The last few years have been a struggle for public schools. Between trying to avoid the penalties of the No Child Left Behind government program and switching to Common Core curriculum, many public schools are in a battle to maintain their own identity and teach to their own standards. In a time when public schools find it challenging to get all students to the point of where they can pass required standardized benchmarks, many real educational goals are what get left behind.
Although the public schools in some pockets of the country are able to maintain high academic standards, as well as a personalized offerings of fine arts programs, many parents are opting for private schools for their children. Private schools encourage and seek out parent participation, especially since typical private school parents are already interested and involved in their child’s learning plan.
The best education begins with private preschools which strive to introduce the academic pursuit of learning basics, as well as social integration skills. A private Montessori preschool, for example, relies on the same tested and reliable materials to introduce math, language, and sensorial fundamentals that Maria Montessori developed over one hundred ago. Because these classrooms are multiage environments, students are consistently exposed to the lessons for older children, while at the same time having the opportunity to review and reteach lessons to the youngest friends. While preschools that are part of the public school system must follow a list of nationally prescribed objectives, a private Montessori preschool continues to “follow the child,” like Montessori’s initial goal.
Full day preschool has been shown to offer even more advantages. The importance of early childhood education is especially evident once children move into the kindergarten years. In fact, a study of more than 14,000 kindergartners indicates attending some kind of preschool or childcare center leads to better scores in both math and pre-reading. The fact that private school preschool programs are a healthy mix of academics and socialization attribute to these better academic scores.
Of all of the things that you offer your children this holiday season, perhaps the best gift you can give them is a great educational start. The process of researching preschools should include looking for educators who work toward educating the whole child. These institutions will provide skills in working with others, as well as developing the ability to work for an extended period of time while learning to make choices of work that introduce math, language, cultural, sensorial and practical life skills.
While many public school districts are working toward offering programs, private schools offer incredible opportunities to the youngest children and their families. Studies indicate that students who have a quality preschool experience followed by a private school education through high school have higher college graduation rates.
