How Challenging Is Your PK3 Student's Curriculum?

[Anonymous]

I get you, OP. We are at a HRCS and I do wish that the curriculum at PK3 was more "academic." My child happens to be one of the older ones in PK3, so there is also that. As previous posters indicated, much of the focus has been on social interactions and emotional development. However, I was really excited to learn about the kids' recent engineering projects. They built boats and made hypotheses about how many toy animals would fit on them before the boat sank. For me (not an education or child development expert) this seems like is a good introduction to basic science and math. It would be great to see a bit more emphasis on writing and reading as well. Our child learned to read at home and it would be nice to see more of that at school. However, in speaking with early education experts I've also heard the refrain that this is not developmentally appropriate at age 3-4, so the focus is on "pre-literacy" skills at this level.

[Anonymous]

OP: Could you please post which preschool your child is currently in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I seriously don't even know why I bother with posting questions on here. All I wanted to know was what types of activities your preschoolers are engaged in at PK3. I NEVER asked for anyone's opinion on why a child shouldn't be challenged and I also didn't ask for anyone to question my ability to parent. You people take it way too far! Thank you to the very few who actually answered my question

If you didn't chime in several times I would have assumed the post was a joke. I didn't get the sense that posters are criticizing your parenting, but your initial post sounded like you expect EC programs ( even some that are currently doing amazing things) to cater to you and your child's needs, possibly at the expense of the larger population of students. There's MUCH more to learning than how a young child measures up to peers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP: Could you please post which preschool your child is currently in?

Yes, I would like to know this too. Please share.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child went to AppleTree for two years, which has a very robust but age appropriate curriculum.

They do centers and dramatic play and sing a lot of songs, learn to follow directions and to be nice to their friends.

They also do "academic" things like learning letter sounds, rhyming words, beginning and ending sounds, counting and skip counting. Not exactly teaching to read, but teaching the skills needed to learn (my child started reading before he turned 4 because he was interested and made the connections between letter sounds/rhyming words etc not because he was pushed).

These are all taught around themes such as family and community, Washington DC, archeology and paleontology, the Planet Earth etc. Those themes are evident in the art work they do, and throughout their centers (for example, the dramatic play center became a metro train when they looked at Washington DC).

I second this. AppleTree has a lot of academics but my son also really surprised me at his ability to fit in at a birthday party with kids he didn't know. He waited his turn, shared, and listened to the organizers. His social skills have improved dramatically this year, and he also has learned lots of facts about the planets, community, etc., as PP described.

[Anonymous]

my pk3 was at a play based private preschool. As play based as you can get. God no to academically challenging a 3 year old!!!

He learned to love school, take turns with toys, use his imagination, sing songs, paint, explore nature (outside in a beautiful wooded area, not a playground, for an hour and a half every day), and listen to rich narratives which set the ground work for a lifelong love of story and reading. Not a letter or math concept to be found.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this really a real post? I don't know anyone who wants this academic a curriculum for their TWO year old.

OP here. Yes, it's a real post. I do understand that maybe a strong academic curriculum isn't ideal for all parents at that age, but because DD has been presented with this since she was 2, I don't want her to back track, should she enter PK3 at a DC Public or Charter school.

I love first-time parents. I almost remember fretting like this. Don't miss it at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this really a real post? I don't know anyone who wants this academic a curriculum for their TWO year old.

Yeah, this is fake, right? Three years old. The social piece matters most right now.

I'm wondering if this is the same poster who was asking about Mandarin. Why is there so much freaking pressure on kids!

No, I am not the same poster who asked about Mandarin. I have no interest in that for my child.

[Anonymous]

My child is at an awesome coop preschool in a 3s class. This week so far they have made Gak, had a "pizza" themed day where they made pizza and did pizza-themed craft projects and had a pizza-restaurant themed play area, and had a "tooth" day where a dentist came with tooth puppets and they played with a dentist playdoh set and were the "Dentists" for a bunch of stuffed animals. They always start the day with an hour on the playground unless the weather is freakishly bad. I think its just right for 3 year olds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this really a real post? I don't know anyone who wants this academic a curriculum for their TWO year old.

OP here. Yes, it's a real post. I do understand that maybe a strong academic curriculum isn't ideal for all parents at that age, but because DD has been presented with this since she was 2, I don't want her to back track, should she enter PK3 at a DC Public or Charter school.

I love first-time parents. I almost remember fretting like this. Don't miss it at all.

OP here. I am a first-time parent so that makes a lot of sense! Sorry if I came across as crazy I just want the best for her - sometimes, we just need to relax and let them be kids! Thank you for that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child is at an awesome coop preschool in a 3s class. This week so far they have made Gak, had a "pizza" themed day where they made pizza and did pizza-themed craft projects and had a pizza-restaurant themed play area, and had a "tooth" day where a dentist came with tooth puppets and they played with a dentist playdoh set and were the "Dentists" for a bunch of stuffed animals. They always start the day with an hour on the playground unless the weather is freakishly bad. I think its just right for 3 year olds.

That is just right for 3 year olds. That sounds amazing! This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!

[Anonymous]

My child is at an awesome coop preschool in a 3s class. This week so far they have made Gak, had a "pizza" themed day where they made pizza and did pizza-themed craft projects and had a pizza-restaurant themed play area, and had a "tooth" day where a dentist came with tooth puppets and they played with a dentist playdoh set and were the "Dentists" for a bunch of stuffed animals. They always start the day with an hour on the playground unless the weather is freakishly bad. I think its just right for 3 year olds.


That is just right for 3 year olds. That sounds amazing! This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!

This does sound wonderful--do you mind sharing the name of the preschool?

[Anonymous]

AppleTree of DC Prep.

You can get all the homework you want at DC Prep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP: Could you please post which preschool your child is currently in?

I won't name the school, because I don't want them to know that we are looking at leaving lol. But it is a private, in-home school. It is not a fancy private school with 1000s of reviews. The director, a former principal, puts a great emphasis on education and exploration. The entire "school" has 12 students, so it is a very small environment. I don't mean to come off as if my child is in "class" all day with textbooks. They have mastered incorporating Kindergarten-level learning with lots of play and field trips. The kids are kids, they play, they color, they paint, they have fun. They go on field trips to just about all kid-friendly places in the area, including libraries, Port Discovery, Six Flags, Climb Zone, Sky Zone, etc. They just happen to be taught more than your traditional "preschool" or "day care" will teach. I realize that my initial post has come off completely wrong. I am sorry for that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:AppleTree of DC Prep.

You can get all the homework you want at DC Prep.

I'm not asking for homework and testing! This entire thread has really been blown out of proportion. And it's probably my own fault lol.