We LOVE our preschool!! It is awesome! But with that said- we are struggling trying to decide what to do for my son this fall. My husband and I both work full time and we visited 7 different schools and found this one to be the absolute best. It is a little more expensive than some others, but we choose it because the kids stay with their teachers all day- even during the daycare hours and they have before and after care.
My son is 3 1/2 right now and he is currently going 2 days a week. We have an AMAZING daycare lady for the other days that our younger daughter also goes to. We pay $100 for the two full days of preschool. The pricing structure is designed to encourage people to go 5 full days. 3 days a week is $160 and 5 days is $200. We were thinking we were going to send our son for 3 days this fall when he is 4 to 'prepare' him for kindergarten. BUT then we actually looked at the prices and decided that it is either 2 days or all 5.
We are thinking that 5 days is a little much and not necessary since we have an alternative for him and he will be in school forever. BUT at daycare he will be the oldest by almost a year.
I guess my question is- do you ladies see the added benefit in him coming full time for 5 days or should we just stick with the 2 days and send him to daycare for the rest of the week?
2 days (9 to 1) would be a cheaper option but there is no way to get him to and from and once you add in those costs of hiring someone- you are just about to the $100.
The preschool he is at is part of the University in our area. We did not want a religious school and my son's teacher actually taught his aunt who is now 24. All of their full time teachers have been there for more than 5 years (2 have been there for 20 years+) and the student teachers are all Master degree level students with education as a BS.
In our area- without sending your child to a preschool with really weird hours or a place where they cram religion down their throats all day- this was only 1 of 2 options :)
Is there much of a difference between what they do at the daycare vs. the preschool, and the cost of 5 day preschool vs. 2day pre/3 day daycare? Preschool is probably more of a mix of school and daycare - it's not like kindergarten, correct? If the cost is the same or close between the two options, I would go 5 days because of the consistency, since you love the preschool already.
Send your son to school no matter what the cost-it's cheap in the long run-do you know that for every dollar spent on a child in preschool, it saves the tax payers $3000? Children who attend preschool are less likely to become involved in crime, less likely to become pregnant as a teenager, less likely to be on welfare, etc? Education is the answer-period.
What does your gut feeling say?
Sounds like you have two really good options. I'm not sure what I would do, which option do you think will make him happiest? Ask the teachers, "do you truly think my son can handle 5 days?". Since he'll be 4 1/2 next year at this time, the answer is probably yes. My son is 4 1/2, and no longer likes going to this particular playgroup because of the toys...which are geared more for younger kids, and there's a lot of younger kids and babies there, he knows he's one of the older ones. I have friends in this area who both parents work full time, the ones who can afford it always opt for the 5 day preschool all day option at this local private school because they feel it's better than the daycare. But, you said you have great daycare. Go with your gut!
I honestly would pick one of the other. If the school is for the hours you need him to go then do away with day care and be done with it.
I agree with the idea that the two days of preschool is worth it. Kids need to be with their peers, and the preschool teachers are going to have more stimulating, age-appropriate activities which will 'dig deeper' into the topics they are exploring than your great daycare lady will be able to provide, given that she is caring for mostly younger children.
As for full-time-- boy, I'm really torn on this one. I'm a mom who chose to send my son to half-day kindergarten. I'm very, very protective of his 'down time'. I would make that 2-day/full time choice on what you think your son would most enjoy. Does the preschool offer quieter play intervals where he can work alone or get some space? Does the daycare? That would be the big factor for me in making that decision.
ETA: Robin, I'm not sure where you got your numbers; I did a search check and a recent report from MIT stated that "Every dollar invested in quality early care and education saves taxpayers up to $13.00
in future costs."...which is up from the earlier report of $7 I had read a few years ago. Here's the link:
http://web.mit.edu/workplacecenter/docs/Full%20Report.pdf
I sent my daughter to full day preschool when she was almost 5. She had just missed the kindergarten age cut off, so to me, it was like her going to kindergarten. Most of the kids at this school went there full time, so if she was there part time, she was the only one missing out. My son went to a different school 5 half days a week. To me, preschool is for play and learning to make friends, with some letters/numbers/colors mixed in. I wouldn't worry too much about your son being the oldest in daycare. At my daughter's preschool, all ages from 2-6 happily played together on the playground each day and she had lots of friends younger than her. What do you think would be best for him? Some kids do best with just one setting each day. Some are comfortable with what they have and anything more will upset him. Is he happy with his daycare lady and being with his sister? Would changing settings upset him? Would he benefit from having more structure and "learning" from the pre-k? All things to take into consideration. When he gets to K, you will find that the kids all come with varying degrees of prior education and knowledge.
Whatever works for you! I think consistency would be good, versus two different places.
Around here 2 days (9 to 1) is about $150 a MONTH. I know that's not a full-day, but still. I personally have found daycare preschools to be less than ideal for the child but very expensive. The staff turnover is high. Their wages are very low. Their hours are long and they are only human. The brochures are lovely but when I'd observe, it was more like keeping kids in a room, calling it preschool and not really doing a whole lot.
Of course, it depends on the school. 2 or 3 hours programs that specialize in preschool tend to be really good, but again, if the hours don't work then that's not for you. Most of my friends had their children with a home daycare provider, who drove the child to a preschool 2 or 3 days a week (a 2 hour class).
We hemmed and hawed about DD going all 5 days. She is fine, she loves it, and she prefers to be there all week so she doesn't miss anything. She loves seeing her friends and when she is sick, she gets upset she won't see them. It's not drudgery for her. It's fun. Think of it this way - he needs care. Why not put him in preschool where he's interacting with friends vs keeping him in daycare where he's the oldest by far and may be bored?
There's a boy who started T/TH and his parents later added Weds - not traditional, but it gives him 3 days straight and it's more consistent than MWF. I would go for it, and find out their policy on going back to 2 if necessary.
