Structured preschool for active boy before kindergarten

[Anonymous]

We are looking for a "structured" preschool in the Bethesda, Kensington or Rockville area. We don't want structured in the sense that it is not developmentally appropriate (e.g., too much academic work etc.) Our son is 4 years old and very active (has difficulty listening, moves around a lot etc.) He is currently in a very unstructured play-based school, which is great, but we feel like he needs more structure in the year before he goes to kindergarten. He will be attending public kindergarten the year after next and we imagine it will be tough for him to be in such a structured environment with so many kids. Thus, we are looking for a preschool (for next fall) that is a step up re: structure, so that there won't be such a shock when he actually goes to kindergarten. Does anyone have suggestions? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Junior Kindergarten at Harbor School.

[Anonymous]

I'd let him have another unstructured year, especially if he's the type of kid that needs it. When the time comes for kindergarten he can face structure then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd let him have another unstructured year, especially if he's the type of kid that needs it. When the time comes for kindergarten he can face structure then.

I agree with this. You don't want him to be feel like he's a trouble-maker or a failure if his temperament doesn't fit the school; that could do far more damage. Plus, by the time he's in kindergarten, he'll be a year older, so that much more prepared to deal with structure.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the preceding. If I'm reading you right, you think the degree of structure and size of the class in kindergarten may pose a problem, and you are hoping that you can acclimatize him to it now. I have a son who was/is similar, and for my son the issue was that he was delayed, compared to classmates, in physical control, impulsivity, and inattentiveness. The problem is that kids don't develop these traits by being put in environments that require them (unfortunately).

[Anonymous]

I wish I had a link, but recently I read results of a study that showed that play-based preschool was especially important for boys and led to greater academic success in elementary school.

[Anonymous]

Yes, you really don't want to force him to conform to something that really isn't developmentally appropriate in the first place. You will see his ability to sit still and pay attention mature before K. You can also practice doing this by taking him to story time at the library, giving him a craft, etc to keep him busy and still for a few minutes. My son HATED to sit still and color or do any art projects until he was about 4.5 yrs old. Then he discovered that I could print out nearly any coloring page from the Internet. Soon he was a coloring fiend. He would color for an hour if I printed off certain pages for him (mostly insects). Then we started doing word searches (again mostly bug and dinosaur words). Reading to him is good too. I would ask to observe a 4 yr old class in his current preschool to see what it is like before moving him.

[Anonymous]

I would go with one or two a week communtity center classes like art or something.. where he can
sit with other kids and be with the teacher and work on his attention span that way. It is plenty enough that way
and you will see gradual improvement over a year or so.. otherwise yes, free play, lots of it and unstructured to let him be.

[Anonymous]

I like this news story on the importance of free play:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19212514

And a relevant quote:

"It turns out that all that time spent playing make-believe actually helped children develop a critical cognitive skill called executive function. Executive function has a number of different elements, but a central one is the ability to self-regulate. Kids with good self-regulation are able to control their emotions and behavior, resist impulses, and exert self-control and discipline."

[Anonymous]

I would consider a really good Montessori school if you can get in. Our very active boy attended a really good Montessori school and it was great. I read the article about the importance of free play in developing executive functioning and realized how well his Montessori education had developed his executive functioning. He had freedom within boundaries. He could pursue work he was interested in at his own pace and he could move around the class room as he needed to do so. When he moved on to K, I noticed that he and his classmates that attended pre-K in a similar environment were able to regulate their behavior really well. They would really let loose and run around on the play ground but when they needed to focus in class, they were able to do so. The other boys from his pre-K Montessori class also had an easy transition to K, and in some cases first grade, as well. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

We sent our son to full-day pre-K the year prior to going the MCPS K route so he would be equipped to follow a structured routine, sit for periods of time, listen, etc. Check out the local Catholic schools that have full-day pre-K since these programs tend to be a nice mix of play-based and academics. Holy Redeemer in Kensington. St. Jude's in Rockville. St. John's in Silver Spring. St. John's Episcopal in Olney has a great pre-K program as well. (And FWIW, my son had a seamless transition to the "rigors" of MCPS kindergarten --- not a single problem!)

[Anonymous]

I would look into Reggio schools.

[Anonymous]

I've heard good things about Primary Day School, Harbor, and Potomac Glen Day School. They all offer structure and academics, but in a fun and play based manner.

If you can find a good program, it will help your son love school, including the structured part ( :

I think finding a program to help ease your son into a much more structured Kindergarten is a great idea, otherwise Kindergarten will probably be a big shock. Some of the other PPs had great ideas as well, some extracurricular activities can help him too. He'll probably also mature a lot over the next year too. A lot of maturing happens between 4 and 5

[Anonymous]

Primary Day is a very good school but not for a very active boy.