Single dad with 4 year old: Stay at SAECC or switch to DCPS?
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Anonymous
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Hi please help me decide whether to stay in subsidized private preschool at SAECC or make the move to DCPS likely Eaton for preK4.
I'm a single dad with an irregular doctor schedule (think Wednesday to Tuesday every other week, with a mix of 8 days off in a row here and there, 30% nights, and a string of 3-5 days in a row when not doing the Wednesday to Tuesday thing) and I have an almost four year old girl who's currently in preK3 at SAECC and thriving. On weekdays I drop her off in the morning or have a babysitter do the drop off, and in the evening I pick her up from work. On nights I get a night nanny, have a couple regulars, who also help when I'm working weekends. With the lottery now open I need to decide whether to keep her at SAECC where we're in the PKEEP program so I'm paying $12.5k for the year, or switch to DCPS (our in-boundary school is Eaton which has before and aftercare which I'll definitely need). Scheduling will be the main issue - I can plan in advance as I'll know my schedule in advance. I understand DCPS has several days off each month as well as spring, summer, and winter breaks so financially it costs about the same as keeping her at SAECC, though I haven't strictly done the math. I know some schools like Murch I believe have mini camps for the random days off each month, but I don't think Eaton (which is a few minutes walk from home) does which is unfortunate and I'm not sure if it's worth trying to get her into Murch when Eaton is around the corner. I can't do an au pair because I'm not a citizen which is a requirement for hiring an au pair. I'd have to rely on day camps like Silver Star where she already does gymnastics (thinking I could have one of the babysitters do drop off). I could also request days off in advance or switch shifts with colleagues to get days off though that's not a guarantee. My other concerns are what if I enroll her in DCPS and can't get her into their before and aftercare programs because they fill up quick? It's also a reason I'm thinking of getting her into Eaton, so that if she ends up on the waitlist she hopefully gets in by kindergarten. I've heard being in-boundary for preK4 doesn't guarantee you a spot - not sure if with Eaton it's easier to get in or what. Other thought is that she's gonna end up doing kindergarten here so might as well put her in preK4 at a DCPS school where she can get to know her friends and start creating her community earlier? Though probably not as big a deal to be introduced in kindergarten vs a year earlier. Thanks in advance for reading through this and offering input and insight! |
Anonymous
| SAECC for sure. |
Anonymous
| I think you are going to have to figure out the logistics of DCPS by K anyways, so may as well get her into Eaton now and figure it out a year earlier. That part seems inevitable (figuring out how to manage her care with her in DCPS). It's just a matter of whether you want to deal with it this year, or next year. |
Anonymous
+1 It's much better for her, in every way. |
Anonymous
| Keep her where she is for another year. Seems like you have a system and note that some of the programs for the no school days and summer camp do not take 4 year olds - many start with kids in K. |
Anonymous
It's a proper preschool year vs. loosely supervised nothing-ness of before and after care. |
Anonymous
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I remember your earlier posts! glad you’re working it out.
Is SAECC year round and a longer day? that’s definitely much easier to handle logistically. If you switch to DCPS you probably need to have a FT nanny to cover all the time off and summers. I think it really comes down to how your daughter is doing and how change affects her. The private preschool is probably more nurturing and has more resources than DCPS. But starting at DCPS does mean she will meet classmates and start making friends (and you will too). |
Anonymous
| SAECC. DCPS has a ton of random days off, and you’d need to find a summer camp that works and get a spot in it, too. |
Anonymous
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Keep her where she is. The only reason to move would be cost savings but (1) it sounds like it won't be given your night nanny and other Dr. scheduling issues (2) even if it was another $10k, money isn't the main driver.
Stick with the system you have that works. And best of luck to you. |
Anonymous
| Agree with others to keep her where she is and the poster above made a great point that no school/summer camp options are limited for 4yos. |
Anonymous
| I would stay put for consistency. She has a lot of transitions due to your work schedule. I wouldn’t add more. |
Anonymous
| Are you also the OP of this post? https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1197149.page |
Anonymous
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I remember your old post - I am glad SAECC worked out for you. I had recommended them and we had a lovely experience there.
For clarification - Your child ABSOLUTELY will get into their In Bound K school. There is no lottery to go to your neighborhood school. Do not stress about this. If I was in your shoes, I would stay with SAECC for PreK 4. Why? You have a bit of a support system through the school. You know how to navigate the days off. The summer is hard (and expensive) with camps. You will get another summer of SAECC and it is a fraction of the camp price when you need before and after care. Take the easy button. Is Eaton more (fill in the blank) - Maybe - but does it matter in the big picture? |
Anonymous
| Have you considered a live-in nanny? Depending on where you're from, if you speak a language other than English, a nanny who speaks same language would be a benefit. (This was a game changer for my single-parent friend raising her daughter.) |
Anonymous
It’s also continuity for his daughter who has dealt with a lot of change! She’ll be fine entering DCPS at K. |