My son is due to start the non compulsory, Queensland kindy/pre prep year in 2016. I am not sure whether to send him or not. I would like to hear from mummies of kids who didn't go and how they transition into the prep year at school and for kids that did attend, what did your child learn and any other positives? I am a SAHM with a younger child so my time is not an issue. Thanks in advance.
3 Replies
Working with young kids in prep I have seen kids struggle adjusting. Even just getting used to the long days. Generally it is harder for them I'm many ways so my advice would be to send him to kinder. There's no real down side to sending him but there are many negatives to not
I or my husband didn't attend kindy (N.S.W) mum told me it was a huge shock for me to interact with kids that I wasn't related to. I still struggle with being shy, as does my husband.
Óur boy has been at day care since he was 15months, started 3 days a week year before last and last year moved him to the day care centre that fed into the school we chose.
At his graduation I was reassured that he will be fine, 18 of his buddies are all starting at the same school (prep QLD)
He is such a social confidant lil boy, and I'm sure day care have a lot to do with it as we have no family and are quite busy rarely seeing our friends in a social setting with the kids.
My daughter did the kindy year, and I'm so glad I sent her. She was young in her group (birthday end of May so 1 month inside the age cutoff) and for her, doing 2/3 days per week was a great way to transition to full time school. It helped that the kindy was at the school she now goes to. So there were lots of kids in her class that she knew from kindy. And they have SO much fun at kindy - more activities than I could manage with her at home with her younger sibling! Gardening, painting, feeding their class bird, dress ups, cooking, you name it. Plus all the learning opportunities - sorting, counting, days of the week, months, seasons, writing, music, physical education, even a second language. It didn't matter if they didn't pick up any of it, but it was great to give her that exposure. She loved it :)