05 Feb
Finding A Preschool For T1
T1 started preschool back in September of 2012, shortly after we moved to Palo Alto. We knew it was the right time to put him in school because of the way he responded to church nursery time, and because we thought it would advance his language skills as he was forced to navigate a new environment and voice his needs. He was 2 1/2 (29 months) when he started.
Obviously things like safety and loving caregivers were our top priority; price, location, and schedule were also determining factors. I’m not so married to a certain school of thought when it comes to preschool education that I was ruling things out automatically based on the style. I love the idea of Montessori for young children (as of right now we’re thinking public school once our kids hit kindergarten) but the nearby options were well outside our budget or distance I was willing to travel. I also wanted to find a place with full-day options because I didn’t like the idea of dropping him off and then picking him up 2-3 hours later. The commute looked like it would be at least 15 minutes one-way and that’s not a lot of time to get anything done (I don’t know about you, but I work best when I have long chunks of time to attack my to-do list).
The place we chose is called Children’s Pre-school Center (CPSC for short) and it fit all three of my criteria regarding price/location/schedule. A commute that isn’t too bad (I’m able to avoid rush hour freeway traffic if I take a side road), drop-off as early as 7:15 am (though it’s closer to 10am by the time I get us out of the house) with pick-up at 6:15 pm, and a price that worked for us. He would be grouped in a room by age, and would be one of the oldest kids in his classroom.
I liked that I could pack his lunch and they would reheat as needed. I liked that they would allow him to be in diapers/pull-ups (we were going to potty train him right before he started and didn’t know how successful it would be). I like that they have “sports time” with Mr. Dave on Wednesday mornings. I liked that it was play based and that the weekly themes for the classroom activities were based on interests shown by the children (for example, they did a babies week because several of the little girls love to spend time playing with baby dolls). I most loved that they could get him to nap! Something I can’t do on my own no matter what I try (unless it’s going for long drive or walks in the stroller).
We enrolled him for MWF. The teachers are all very kind, and I enjoyed having 3 full days per week to myself with enough time to go to the gym, run errands, shower, eat, and still have a few hours to pay bills and attack my inbox. Not to mention the million home-decor projects I assigned myself when we moved. And to take a nap as I advanced in my pregnancy and became more tired each day! I love having some time to myself while T1 is able to have social interactions with other children/learning to navigate the structure of other environments and I’m really grateful to be in a place (physically/financially) where we can make that happen. I love that I can make to-do lists that involve things on the computer and I don’t have to let T1 destroy my office in order to write a check to PG&E for our electricity that month. Or that I can go to bed at 8pm instead of staying up late doing that stuff when he is playing with toys in his room (instead of sleeping) each night.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays when there was no school we would either clean the house or go on adventures (if we were really ambitious, we’d do both in one day but I’m rarely that ambitious). On one of those adventures I was at the Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo (great little place, right next to the children’s library in Palo Alto!) and another parent raved about the preschool his daughter attended. She (the daughter) also had dealt with some speech delays and this school not only had highly educated teachers but the option to simultaneously enroll T1 in speech therapy and preschool at the same time (meaning he could have his speech therapy while he was at preschool). They had an open house the next weekend and so I decided to go and find out more.
The open house sold me, and so we decided to enroll him in on TTh in the new preschool (let’s call this one “speech therapy optional preschool” or STOP for short) and keep him at CPSC on MWF for the full days as well. He loves being around “friends” (what he calls every kid his age) and this was a great opportunity to see how he liked a completely different environment and approach.
Over time we realized that STOP is a superior program in many ways. CPSC is more of a glorified daycare, and (though they are lovely people) the teachers there are more like care providers than instructors. The teachers at STOP have master’s degrees and that extra education makes a big difference. And you know what? For whatever reason, T1 seems to prefer STOP as well!* STOP also mixes the kids by age which is really good for his speech. He has a huge crush on a girl named Lexi, and when I tell him it’s the day when he gets to go to school and see Lexi he claps and cheers in excitement.
