One year in DC before Kindergarten

[Anonymous]

Chinatown/downtown is turning into a shit hole. Too many tourists or muggings. There are no playgrounds downtown.You want to be in a real neighborhood with tons of families. Lots of young kids?-cap Hill, Petworth, Parkview, Brookland. I have live in DC 24 years and have a 6 year old. Trust me

[Anonymous]

That sounds amazing. I would do it when he’s 3 and do morning preschool or try for PK3. Rent in Logan circle/Shaw or Cleveland Park. There are so many fun things here for little kids. You’ll love it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC offers free full day preschool for 3 and 4 year olds. MD and VA don’t. That will save you 40k over two years.

She’s not working. She doesn’t need 35 hours of childcare.

[Anonymous]

Would pick Woodley Park (very near National Zoo) or Cleveland Park.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That sounds amazing. I would do it when he’s 3 and do morning preschool or try for PK3. Rent in Logan circle/Shaw or Cleveland Park. There are so many fun things here for little kids. You’ll love it!

Not Shaw.

[Anonymous]

We honestly love living here with our 3 yo. I've lived here a decade (DC proper) and this is the most I've ever enjoyed it. My dd is obsessed with the metro, she loves all the kids areas at Smithsonians, loves walking around the neighborhoods, loves the zoo, etc. And day trips out of the city are starting to really resonate with her too (farms, kayaking, hiking).

I can't speak to any older ages because I haven't experienced them yet but 3 yo is our best year yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chinatown/downtown is turning into a shit hole. Too many tourists or muggings. There are no playgrounds downtown.You want to be in a real neighborhood with tons of families. Lots of young kids?-cap Hill, Petworth, Parkview, Brookland. I have live in DC 24 years and have a 6 year old. Trust me

President Trump, is that you? Don't you have a democracy to destroy?

[Anonymous]

Capitol Hill or DuPont/Kalorama/Adams Morgan stretch.

We lived in Kalorama with our dd from birth - 18 months and I miss it so much. So many things to do and none of it requires getting in the car which is now the worst part of my suburban nightmare.

If personally go more in the 2-3 age range since after that more kids his age will be in preschool and the playground and libraries will feel a bit lonely in terms of peers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: If I were you and could afford it, I’d rent a row house on the Hill in reasonably close proximity to the Capitol (West side of the Hill, leaning SE for metro access). The Hill has a million little kid activities and playgrounds and on that side of the Hill you can also easily walk to the Mall/Smithsonians and Navy Yard stuff. Lots of playgroups and morning preschools if you decide you want some structure.

+1

Do you want a second kid? Might want to factor in that timing as well.

Otherwise, I’d say anywhere in the 2-4 range but be home for a year before pre K.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: If I were you and could afford it, I’d rent a row house on the Hill in reasonably close proximity to the Capitol (West side of the Hill, leaning SE for metro access). The Hill has a million little kid activities and playgrounds and on that side of the Hill you can also easily walk to the Mall/Smithsonians and Navy Yard stuff. Lots of playgroups and morning preschools if you decide you want some structure.

+1 for the Hill. Plenty of families with young kids, and convenient to lots of stuff to do.

When my daughter was around 2-3, I had one day a week off work, and we did lots of museums and stuff on the Mall during our days together. I'm not sure she got all that much out of the actual museums at the time, but we made a little routine of visiting her favorite exhibits, seeing one new room or exhibit, then having a snack in a cafe or next to a fountain. As she got used to being in that kind of environment, she learned how to behave and what kinds of things to look for as we went through. She's now 12 and still loves to visit museums and historic houses or gardens.

And living in DC is especially great because the museums are mostly free. Because we could go back over and over again, I didn't feel badly about going for an hour or two at a time when she was little. She wasn't overwhelmed or exhausted, and I didn't have to worry about getting my money's worth.

[Anonymous]

I think preschool is good the year before K. Not necessarily the whole day, but it’s really beneficial to have practice with social skills in an environment with a better ratio and small groups. So if he’s going to do preschool when he is 4.5 then K at 5.5, I think the 3.5-4.5 age would be fun. Lots of exploring and he could appreciate the zoos, Building museum, etc.

[Anonymous]

OP, do you have a ballpark budget for renting for that year? You are probably aware that DC is pretty expensive, and a lot of the neighborhoods people are suggesting (Dupont Circle, the Hill) are among the priciest in the area. Would you be okay with a 2 BR/1BA rental condo, or would you want a row home or house? Those things will factor in as well.

As long as you are near a metro or an easy bus route, you should have no trouble getting out to fun DC activities. Especially if you plan to SAH, you will have plenty of opportunities to see the attractions without battling weekend crowds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: If I were you and could afford it, I’d rent a row house on the Hill in reasonably close proximity to the Capitol (West side of the Hill, leaning SE for metro access). The Hill has a million little kid activities and playgrounds and on that side of the Hill you can also easily walk to the Mall/Smithsonians and Navy Yard stuff. Lots of playgroups and morning preschools if you decide you want some structure.

+1

Do you want a second kid? Might want to factor in that timing as well.

Otherwise, I’d say anywhere in the 2-4 range but be home for a year before pre K.

I know, this thought has crossed my mind but we are sort of really firmly in the one and done mindset at the moment. We are young-ish, so if that changed we could always go for it once we got back home. DS has been sort of a nightmarish baby, so he hasn't really made me want to relieve it all again anytime soon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, do you have a ballpark budget for renting for that year? You are probably aware that DC is pretty expensive, and a lot of the neighborhoods people are suggesting (Dupont Circle, the Hill) are among the priciest in the area. Would you be okay with a 2 BR/1BA rental condo, or would you want a row home or house? Those things will factor in as well.

As long as you are near a metro or an easy bus route, you should have no trouble getting out to fun DC activities. Especially if you plan to SAH, you will have plenty of opportunities to see the attractions without battling weekend crowds.

my issue is more it would most likely need to be furnished or I'll need to fill whatever it is with the cheapest crap I can find on craigslist and ikea. Cost of the rent isn't an issue (within reason--I'm not going to rent some big place with rooms I don't need to fill with furniture I don't have).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think preschool is good the year before K. Not necessarily the whole day, but it’s really beneficial to have practice with social skills in an environment with a better ratio and small groups. So if he’s going to do preschool when he is 4.5 then K at 5.5, I think the 3.5-4.5 age would be fun. Lots of exploring and he could appreciate the zoos, Building museum, etc.

Yes, I agree I only think he needs the year before school to understand how school works. I'm not desperate to get him into preschool ASAP and also think, like someone mentioned above, there'd be a benefit to being in an environment where he learns how to behave/have fun at a museum, for example.