Academic Preschools Don't Graduate Advanced Students

Are academic preschools the way to go? The expert opinions that may surprise you.   

What You Need To Know

Years ago many children didn’t even attend preschool. Back then preschools were a place for cutting, pasting and playing house. Now preschool is a given and for most parents an important step in preparing their child for the new standard of Kindergarten.

So are academic preschools a good idea? Not really, say many experts. “Research…shows that academic preschools offer children no long-term advantages academically, but make them more anxious,” says Roberta Golinkoff, author of Einstein Never Used Flash Cards: How Our Children Really Learn and Why They Need to Play More and Memorize Less. (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1579546951/carrollcountypub)

Expert Opinions:

•  Young children learn best through meaningful interaction with real materials and caring adults and their peers, not through the drilling of isolated skills.
• Child development experts say that children in academic preschools often learn math and reading at the expense of their social skills.
• According to Martha E. Mock, assistant professor at the University of Rochester Warner School of Education. “Kids from play-based programs usually catch up academically, while kids from academic backgrounds may never catch up socially.”
• Supporters ofacademic preschools disagree. Shirley Mace from the Stratford school in Los Gatos, California points out that a young child’s brain is like a sponge so learning comes easy and academic schools do allow for play time not just work. Also the program is not for the overly active child, but rather one that can sit and focus for 20-30 minutes.

• Research: It’s important to see which side of the debate you’re on. Here’s an article posted on msnbc.com that goes into real detail regarding academic preschools. (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20056147/)
• One Option: A trend that is gaining popularity with parents is to enroll their children in different preschools depending on each child’s personality and the school’s curriculum. Sometimes a little inconvenience in driving around town might be worth it for your child’s development.

Whether you feel your child will do best in an environment with playhouses and play dough or charts and repetition the good news is, there’s plenty of quality preschools to choose from.