As we discussed our schedule and plans for the arrival of T2 we decided it was time to re-evaluate. We gave our 30 day notice at CPSC** and decided to switch him to MWF from 9am-12pm at STOP. This will give him some time with Lexi and his other friends as well as the awesome teachers at STOP days with mama and baby to go on adventures (or you know, to do dishes and laundry and stuff). In the Fall we’ll talk about 9-12 preschool at STOP 5x/week instead of 3x/week if that feels right for him. I’m really grateful that we have all of these options for us and opportunities for him!
T1 has been thriving at both schools, and his teachers are constantly telling us how sweet he is and how much they enjoy having him there. (This must mostly be temperament because I can’t think of anything specific we’ve done to warrant a child who thrives in this way). He comes home singing songs I have to look up on YouTube and we’ve seen incredible leaps in his language development that I attribute in part to the time spend socializing with other kids/adults and mimicking their speech as well as being forced to vocalize his needs in ways he hasn’t had to before.
So we ended up with a 3-hour-a-day school after all, which yes, means a lot of driving or a lot of time sitting at coffee shops because my errands are done but school is not, but as with most things in parenting it’s about figuring out what is best for your child and what you can personally make work. I’ll miss my large chunks of productive time, but having a baby meant I was going to be giving that up anyway. The best part of having him in school? The moment when I walk in the door to pick him up and he screams my name and runs over and jumps into my arms. That doesn’t happen when we spend all of our time together and I treasure that look of pure joy on his face each day (and hopefully he enjoys seeing the same sentiment reflected in mine).
*I suspect that this might be in part because he doesn’t like being away from me for such an extended period of time.
**This is why I’m comfortable sharing the real name of CPSC with you (he doesn’t go there anymore) but am using a made-up one for STOP 
Also:
I'm a farm-raised almost-crunchy stroller-pushing picture-taking lifestyle-blog-writing gastronomy-obsessed divine-seeking thrift-store-combing cheese-inhaling pavement-pounding laughter-sprinkling lover of individuality and taking chances.
This post is so interesting to me. My daughter started going to preschool pretty recently as well so it’s been on my mind a lot (so many options! and opinions! it’s difficult to know exactly what setup is best, if you have the luxury to freely choose).
For me it was all about the atmosphere of the school (which sounds really hippie but oh well): as in, did the teachers like working there? were the kids happy, busy and engaged? was it pleasant looking (clean, attractive, well-lit)? Plus location (because I didn’t think that a full day was going to work for us at this point, and if it’s only for 3 hours, you are so right that spending over 30 minutes just in commuting is such a waste of everyone’s time).
It’s fascinating to hear about how you made your decisions, and what factors you liked, or didn’t. I live in another country, so the situation is quite different here in some respects (for instance, an important factor for me was that the annual Christmas show is performed only by the teachers, for the students: most schools here drill the kids for weeks to perform, something I strongly dislike). I really liked reading about what it’s like in the US (I am American but only have had personal experience overseas). Thanks for the post!
Jenna Reply:
February 5th, 2013 at 9:46 am
“did the teachers like working there?”
This is another point I didn’t mention in my post. Although, again, I think the teachers at CPSC are really nice people, taking care of children for 11 hours a day (although of course no one teacher works a shift that long, and no children are left there for that full time period) is very draining. At the end of the day when I pick T1 up, he is happy and excited, but they are tired (I don’t blame them, managing just him by myself makes me tired). Whereas at the 3 hour school the teachers are very engaged with the children form the time I drop him off to the time I pick him up.
Maybe I just need a school that’s 4-5 hours? Unfortunately with toddler schedules/nap times, that is really difficult. 3 hours just makes sense.
That’s great that you found a pre school that works!
