When to Start Preschool?? - Memphis,TN

We put our son in preschool at 2. It was great for him.. He learned to share (VERY important at that age), he socialized with other kids his age (extremely important), he learned how to sit properly in a chair when told to (for eating and doing work), he learned a lot more about religion, (he goes to a Christian school) he learned colors,shapes, sounds, etc...
Here in S. Florida, it's VERY common for parents to put their kids in preschool at 2... Even if it's just part time..
At age:
2- he went 2 full days (8:30-2:30)
3- still 2 full days
4- 3 full days
Now he's in VPK (PreK)
Our neighbor didn't put her daughter in anything, and although, her daughter is super sweet, she's very socially awkward, and still throws major fits (she's almost 5)...
I HIGHLY recommend preschool... Not fulltime, but definitely a couple days per week :)

Pre-K through the school system is a bit different. They actually start them on the actual school curriculum. They do everything to get this child ready for Kindergarten.

If you have your child in a child care setting already they are fine. They won't learn anything more or less at either settings. I would suggest having any 4 year old that qualifies for a local school pre-K program do that instead though. The teachers are state certified teachers, they have degrees in early childhood development and education. They are degreed professionals, child care workers are not usually.

I truly believe it does not matter if the school has a half day program or a whole day one. The kids do all the same things. They go to school, have circle time, do work at the tables, play outside, play inside, do some computer work, do crafts, write stuff, etc...then they go eat lunch and lay down to nap. They will continue to do this same schedule until they are about half way through the school year in Kindergarten. If they only do half days of pre-K they just come home before lunch and naps. They do have some activities and snacks after nap time but it's not anything to do with the core class time of the morning.

Don't stress about it. Pre-k is about socialization and learning. Does the current day care have a preschool program? That is where I would start

When it's right for you and your child.

Frankly, I didn't start DD yet. She will be 4 in August. She starts preschool for half days in September.

Friend started her son in preschool at the stroke of 2 yrs old. She is looking for a new option because it's more like a daycare than she wanted. She is also at a co-op which means she spends a lot of time there. That is common for 2s. I chose a school I would not have to co-op at.

Some schools are FT all day. Another friend's son attends one where he is dropped off around 9 and picked up around 5 most days (they are Jewish so they close at 4PM on Fridays). There are options to meet kid and family needs. My DD could go 2-5 days, our choice. They only offer PT at her school, so her day will be 9-12:30. Other schools offer longer days or aftercare.

I asked my mom, a preschool teacher, what the difference was between preschool and pre-K. She said semantics, mostly. However, a pre-K program may cater to young 5s who didn't make the cut off and offer a more academic program. Speak to the school about it and decide for yourself if their program is what you want. Find out if the teachers have to be differently qualified for one or the other. My mom used to teach Head Start and has a degree.

Personally, had I stayed FT, my DD would have been in her daycare til it rolled her into preschool at 4. I think that unless your child has a major need for academic programs, what most daycares offer is good for 2s. For my DD, I'm not worried about her academics. I want her to follow someone else's instructions, get used to being apart from me, things like that.

So...if I were you and your son is happy where he is, I'd just leave him in daycare for now.