What do I need to know about preschool in San Francisco?
October 20, 2009 2:26 PM Subscribe
Tell me about the need for pre-school in San Francisco, please.
We have a 16-month old daughter who is in daycare three days a week and live and work in San Francisco. Assuming we stay in San Francisco, we'll probably send her to public schools and I am slowly learning about that complicated and frustrating process. In the mean time, I can't find a lot of info about pre-schools in SF.
First of all, at what age do kids go to pre-school, is it just for the year prior to kindergarten or before then?
I think our daycare would be fine keeping her until kindergarten but I'm imagining that there might be benefits to attending pre-school. She's in a home daycare situation and though they do some activities, it's not super dynamic, which is totally fine for now but as she gets older I'm thinking she might need something more enriched.
Do most kids go to pre-school? It's not usually all day every day, is it? So do they do part-time daycare/part-time pre-school if the parents work? I'm sure in the next year I'll go back to work full time so we'll need a 5-day/week solution eventually anyway.
From brief web searches I see scads and scads of pre-schools but I don't even know where to begin to filter them. Some actually seem more like daycares to add to my confusion.
And then there are the people who tell me that I should have my daughter on waiting lists for schools already, which I kind of think is crazy. Is it?
I'm planning on attending a local session on pre-schools tomorrow night so maybe I'll feel more informed after that but any other anecdotal or otherwise info would be appreciated?
We have a 16-month old daughter who is in daycare three days a week and live and work in San Francisco. Assuming we stay in San Francisco, we'll probably send her to public schools and I am slowly learning about that complicated and frustrating process. In the mean time, I can't find a lot of info about pre-schools in SF.
First of all, at what age do kids go to pre-school, is it just for the year prior to kindergarten or before then?
I think our daycare would be fine keeping her until kindergarten but I'm imagining that there might be benefits to attending pre-school. She's in a home daycare situation and though they do some activities, it's not super dynamic, which is totally fine for now but as she gets older I'm thinking she might need something more enriched.
Do most kids go to pre-school? It's not usually all day every day, is it? So do they do part-time daycare/part-time pre-school if the parents work? I'm sure in the next year I'll go back to work full time so we'll need a 5-day/week solution eventually anyway.
From brief web searches I see scads and scads of pre-schools but I don't even know where to begin to filter them. Some actually seem more like daycares to add to my confusion.
And then there are the people who tell me that I should have my daughter on waiting lists for schools already, which I kind of think is crazy. Is it?
I'm planning on attending a local session on pre-schools tomorrow night so maybe I'll feel more informed after that but any other anecdotal or otherwise info would be appreciated?
I'm really glad you're asking this because I'm mystified as well. (Baby Llama is the same age as yours.)
I went straight from Mom to kindergarten and have a collection of neurosis to show for it. I don't want to do that to baby llama, but right now she's with her grandparents all day, which is a lot like being home with mom.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 3:30 PM on October 20, 2009
I went straight from Mom to kindergarten and have a collection of neurosis to show for it. I don't want to do that to baby llama, but right now she's with her grandparents all day, which is a lot like being home with mom.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 3:30 PM on October 20, 2009
Just in time - tomorrow is Preschool parent night in SF. (Oops -on preview - I see you are going to this. Be prepared. It is a freaking madhouse. Go without your little one if you can swing it...)
Preschool is good for getting kids used to the structure and routine that is real school. Learning how to take instruction from people who aren't you. Understanding how interpersonal relationships work at school (sharing, taking turns, conflict resolution). A good preschool will have staff that have significant training in child development (which may or may not be true at a "Day Care"). My daughter went from a nanny share with one other little girl to pre-school and the developmental leap that followed has been amazing to watch.
There are definitely plenty of preschools in SF that encourage you to get on the list while you are pregnant. They aren't joking. You need to give deposits for a lot of these places. I came to believe that it is a secondary business model in SF preschools - collecting deposits for students they never intend to enroll. Eureka Valley Learning Center is one of these, as are the Marin Day/Bright Horizons schools down town and South of Market.