Ha, I’m facinated the only non-school thing you mentioned! How did you get him from co-sleeping to falling asleep in his room alone so fast? That’s interesting! Do you lock him in his room? What if he came out at night? Details (or a full post!) please!
2We are in the process of deciding on a preschool for our daughter who will be 3 in September. I think we have decided on Montessori. The school we went to look at last week was amazing. Kindergarteners doing long division and labeling maps of the Middle East! She will be in a room with 3,4,& 5 year olds. I just love the aspect of teaching to the individual rather than an age group.
3I’ve been following a few “Mormon Mommy blogs” for years (I hope you don’t mind that term) and just discovered your blog recently. I have to say I am hooked! Your writing is excellent (which seems rare in many blogs but OK of course), your honestly is refreshing and of course the photography, gorgeous.
I don’t know why (maybe I just haven’t found the right one) but I find blogs written by Mormon women so much more positive and uplifting than the typical “Mommy” blog. The really weird thing is I’m in my early 30s, married, childless (trying soon), agnostic career girl…. and fairly staunch feminist (perhaps too staunch, I’m softening a bit with age). And I suppose in many ways that makes me a lot different from you (or Cjane, my other fav) but I believe that we as people (especially women) are more alike than we are different.
Jenna do you identify as a feminist? If you’ve already discussed this and could link me to that post I would appreciate it as I’m really interested in your perspective!
4Jenna,
5Thanks for the informative post. Do you have any sort of toddler meals you recommend? or does your son eat what you and your husband do. I am glad you found a school that fits your sons needs. That is challenging/
This is such an interesting post! I dealt with a similar decision recently, and had to really weigh my options as to what was better for MY interests, and what was better for my daughter’s interests. It’s not easy! We have had our 3 year old daughter in a Jewish in-home daycare since she was 3 months old, full time, since my husband and I both work full time outside the home. It was amazing when she was a baby and young toddler, as she was very well cared for, loved going, the price was great, it was 5 minutes from my office, and I loved all the Jewish content. It is hard sometimes to find a truly secular preschool, as they all tend to lean toward the majority, so a Jewish environment makes ME happy. However, as my daughter turned 3, I realized that this in-home daycare did not have all the academics of a real preschool. It really was a daycare, with some preschool-type activities, but there is really only one teacher (and she has assistants who are really just there to take care of the kids, but not teach them). We cannot afford the synagogue preschools, and even with financial aid their hours are not extended enough for our work schedules. So I found a secular preschool, that will lean Christian when it comes to the holidays, but has a great environment, price, location, hours, educational activities and philosophy, etc. It is quasi-montessori and much more structured than her in-home daycare. I realized one day that the Jewish environment was so much more for ME than for her. When she gets to kindergarten, either she will be in a Jewish school where it will all come back to her anyway, or she will be in public school and it will be up to us either way to make sure she has all the religious education and exposure she needs. It was a tough pill to swallow, but I was so glad I realized that I had to think about what was better for her learning, in the long run, and sacrifice some of the stuff that was really just for my own personal preferences.
6Congrats on the baby! She’s beautiful. I hope you and your family are doing well.
I just have to put my foot in my mouth here. I’m a French teacher, and “René” is a male name. “Renée” is the feminine form. It’s a bit like giving your girl the name Simon instead of Simone. Not sure if that’s what you intended, I love the meaning behind it either way!
Jenna Reply:
February 6th, 2013 at 5:56 pm
It’s my mom’s middle name as well as my sister’s. We figured tradition trumped all else in this instance. We’ll hope that French speakers will pardon our incorrect usage.
Might be a silly question - but is preschool year round? Since its not officially daycare, that made me wonder if it follows an academic calendar or is lighter in the summer.
Jenna Reply:
February 10th, 2013 at 6:01 pm
Not silly, I wondered it as well. Year round, which makes sense because working parents would want to be able to keep the same schedule. And working parents are the only ones with enough money to afford preschool here!
Also I’m sure the teachers appreciate the year round salary.