OP here - just wanted to thank everyone for these thoughtful replies. Lots to think about!

Run to Jerusalem Baptist Church's Mothers Day Out. It's just the right balance of structure and play!

I agree OP. I hate that we're pushing kids to grow up so quickly. 3 is so young.

This is a real concern, OP. We tried our local DCPS and found it way to regimented and stressful. It was absolutely true that private PK was more fun, more play-based, and more age-appropriate for our child. That's not to say this is a universal experience. There are plenty of kids who do just fine, and PK programs that try to shelter the kids a bit more.

But yeah, at 3 years old, I did not really need my kid to be going to 2 "specials" a day in different classrooms, expected to follow rigid rules about when to do what, assessed continuously on 36 different data points in TS Gold, and just generally in the test-stress environment that trickles down from the upper grades.

You will be able to travel whenever you want when your kid is in preschool. Travel is much more important than making sure a preschooler is in school every day.

The public schools offer enrollment earlier and earlier, not for the benefit of children but to help parents
who work so they can have a "free childcare". It is not really better for a child to be subjected to a stranger care
then parent care if you can only afford taking care of your child yourself. Of course, this is a luxury not everybody
can afford so this is your choice. It is good that those programs exist for those parents who need them.

Way too much routine, way too early, way to structured, way too little freedom of movement and playtime.
Way too little mama time.

I would be mostly concerned about long hours and structure.
At this age couple of hours once or twice a week in some sort of class setting like Kidville or city classes for that age
are plenty. Just to get a kid accustomed to a group learning, and a teacher other than you. Then continue on until K.
You can offer so much more a child, the whole world that is needed to develop all kind of interest and experience
so much more ou there. You are taking it all away and switching with very limited exposure to some academics
that a kid can develop in no time in a home setting.

This is basically huge depravement of a precious parent-child time that you can never make up for later.

Three of our children were identified as “gifted”. One is not at that stage, yet. They have all done quite well in school, but I like you, wanted the freedom to spend the day with them if I wanted to or to take family trips. So, I did my own research and put together an educational program for my sons prior to Kindergarten. They had a structured academic program so they were more than ready for school; they had each other, and some of the neighborhood children for the social part. My husband and I and their teachers are pleased with their academic outcomes.
"So, if you're concerned about this, it might not hurt to consider taking the time to spend with your children and not get drawn into something so regimented that you miss some really fun years of their lives. Personally, I wanted us to grow together as a family and teach them our family values. Of course, I wanted to be there to give
them lots of hugs and kisses. Everything doesn’t have to be so structured that all of the fun is
taken out of life and you can't enjoy your babies while they're young. Hope this helps you decide what's right for your family!

I guess it depends--if your child is home with you, it might feel like a big step. Our kid was in FT daycare since we both work FT, so the transition to PK3 at our neighborhood school was pretty seamless. Not sure what school this is, but for us, it did not feel too academic (although they did work on writing, word and # recognition, etc.). It was a great year, and now kid is a kindergartner at the same school and is thriving with friends she made in PK3.

Really, the ONLY thing I didn't like is that they only get 30 min of recess, which is too little, IMO. Everything else was great. I'd say the main focus is socioemotional in PK3.

We didn't get into our IB school last year and ended up doing a half-day private preschool. Pre-lottery I was worried about my kid starting "school" so early because public PK3 is such a long day. It worked out well for us and we didn't do the lottery this year. We are just sticking with our private preschool until K. Next year, the day gets longer but we still don't have to worry about taking vacations or days off and it doesn't have the same feel as going to a big school building where there are older kids. We didn't have a choice, but I'm happy with how things worked out. I think our IB school will be great for K and up.

We just got into our generally well-regarded IB school for pre-K 3. On one hand, I'm excited and I think it will be a great experience for our kid, and I know the program is play-based, but part of me feels a little sad about starting the whole school experience this early. Like will we not be able to take trips when we want to because of absences, and will even the play-based program feel regimented? Wondering if other parents have felt like this or have had regrets.