Can you tell me? When is a child ready for school? When do you know that your baby needs the challenge of a structured, educational setting? For me, I am fairly certain it is now. And then, how to choose a school?
I have pondered the timing of this milestone since Alina was a mere 18 months old. The terrible twos had struck us early, and as a new mom, I felt like I was doing something wrong. {Why am I so hard on myself?} Anyway, I seriously wondered if her development would be better cared for by “professionals”. We took a tour of a preschool, and I ultimately decided that my reasons for considering school enrollment were not for Alina; my reasons were because I was feeling inept in my parenting. So, I pulled it together, did what I do to get my confidence back {read and research} and was able to lead my smart little cookie out of that development stage of defensive behavior. To this day, that lesson might be my most rewarding parenting experiences.
Almost a year later, the question was again wondered: is my child ready for school? By the age of two and a half, we had established a consistent routine of storytime and friends. We took Las Vegas by storm, visiting museums, apple picking and farmer’s markets on a weekly basis. Alina and I were exploring the world, all the while discussing and questioning what we saw. I could see Alina maturing, with an increased understanding of social norms. Her vocabulary was exploding, too. The nagging feeling that maybe she would, at the very least, have a great time playing with other kids in a school setting came back. But this time I knew it wasn’t about me or my parenting skills; I knew my motives were strictly for Alina’s development.
Around this time, we had moved into our new home and I was very pregnant. Shortly after moving, Sebastian was born and its taken us a few months to get into the routine of a new normal. Including, financially. So, knowing that preschool for my two and a half year old was not feasible for our one income budget, and our previous on-the-go routine wasn’t feasible with a newborn, I began to implement preschool activities at home, like this color sorting game.
It wasn’t long before Alina outgrew the color sorting games, and I could tell she needed more focused activities. She is blossoming every day. Now more than ever, I feel like we have officially outgrown our old routine. Our best friends have moved away, and looking around the other kids at storytime, Alina is among the oldest. The decision to seek a more structured school environment was reinforced even more last week when our favorite librarian pulled me aside to talk with me about Alina’s development. She wanted to know when I was going to enroll her in preschool, and encouraged me to do so sooner rather than later. To hear this advice from a woman who has known Alina for most of her life, who adores her and smothers her with attention and praise, not to mention the fact that our librarian interacts with hundreds of kids on a weekly basis, I finally decided – My child is finally ready for school.
Okay… did you really think I was just going to enroll Alina in preschool? Just like that? Ha! Being apart for hours on end, day after day, is not something Alina nor I can just jump into. We are a sensitive lot, and need to test the waters before jumping into a full time school schedule. But, I was able to find an educational-based class, focused on learning their ABCs and 123s, that runs for only 1 hour in length and meets twice a week. I threw in an additional one hour sports class, and our new routine is set! The classes are very affordable, making it much easier on the budget than traditional preschool options.
My toddler turned preschooler is learning everyday, and starting next week, I will feel a bit better about helping her development along. Social and academical developments are great, but all I really want is for Alina to be challenged and feel the richness one feels with accomplishment.
Cheers to being a brand new preschooler! And for all the learning yet to come!
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. I am a Britax Latina Advisory Board Member and Blogger. As always, all opinions, ideas, and stories are my own. You can connect with BRITAX on Twitter and Facebook.
[...] been contemplating the fate of our preschooler for months now. I’ve wondered out loud, when is a child ready for school? I’ve talked about how becoming a big sister has matured her, and how while Sebastian was a [...]