Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

I know this day in age everyone I speak to is planning or is sending their child to nursery or preK - I was just wondering if anyone has decided not to send their child to preK or nursery school?

Do you regret it? Did it pose a problem for your child once they started kindergarden?

Im 28 and we had alot of children in my family all the same age and NONE of us went to nursery or preK - it just wasn't as popular as it is now - i was just toying around with the idea of whether I want to send my DD to nursery school and wanted to know if anyone chose not to send them.......

I went to a few schoold and the places are so expensive $$ - i was shocked to know that people actually pay this kind of money.

I do think it can be very beneficial for a child to interact and learn alongside other children and we do attend mommy and me classes and do playdates but after seeing what these prices are I kidna wanted to get some opinions...

TIA

Message edited 8/23/2008 2:43:52 PM.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

DD is still too young for me to have to decide yet, but from what i see from my friends children who go, they know soooo much more then I did when i went to kindergarten. 3 year olds know their ABCs, the months of the year, how to write and spell their names etc. I almost feel that by not putting DD in, she'll actually be behind by the time she goes to kindergarten. I'm also going to have 2 other little ones at home, so i know i'm not going to be able to teach her as much as someone with only one child could.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

The preschools I have looked at have not been expensive at all. Some were like $75-$90 a month. Is that a lot?

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

My girls went to nursery school and prek.....and prek was full day. It was definitely beneficial to them...but they are smart kids to begin with and Im sure they woud have learned a lot at home too.

With DS my DH and I arent planning on sending him to nursery school but we will do prek...

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

I wasn't going to at first. But then I really wanted him to be able to separate from me since I was a SAHM and everything he did up until that point he did with me. I wanted him to be able to socialize and have friends too, aside from the things we did like gym classes.

I sent him when he turned 3 (he turned 3 in May and went to camp that summer and then nursery school in Sept). He loved it! I could have sent him at 2 and often wondered if not sending him was a mistake. Absolutely not! I think him starting at age 3 was perfect.

Now that my DD is 2, she is home with me for at least another year before I send her. And I'm happy with that - more time with me and she'll have plenty of time for school when she turns 3.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

I will let you know if it is worth it or not Andrew is 2 and we are sending him in Sept for 2 days a week, 2 1/2 hrs a day. It is $127 a month which we thought was really good.

I think it will be good for him because he is pretty advanced in language and some other things and I would like him to be in a school environment to learn more and put his knowledge to good use.

Also I would like him to be around children more and learn how to share and make new friends. And also learn how to follow the rules of a teacher.

I want him to learn these things at an early age.

Myself and my DH both went to preschool. DH actually went to the one we are sending Andrew. And both are parents said it helped a lot with the transition to kindergarten.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

I think the earliest I will send him is at 4 years old....he has a late b-day, so by then he is going to be so tired of looking at me.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

I think things are totally different now then when we were younger. School isn't the same as it was. There is much more of an emphasis to read and write younger in order to prepare for the many state and citywide tests that children are required to take. As a past K teacher I always noticed a big difference in the children who didn't attend school prior to K in comparison with the children who did. Kindergarten is all work now.....no more nap, and no more play time. My daughter is almost 3 now and although I work with her at home its not the same as working with a group of 17 other kids. In just a few weeks, Ava will be going to school 4 days a week for 4 1/2 hours a day....When she turns 4 I'll probably send her full time.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

I didn't. I taught DD at home. She knew how to read and write the alphabet and numbers by the time she was 4. Now she can read and write all 12 months, her name, days of the week. She can add and subtract and I don't even know how high she can count now.

I still take her to the library for activities and she interacts with her cousins all the time. If you try you can teach your DC just as much if not more at home.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

Thanks ladies. I appreciate the responses. I also agree that kindergarden isn't want it used to be - i remember my mom sending me to school with a blankie for naptime and i remember mostly playing with toys - i think i will continue to do a bit more research and get some more prices - perhaps send her when she is 3 or 3.5 which will be soon. Im also a SAHM and she is super attached to me - so this may be a good thing except for the cost which i think most agree is expensive.

THe schools ive visited want anywhere from $450 a month and upwards for 2 days a week (2.5 hours a day). The cheapest place i saw wanted $250.00 a month - but the location didn't have windows and it was very small......

thanks again

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

As a teacher I think that it is very important for children to have some pre-school experience. Children are expected to know so much when they enter kindergarten now, and pre-k/nursery really helps them prepare for the demands of kindergarten (sad but true). When teaching Kindergarten I saw some students come in who had no prior school experience and they were at such a disadvantage compared to the rest of the class.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

here we have a JK (Junior Kindergarden)
which the kids start at age 3 or 4 depending on when they were born (our schools goes by calender year for its ages in the class so even if a kid was born Dec. 31st they start with the kids that were born in Jan that year eg. Jan 2008-Dec 2008 all kids star at the same time so some kids will be 3) Its with the catholic and public school boards here so all kids go to school starting at those ages. After JK they go to SK (Senior Kindergarden) and so on all with the same school up until grade 8 then its onto high school.

no paying! DD will be in school full time when shes 4 until then she will be at the babysitters.

Re: Did anyone *NOT* send their child to nursery/preschool?

Have you checked with the town or school district where you live? I know the town of oyster bay has a preschool program and some school districts offer it as well.