Is it essential to send a child to a Pre school?

J

joyofliving

Registered User
Would it be easier to get my daughter admitted to a Kindergarten if she is going to a Pre school? Or it doesn't matter?
After calling/ visiting a few Pre schools I have come to the opinion that most have the same kind of routine for a child 18 month old- Free play, circle time, craft/ snack, free play and story. Does spending $3500+ each month make sense? I feel she is capable of learning more (I do teach her at home) so are there any Pre schools which do that or is it only in Kindergarten that she will learn her ABC's and 123's?
I hope I am making sense here, any opinions would be welcome.
 
It is not essential to send your child to a preschool. We know some parents who are not keen in sending their kids to preschools.

ESF Kindergarten also told us during the visit that they dont stress too much on 123,abc etc they are more interested in social development of your child.

At pre schools basically your child is introduced to order of things, How to share and do activity in a group etc. But they do learn also.Also I personally feel that your child gets more independant and also u get some free time.

Most Kindergartens dont care if your child has been to a preschool.
 
My son started school only when he was 34 months old and this is considered very young still in the US. Most preschools in NYC (can only speak about those I've toured anyway) only take them when they've turned 3 years. I'm not sending my daughter who is 30 months now to school in HK since I teach her myself. But I do want her to get used to the idea of socializing with other kids her age.
The trend in HK is to send kids when they are very young though - I'm sure there are numerous reasons for why this is.
 
preschool no?

whether pre school is essential or not, i think depends on the situation. if your maid is taking care of your baby... and she is not teaching her anything,, potty training whatsoever, best to send her to pre nursery. for some kids, too much depending on the maid, they dont learn to tie their own shoe laces,, even when the go to k3.
but if u r taking of your kid full time, then, just enjoy being with them.. i am sure full time mums can teach the kids more than pre school and potty train your own kids..
 
I don't think neither preschool is that essential, it's more a personal choice, made on ones child character, social skills, environment... My son will start preschool tomorrow, just 4 hours per week, just to give him a sens of structured schedule, to see the same friends more often and create some links, to learn about sharing and concentrating, and also because it will be easier, for him and for me too, as I'm not working and have no helper, to let him go alone when kindergarden will start in a year or so... also as we are french speaking at home, it's a great opportunity to start listening to English and eventually Mandarin, as he is starting to talk, not that I want him to learn 3 languages, but just to prepare him, as I guess his ears will get used to it. But still, it's a personal choice, and I would stop if it should become a stress for any of us.
 
my son started preschool this August and he does about 3 hours each day for 5 days a week. Initially I was afraid that this would be too much for him but kids being kids, they adapted quite quickly to the routine and now he pulls me to the door each morning, which I think is a sign that he is keen to go. I think the whole point is for him to have fun with other kids and get him to socialise (he's the only child). I'm really not fussed about him learning his 123's which we already taught him at home.

It would be a great help also when he goes to kindy as he would be used to a classroom environment by that time.
 
Thanks everyone for the replies, we've got another school tour next week. So hopefully we will be making the decision soon which preschool she goes to :)
Konradsmom how old is your son and which preschool does he go to?
 
I don't think that it is essential, but I also think that some children thrive on it.
My 3 yr old started a few weeks ago, and he is absolutely loving it.
He pushes me out the door each morning in a hurry to get there.

We opted to send our son to the local nursery here in Sai Kung for the language, even though both my husband and I are Australian.
 
Matty, is he going to Lok Yuk? my son LOVES it there! now, he's in full day, which i wasn't sure about... but he seems to love it even more!
 
Yes, he's at Lok Yuk.
I was worried about him doing 5 half days, but now I'm sure he would love the full days too!
 
my boy was in 1/2 day last year. now, K2, full day. he's exhausted when he comes home, but he seems to love it.

i think next year, my youngest will start with full day, simply because otherwise my helper will be constantly coming or going. we live way out and there is no school bus for us, but a 30 minute public bus ride.
 
Pre-school does NOT give your child the edge in education. It is more for building social skills. As long as the parent has this in mind, the child will not be pressured or stressed out, and therefore can enjoy going to pre-school.
 
If you are looking at schools that go beyond pre-school, it helps to get your kid in early because that will guarantee them slots in the next year.
Locals use pre-school for day care.
 
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