How Challenging Should Preschool Be?

there is so much more to preschool then reading and counting. I made up a list, you can see it on my website by clicking on each letter of the alphabet at the top of the site
http://www.AtoZLearningTreePreschool.com
If she is truly that far advanced and already that socially adept, then you may not have her in the correct place. Last year I had a boy that missed the kindy cut off by 3 weeks and by Halloween he was reading about 10 sight words. But there is so much more to being ready for school and getting all the skills they need.
That said, I would not expect an average park district class to cover what an already reading preschooler needs academically. You may want to find out what gifted preschool programs there are.

It is more about learning how to get along with other kids, how to sit still for the teacher, how to learn to learn. She won't be losing a year, she will be reinforcing what she already knows and learning new skills. The point of preschool -from the perspective of a Mom who also had an advanced kid- was for my daughter to know that learning is fun and exciting. Yes, our daughter knew how to count, knew her colors, knew her abc's--- but she didn't know the solar system which she learned in preschool, she didn't know cute songs to remember how to spell her colors, she didn't know she liked doing puzzles so much, she didn't know that it's hard to stop reading because the teacher needs to move on to another lesson. There's a lot more to preschool than abc and 1,2,3....have fun...I miss preschool days!

D., A park district program is more for the children to begin socializing than it is a school readiness program. I can tell you a program that is spectacular for that though. And that is the Goddard school over in north aurora. You may find more what your looking for there. good luck
S.

D.,
You can try "Montessori Schools" if you want school that is more academically focused..

Hi D.!

I operate a preschool program out of my home. I taught K-5 for six years and was a reading specialist/coach for one year. Preschools are all different and some focus more on socialization while others really emphasize academics. I don't believe that academics should be forced at such an early age, but if your daughter is reading at a first or second grade reading level, she should be challenged at that level. Sure socialization is great, but you want her to be moving forward not backwards. Feel free to email me or check out my website if you want more information. I'd be happy to give you some pointers too. :o) (____@____.com) www.littletykeseduplace.com

A. G

If you do decide to switch her, I would visit the intended school and see if you can sit in on a classroom to see how they interact with the children, ask questions about their program. Our school, had reading time every day, art, playtime... It is hard to choose schools. We visited a lot before I was satisfied. Good luck.

My child was reading in preschool too. And as hard as it is to be concerned about the curriculum in preschool, it is more about play and socialization. I, like you, had concerns about my child being bored. But, here we are a year later and my son is in Kindergarten. And guess what he misses - the playtime, snacktime, etc that he had in preschool. I agree with your husband in that you could do some educational things with her at home. Once she's in elementary school (not necessarily even Kindergarten) , it is my understanding, that they will push the students to their level a little more. Best of luck in whatever decision you make. Remember, you know your child best...enjoy it, they grow up so fast...don't they?

Preschool is more about the children socializing, my daughter knew her numbers and letters going in as well but was never bored. She has a great deal of fun just being with the kids.

D.,

If you want a highly academically-focused preschool, yet one where the kids have a lot of fun activities and are all best buddies (there were only 9 kids in the 4-year-olds' class until last week when a new boy joined, so now there are only 10 kids), check out Carol Stream Christian Academy (www.carolstreamchristianacademy.org), a private preschool and elementary school. My oldest 2 kids (now there in first grade and PK-4) could already read when they each started there in the 3-year-old preschool class. The school tailored certain things to my kids' ability levels and made sure that they were constantly challenged - and it is still that way. I couldn't be happier with the school, and my kids LOVE going there. They asked throughout the whole summer when they could go back to school. I don't ever remember doing that as a kid even though I enjoyed school.

Don't be scared off by the cost of whatever the stated tuition is on the website - the school is funded by the church that started it years ago, and they will work with whatever your financial ability to pay is. They do not turn families away who want their kids there.

L.

You can't really ask the Park District program to change their preschool philosophy. But I'm sure you can find preschools with a greater academic focus if you look into private preschool programs. If this is important to you (and you can fit it into your budget), then go for it.