a lot of co-op preschools require more volunteer hours on a regular basis from the parents during business day hours, to keep things running.

The key to a successful preschool (IMO, and studies are showing this to be true) is that play IS learning. Play is the work kids do. So, having a qualified teacher is the best thing (one that can help with their emotional/social development and help them navigate social skills, verbal skills, etc.). Having structured playdates at least weekly or bi-weekly where the play is guided (and having an understanding of what works in helping them learn) can go a long way toward this; part of the playdates could structured (in good weather, going on a scavenger hunt in the woods, with kids working as teams or whatever), and part of the playdate be free play (free play is HUGELY important, imo) with parents to guide the kids as needed.

If it were me, I'd probably check out the underground preschools, knowing that it could be a sketchy situation. I'd make sure that if I did go with an underground one, the teacher WAS background checked (it's not that big a deal to get it done) and if at all possible, certified in some fashion. If I didn't find one I liked, I'd go with the scheduled playdates with a group of kids (4 or 5 max), even though it would make my life harder. And if I did the playdate thing, I'd start taking some parenting courses or ask friends who do preschool for some tips/help in doing preschool stuff at home -- they would be a wealth of info.

((for whatever reason, /i can't follow the link through))

Sounds like a homeschool co-op.

Which has long history.

For my 9yo... I can keep him above grade level with as little as 2 hours a day, even taking several months off each year. For middle & highschool... 1 years worth of curriculum can be done in about 4 hours a day in 3 months (by neurotypical kids).

For fulltime work homeschoolers... the questions isn't typically the education (easy)... it's "What do you do for daycare?"

KNOW:
New York has THE most restrictive/intrusive homeschool laws in the country. Preschool isn't required... but the moment you hit K... it becomes a whole different ball game.

I second B.P.'s response about some great pre-schools being in people's homes and other situations like that. The only way I can think of homeschooling working with two working parents is if you had opposite schedules -one on night shift and one on day shift -because someone is going to have to be at home with your child. Once the child is over five, it's fairly difficult to find non-school centers who would take them for childcare on a daily basis during the school year. If it's that hard to get into public pre-k -go ahead and find out how far in advance you can get on a waiting list. Or is it done by lottery? You could also weight the cost of private pre-k against that of a nanny. Before kindergarten your child doesn't have to have a bunch of academic instruction. Yes, it's great to be up on the colors and shapes and ABCs -that sort of thing -but don't overly worry about academics before kindergarten. Children develop and learn best by having plenty of unstructured play time, toys that foster creativity and imagination, proper nutrition and adequate sleep.