Preschool in SF is like school, school when it comes to admissions. They are on the school calendar year and vary in terms of part and full time programs. You tour now, apply December/January and learn where you got in in March/April. Some schools have rolling admissions but in my experience they are the minority. We have a 3 year old and moved to Oakland a year ago, primarily because, starting with preschool, we found the entire system in SF to be so adversarial to kids and parents that we bailed on the city entirely. Good luck! I've done a ton of research on the different schools in SF - feel free to memail me if you want to chat more.
posted by Wolfie at 4:15 PM on October 20, 2009
Preschool is good for getting kids used to the structure and routine that is real school. Learning how to take instruction from people who aren't you. Understanding how interpersonal relationships work at school (sharing, taking turns, conflict resolution). A good preschool will have staff that have significant training in child development (which may or may not be true at a "Day Care"). My daughter went from a nanny share with one other little girl to pre-school and the developmental leap that followed has been amazing to watch.
There are definitely plenty of preschools in SF that encourage you to get on the list while you are pregnant. They aren't joking. You need to give deposits for a lot of these places. I came to believe that it is a secondary business model in SF preschools - collecting deposits for students they never intend to enroll. Eureka Valley Learning Center is one of these, as are the Marin Day/Bright Horizons schools down town and South of Market.
Preschool in SF is like school, school when it comes to admissions. They are on the school calendar year and vary in terms of part and full time programs. You tour now, apply December/January and learn where you got in in March/April. Some schools have rolling admissions but in my experience they are the minority. We have a 3 year old and moved to Oakland a year ago, primarily because, starting with preschool, we found the entire system in SF to be so adversarial to kids and parents that we bailed on the city entirely. Good luck! I've done a ton of research on the different schools in SF - feel free to memail me if you want to chat more.
posted by Wolfie at 4:15 PM on October 20, 2009
Response by poster: Yikes that Preschool Preview Night was a hot horrible mess and only made things more confusing for me. One lady tried to sell us on the idea of PRE-preschool and I'm still not even sure preschool is necessary. Clearly I have a lot more work to do.
Wolfie: When I was pregnant I got on the waiting list for one of the Marin Day centers and I'm with you on the secondary business model aspect of it. When her name came up for a spot, we were happily ensconced in her current home daycare and I felt no need to change things for the supposedly "better"program. I'm curious about your move to Oakland - is the system there all that much better? That's somewhat surprising to hear and I'd love more of your thought on that. I have a friend who is a principal at a public elementary school here in SF and I'm thinking I need to sit down with him and get some input.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 8:37 PM on October 21, 2009
Wolfie: When I was pregnant I got on the waiting list for one of the Marin Day centers and I'm with you on the secondary business model aspect of it. When her name came up for a spot, we were happily ensconced in her current home daycare and I felt no need to change things for the supposedly "better"program. I'm curious about your move to Oakland - is the system there all that much better? That's somewhat surprising to hear and I'd love more of your thought on that. I have a friend who is a principal at a public elementary school here in SF and I'm thinking I need to sit down with him and get some input.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 8:37 PM on October 21, 2009
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I have three children. My oldest went to preschool when she was 4 - a friend taught it. She went twice a week for 2 hours. She sang songs, did crafts, "learned" a letter or number and had a snack. It was fun for her - but it wasn't necessary. I put her in the preschool for the socializing - getting used to other adults being in charge and getting to know other children on her own (she was never in daycare). My middle child never went to preschool. He is now in first grade and doing splendidly. My third child is now three and I have no plans of putting him in a "formal" preschool. Right now a few friends and I alternate teaching "school" once a week. On Thursdays we get together and have a little letter or number lesson, some crafts and a snack.
If your child is in day care, I would think that she is getting quite a bit of socialization and doesn't need that aspect of "preschool." I do understand the appeal of having a more formal sit down session that preschool tends to offer - to get your child to real school, but I don't think there is any benefit to preschool happening every day all day/half day.
In my circle of friends, this is kind of a touchy subject. Some are very vehement on getting their children into preschool as soon as possible. Some (like me) are very "meh" about it. It is confusing - but preschool is not necessary, unless perhaps your child has a developmental delay and needs the extra help in language, fine motor skills, etc. But just because it's not necessary doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. It just means that you don't have to stress so much about it. Whether you do it or not, your child will be just fine and dandy.
posted by Sassyfras at 2:42 PM on October 20, 2009