Kinder doesn’t prepare for you school anymore. You have to read well to get out of kinder - that was the expectation in first grade a generation ago.

PK3 is a little optional but PK4 should be required. And PK3 will be helpful to your kid, so why wouldn’t you do it?

socialization is more important than care at that age. i'd say yes absolutely.

We didn't do pre-K because of covid. Ours just never opened and we couldn't get a spot anywhere. DD stayed home with a nanny. She was fully prepared for Kindergarten- could read, do basic math and was social (she had siblings).

You don't say what your child's sex is, but I think boys need Pre-K more than girls. My boys were a bit more rambunctious and Kindergarten is sadly really geared towards girls. Kindergarten just doesn't put up with kids who can't sit still for hours. Pre-K helped my boys learn to raise their hands, play more cooperatively, etc.

Anonymous wrote:Yes, you need to do something to prepare them for kindergarten, being in a classroom setting with multiple other kids, etc.

kinder at the school my kids will go to is a full day and it isn't to prepare you for school, it is school and the kids are expected to be able to function in a large classroom, line up, etc.

+1, my kid is in K in DC and it's crazy how intense it is. I'm glad she had a year of PK to get used to going to the school and having specials and being around other kids in that setting. Her PK was very play based (like mostly just songs and games, going for neighborhood walk, arts and crafts, read alongs, and doing "choice time" in the classroom) but she also learned all her letters and letter sounds, and her numbers, and she started sounding out words on her own the summer before K. And now in K she's learning phonics and basic math.

We missed PK3 because of Covid and in the end that has been fine academically -- I don't think there is anything she might have learned in PK3 that she's missing now. However, I do think it had a negative impact on her socially because she still struggles a bit with the social side of school (she doesn't fight with other kids but is very shy and has a hard time connecting and making friends). Some of that is also likely being an only child, and some of it is definitely just her disposition (she naturally prefers 1:1 or smaller groups, quieter activities, and has never been a huge fan of loud, crowded playground play). But I do think PK3 would have helped her acclimate sooner. Now it's hard because K is so academic and there are fewer opportunities to just practice social skills. We do a lot of after school activities to try and help. But I wish she could have had that PK3 year.

We’re in a totally different situation because we had daycare and then preschool starting at 3 (we’re in DC) but both of my kids (now 6 & 3 so the youngest is in preK 3 now) love/d preK and really thrive/d there. They are both very social, outgoing kids though, so they love that interaction with other kids. They would have been bored without somewhere to go every day. They also really benefit from the structure and the range of activities. My 3yo has fun, is excited about his day, and is learning - not just letters and numbers but he’s showing off things he learned in dance class. He gets excited about the books they read that day. They both gain a lot of independence through preK. It was/is good for them to have a relationship with adults that are not part of the family.

He goes full day, which is 8-3 and that’s really perfect for us, but their structured day is really just in the morning. Then they have lunch, nap, and there’s basically just playtime and snack for the last hour before pickup. I think a morning preK program would have a lot of the same benefits.

Look into part-time preschool -- e.g., 3-4 hours 2-3 a week. That gets your kids some exposure to a school-like atmosphere where they bring a backpack and hang it on a hook and sit with other kids their age. It's about socializing and learning a school-like routine before they reach kindergarten. It's very important, because K teachers now expect kids to know how a classroom works on Day One.

There is a lot of in between between staying home and going five full days a week. You could find a 2 day a week preschool for next year then the year after when she’s 4 do 3 or 5 half days. As long as your Namny interacts with them and they can go different places and interact with other children they will be fine.

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5yo and 4mo have a nanny. We will keep the nanny until the 4mo goes to school... So my question is... If we're going to have the nanny either way should we send the 2.5yo to prek? We're in DC so potentially have a good-ish free Prek option near home next year. But does a 3yo really benefit from going? Or could it be just as beneficial for to spend the PK3 year playing with park friends and going on nanny adventures and hanging with their sibling? It would probably be good for 2.5yo to have some more structured time to prepare for K... but isn't K just to prepare for the rest of school?

Maybe during the pandemic and/or in rural areas without good preschool options and where K is half day, K is used to "prepare for the rest of school." But around here, almost everyone does some sort of group care/schooling to prepare their kids before they enter K.

Anonymous wrote:My 2.5yo and 4mo have a nanny. We will keep the nanny until the 4mo goes to school... So my question is... If we're going to have the nanny either way should we send the 2.5yo to prek? We're in DC so potentially have a good-ish free Prek option near home next year. But does a 3yo really benefit from going? Or could it be just as beneficial for to spend the PK3 year playing with park friends and going on nanny adventures and hanging with their sibling? It would probably be good for 2.5yo to have some more structured time to prepare for K... but isn't K just to prepare for the rest of school?

I have a 3 year old, my mom lives with us and we could have kept her home for free until Kindergarten if it was the better option. But she's getting so much out of PK3, and you might not realize the park friends are going to disappear once school is in session.

THAT SAID: I remember looking at DD when she was 2.5 and having these thoughts - does she need it? Isn't full day a lot to ask from this little kid? Wouldn't it be better for her to be in a smaller setting? It's pretty nuts how much your kid is going to change between now and next fall. You can't imagine it now, but as nervous as I was about putting her in a classroom when she was 2, she was so excited about it by the time she was the right age that it's hard to remember why I had reservations.

I think there’s some (small) benefit to easing into school environments but in your situation I might wait to start at PK4 and just skip PK3. The benefit is nominal and I think playing in the part with sibling and nanny is great for a 3yo.

PP here. In the kinder class here my kid went to, every single kid had SOME sort of formal/outside preparation for kindergarten in a group setting.

Yes

Yes, you need to do something to prepare them for kindergarten, being in a classroom setting with multiple other kids, etc.

kinder at the school my kids will go to is a full day and it isn't to prepare you for school, it is school and the kids are expected to be able to function in a large classroom, line up, etc.

They need the daily socialization with kids their age. You can put them in a regular preschool that meets for about 3 hours a day - that’s enough. At my kids old preschool it was common to see nannies dropping kids off etc. you could start next year when your child would be in the “3s” class.

My 2.5yo and 4mo have a nanny. We will keep the nanny until the 4mo goes to school... So my question is... If we're going to have the nanny either way should we send the 2.5yo to prek? We're in DC so potentially have a good-ish free Prek option near home next year. But does a 3yo really benefit from going? Or could it be just as beneficial for to spend the PK3 year playing with park friends and going on nanny adventures and hanging with their sibling? It would probably be good for 2.5yo to have some more structured time to prepare for K... but isn't K just to prepare for the rest of school?