Does Franklin have a playdate for the 2yo class? DS went there for the 2yo program, and I don't recall a playdate, but thought I heard there was one for the primary program. I thought it was first-come, first-served for 2yo.

Don't stress about it, OP. Parents stay in the room. Most parents sort of sit back and don't interact w/ their kid too much (try to let the kids play on their own), but I think that's just so it doesn't look like your kid is incapable of any self-direction and/or to avoid looking like a helicopter parent. The teachers will try to go around to each kid for a minute or two to interact with each kid. If your kid does want to engage you, that's totally fine.

There's often a snack portion of the playdate. One helpful thing to teach your kid is to clean up when he or she is done. They also use little paper cups (the bathroom size), so if your child has never drank from an open cup, you might want to do that.

We attend Franklin and they make it clear that the play date -- they don't call it an interview -- isn't going to determine whether they accept your child, but just a way to get to know the child a little better. I think it's nice they take the time. The director played with about six kids at once -- Legos, puzzles, etc -- and chatted with them. My child had fun and it made her look forward to going to the school.

One thing they'll look for is whether what you want as a parent is alignment with the mission of the school. You have a very random list, and I can't imagine a family finding both Aidan/Franklin and SfF/Lowell attractive. They're pretty opposite in terms of philosophy, so you might want to think about how to explain what's important to you in a school. Doing so might be helpful during the interviews, or it might help you shape down your list to match what you really want.

Are they interviews or play dates?

Try not to come through as high-maintenance. Given a choice, a director will go with parents that won't be difficult to deal with in the future.

These aren't grade school interviews. They're just playing with your child long enough to see if he or she generally appears ready to be in a room with other children. The tough thing about getting into these schools is finding open slots, not nailing the interview.

We live in NW and are considering enrolling our child in preschool next year (she will be 2.5 at the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year and currently attends daycare).

Most (if not all) of the schools we have applied for have "interviews" as part of the application process. While I don't want to dwell too much on the need to interview at 2.5 years old, I was hoping to have a better understanding of what to expect.

What goes on during the interview? What will the school do or ask my child? What will they ask us? How can we prepare?

Thanks!

(PS - We're applying to Lowell, Franklin, Aidan, River, and SFF.)