My kid started when he was almost 4 because i waited until I could do DCPS pre-k and he has an October birthday. We stayed with our nanny share until then, which we loved at the time.

When he finally did start preschool, I ended up regretting not starting him in some type of group program much earlier. He was behind a lot of his class socially despite being one of the older kids. He had a lot of trouble with following directions, paying attention, and staying with his group. He got frustrated when things weren’t exactly as he liked them— he was so used to just playing with one other kid and having his specific routine. I understood why 3 is generally when preschool starts— not 4.

It did even out over the year but we were super worried about him for awhile. He absolutely would’ve benefited from at least a part time program until then.

Nanny-Then at about 1.75 did 3 full days a week until 3, so glad we did I see a big difference in immunity and adjustment with the children who never had any daycare prior to prek3, I can’t imagine fighting with a 5-6 year old about school for the first time nor would I want to deal with a child that large and independent being sick as much as they get when they first enter community environments. Babies/toddlers are easier patients.

Find a good daycare. Young kids do not need to be in big classrooms of 15 kids. Young kids needs attention

Get a small daycare

Preschool is not mandatory for kindergarten

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Three. You can find a two or three day a week program at a church that is not that expensive.

And you dint need to be affiliated with said church. They just use their rooms/playground/space. Ours is at a Methodist church for example.

It's not really that expensive Op. If you break down the cost per hour it's surprising low. 9-1pm MWF w/snacks and crafts included and the value of making friends (not just merely the acquaintances at the playground your nanny goes to).

And most preschools accept kids even tho it's started already so don't be deterred

It is more per hour than the cost of a nanny when you figure it is $10-20k/ year and a year is really 8 months (Sept-first week of June, factoring in holiday breaks). And then paying for childcare on top of that is very expensive. Not all provide snacks and some require some amount of parent participation.

$10-20,000 per year!? The 3-morning per week (9:15-11:45) program my kid attends is $4,600 per “academic” (sept through may) year.