from Playborhood Palo Alto / Menlo Park

Picking a Preschool:  Play-based vs. Structured is One Choice, But There are Many More

Posted: 03/31/08 05:17 PM

A lot can be written about finding the right school for your child - public vs. private, secular vs. religious, coop vs. traditional, and of course play-based vs. structured.  There’s a wide spectrum in all of those areas plus other specialized programs, and where I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, the variety of options can be overwhelming.  But let’s say, for the sake of simplification that we’re searching for a largely play-based environment for our children during their early years.  What then?

Before my husband and I decided to try for a baby, I naively scoffed at new parents fretting about where to send their kids to school; I couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about - and why on earth was it such a big deal to get kids into “the right preschool”?  Then a couple of years later, we made our decision to start a family, I soon became pregnant, and lo and behold, people were already warning me: “Have you gotten on any waiting lists yet?” They said, with obvious tension in their voices.  I shrugged in reply.  “You really should,” they responded.

Continued on Playborhood Palo Alto / Menlo Park

by Sarah Granger

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