A useful guide to choosing a preschool for your child

Starting a preschool often brings about bouts of anxiety in parents. Parents are often seeking information like Which is the right preschool? What is the right age to start?  Should they opt for playgroup or nursery or kindergarten for their child? When does the academic session begin etc.. Also, preschool, playgroup, nursery school, kindergarten school, etc. are loosely defined terms and often interchangeably used (except kindergarten), which adds to the confusion.

This post will help you understand about the right age/program to start, preparing for admission, and choosing a right preschool. Also,  read about the various benefits of preschool, and early childhood education.

When should my child go to preschool

Source: https://pixabay.com/en/children-kindergarten-fun-enjoying-808664/

Preschools have mushroomed in urban India in the last decade. They offer various programs and start at different age-group. Unfortunately, this confuses the parents about the appropriate age to start and the right program for their child.

There are no set structure or age criteria for preschools. Many of them in India have  broadly following age-appropriate groups/programs:

*Kindergarten usually consists of:

• Lower/Junior KG: 3.5-4.5 years
• Upper/Senior KG: 4.5-5.5 years

Preschools design each program for age-appropriate skill development. When you decide on age for your child to start, you can choose an appropriate program. There is usually no pre-requisite of completing a previous age-group program. So there is some flexibility at what age your child can start.

Admission to Preschool

Admission to preschool needs preparation and time. Keep in mind the following points:

• Start of session
• Admission process
• Pre-requisites/ Eligibility Criteria

Start of session

In India, preschools generally start in June/July. However, it may vary based on your state/city of residence and the school’s program.

Admission process

There is no centralised admission process for preschools. Also, most of them define their rules and criteria for admission. Admission process starts anywhere between 2-10 months before the session begins. So keep abreast of current admission procedures in your city to get into a preschool of your choice.

Pre-requisites/ Eligibility Criteria

Schools may have eligibility criteria like proximity to the school, interaction with the parents, background check etc.. Also, depending on what age your child starts; there may be certain pre-requisites like toilet-training complete, eating meals by self, basic communication etc..

How to prepare for admission to Preschool

Please remember the following regarding admission to preschool:

• Decide at what age your child may be ready for preschool
• Initiate enquiries, if possible, 8-10 months before the starting age
• Get reviews from reliable and experienced parents in your social/online contacts
• Shortlist preschools based on your criteria and reviews
• Enquire with shortlisted preschools about admission rules and procedure 
• Visit preschools before shortlisting/finalising and apply to at least a few

Choosing the right preschool

Do visit a preschool and check following points while shortlisting/finalising:

• Teacher to child Ratio – Important if a child starts before 2 years of age
• Safety and security at the premises
• Amenities – Play area, meals, learning aids, hygiene
• Experience and training of staff/caretakers
• Curriculum – Is the program suited to your child [1]
• Fees
• Transport – pick-up/drop facility
• After school childcare – Crucial for working parents without help at home
• Ease of transition to primary school
• Location – Safety, ease and duration of the commute
• Parental involvement – Crucial for working parents if frequent involvement is required
• Prerequisites if any
• Your gut feeling about the suitability of the learning environment for your child

When a child starts Preschool

Be prepared for initial settling-in troubles when your child starts school. Usually, the settling period is 1-4 weeks. Some of the common initial challenges are:

• Separation Anxiety: resist company of new caregivers/unknown faces  
• Infection: exposure to a group of kids increases chances of infections
• Food: dislike/resistance to food offered due to new taste, place, etc.
• Sharing: resist sharing or waiting for the turn

Conclusion

Decide on the age for your child to start preschool. A preschool plays a vital role in laying the foundation for building your child’s personality. Hence tap in your social and online resources to know about quality preschools near you. Have a list of your criteria to shortlist, enquire about the admission process and related rules and criteria with the shortlisted schools. Admission process usually starts 6-10 months before the session begins, so start your search accordingly.