Is your 3/4 year old happy at his daycare?

[Anonymous]

Our DD will be 4 in October and is entering the PK3 lottery. We need to find a backup in case it doesn’t work out. We have looked at some of the daycare “preschools” as they are often more affordable than the private stand alone PKs.

Does anyone have a 3/4 year old in a daycare and are you happy with their “preschool” programs?

[Anonymous]

I can’t figure out your post unless you are another daycare is not school troll...

Do you need full time or part time care? Do you need summers (for example a teacher usually needs full time but doesn’t need summer).

[Anonymous]

Not a troll. Trying to figure out if kids are as happy at daycare preschools as they are at stand alone preschools. We do need full-time care and summers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not a troll. Trying to figure out if kids are as happy at daycare preschools as they are at stand alone preschools. We do need full-time care and summers.

I'm just trying to figure out what feedback you are really looking for. Most kids will have been in one type or another so how to meaningfully compare? I mean it sounds like you'd also have to ask whether kids attending the 9-3 preschool only have equal happiness to those who attend the same program plus the before and aftercare programs.

My 4yo seems to enjoy the preschool-age daycare center we attend. Not in DC though so probably not helpful to you.

[Anonymous]

That was the age ours became remarkably unhappy at daycare when he seemed happy enough before. We pulled him out and put him in a regular preschool, and he was much happier. No regrets.

[Anonymous]

Mine was perfectly happy at her daycare's PK3 program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That was the age ours became remarkably unhappy at daycare when he seemed happy enough before. We pulled him out and put him in a regular preschool, and he was much happier. No regrets.

Can I ask why?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That was the age ours became remarkably unhappy at daycare when he seemed happy enough before. We pulled him out and put him in a regular preschool, and he was much happier. No regrets.

Did you get a nanny to cover the rest of the day? Or become a SAHM?

[Anonymous]

For those of you who don't understand: OP is just asking if your kids were happy in daycare at ages 3-5.

Like a Bright Horizons that says it has a "preschool curriculum" for their older classes. As opposed to "Joe Smith's Preschool" that starts at age 2.5, is NAEYC accredited, and doesn't have an infant program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those of you who don't understand: OP is just asking if your kids were happy in daycare at ages 3-5.

Like a Bright Horizons that says it has a "preschool curriculum" for their older classes. As opposed to "Joe Smith's Preschool" that starts at age 2.5, is NAEYC accredited, and doesn't have an infant program.

OP here. THIS. Exactly. Thank you.

[Anonymous]

My kids are 3 & 5. My oldest went to Bright Horizons until he turned 3. We switched to a play-based Reggio program with extended hours and a year-round schedule because it was cheaper and a better location. My child was equally happy as his friends who stayed at BH. They did a lot more kindergarten type activities like worksheets and writing their names. Half-way into Kindergarten we see the same group of families fairly often and the kids seem to be equally happy and well prepared for kindergarten.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids are 3 & 5. My oldest went to Bright Horizons until he turned 3. We switched to a play-based Reggio program with extended hours and a year-round schedule because it was cheaper and a better location. My child was equally happy as his friends who stayed at BH. They did a lot more kindergarten type activities like worksheets and writing their names. Half-way into Kindergarten we see the same group of families fairly often and the kids seem to be equally happy and well prepared for kindergarten.

BH kids did a lot more academic activities. My kid basically played in the mud and built blocks for a year. He is reading and writing as well as the BH kids.

[Anonymous]

I think with the daycares you are more limited in terms of curriculum. I have toured 7 daycare centers and they all said they were "play-based" and either used a proprietary curriculum (e.g Goddard's F.L.E.X.) or the Creative Curriculum. If you are dead set on Reggio Emilia or Montessori you need to find a preschool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you who don't understand: OP is just asking if your kids were happy in daycare at ages 3-5.

Like a Bright Horizons that says it has a "preschool curriculum" for their older classes. As opposed to "Joe Smith's Preschool" that starts at age 2.5, is NAEYC accredited, and doesn't have an infant program.

OP here. THIS. Exactly. Thank you.

You're welcome! For what it's worth, I live in the suburbs, and most of my peers have our kids at in home daycares until they're 2 and then decide between the daycare and the standalone preschools. Everyone I've talked to who has made either decision is happy with where their kids are. That said, we don't have the crazy academic preschools that DC has (well there are a few, but they are attached to private schools), so the difference is not as extreme.

[Anonymous]

Our DS's DC daycare is a "Community Based Organization" that offers free PK3. The PK3 classroom is more academically rigorous than the 2-3yo class he was in before. It follows the same standards as DCPS. DS likes going to "school" _even more_ now that he's in PK3 (we always did and still do aftercare, which remains free play).

OP, what is your current childcare situation? My DS has always been in daycare since 3mo so we didn't have transition issues.