Would you sacrifice social skills for academics?

[joenali]

No playground and it cost $13,000?

[papie]

No. Social interactions and making friends in the neighborhood are two very important things for elementary school imo. And I think kids need to be able to run outside at recess. AND I tbink 13K for elementary school is ridiculous.

[jaylea]

That doesn't sound appealing to me at all. I think kids who have parental involvement will do well on most situations academically, and I think that the social piece is just as important a the academic.

[Deleted]

I would only do it in your case if there was time/resources enough to do extracurriculars outside of school.

Though I'm sad to think of kids at recess w no playground.

I am a HUGE huge huge huge fan/advocate for education and I think people really miss the important educational factors that happen at recess/on the playground/in play. Kids learn better when they're also physically stimulated etc. The hardcore academic schools make me sad

[Deleted]

Having personally gone to public school as well as being homeschooled, I would not sacrifice the social skills aspect. I went to public school K-3rd grade, homeschooled 4th-6th then back to public for the remainder, it really fucked up my social skills and took me forever to overcome crippling shyness.

[MWOS]

If G was 15? Maybe. But as a preschooler without a playground? Nope.

[ijack]

I think a lot would depend on the type of learner my kid was and his strengths and weaknesses - which is hard to figure out in preschool sometimes.
What is special about their program? Is it just that it's small or do they approach learning in a different way? How small are the classes? If there are no sports and no playground, what do they do for physical activity?
In many situations I would value the academics if I thought my kid needed it or would benefit from it, but the private school is lacking some things as well.

[rex]

For that kind of money, no.

Preschool is not the time to sacrifice social stuff. Kids that age learn mostly through play and interactions with others.

[W.T.Faulkner]

The only reasons I'd consider this school are: 1. the public school G would go to is atrocious, 2. G is exceptional (either with pretty serious special needs or super-gifted).

If neither of those are the case, I think the public school is the better option.

[wannabe]

The bean is in private school and ine of the reasons we love it is the smaller classes. It's like 20 kids vs. 30+ in public school.

But wow...$13K! Hers is less than half that.

[ijack]

Aug 19, 2013 11:30:16 GMT -5 Que? said:

Aug 19, 2013 11:23:53 GMT -5 ijack said:

I think a lot would depend on the type of learner my kid was and his strengths and weaknesses - which is hard to figure out in preschool sometimes.
What is special about their program? Is it just that it's small or do they approach learning in a different way? How small are the classes? If there are no sports and no playground, what do they do for physical activity?
In many situations I would value the academics if I thought my kid needed it or would benefit from it, but the private school is lacking some things as well.

Some of my friends are sending their kids bc they definitely feel like they need the individual attention. I think it's similar to a Waldorf approach. I can definitely see that it's sort of becoming a school for special snowflakes, and it appeals to certain parents who can't relinquish control.

I only have two options here for preschool; this place or daycare. It's actually cheaper than daycare. What's happening is that people are using it for cheap daycare, and pulling their kids out in May, when you have to commit to kindergarten.

It's a great price for preschool if it's full time. But again, what do they do for physical activity? I can't imagine a preschooler not getting to run around at all?

[juliahenry]

Around here schools like what you describe are often basically SN schools, with a high number of kids with unique challenges. I would not send my kid there. If it was really and truly a school for bright, non-SN kids, then I might consider it. But I would be very very careful before signing up for that type of arrangement.

My oldest is in a magnet school (so, small and specialized) and my youngest is in a private preschool program. I'm not opposed to public or private, but I do believe in finding the best fit for each individual child.

[sonrisa]

What is "a few kids per class"? Are we talking 10-15 kids per grade or 3-5? If the former, there should be plenty of opportunity for socialization. If the later, that would be too small for me. I don't think of sports teams as crucial to social development. I'd make sure she still had some physical activity each day but that can be done through local teams or other outlets.

$13K for private schooling after kindergarten is not cheap but still half of normal around here. For a preschool that is right in the range.

My rule for preschool is I won't pay more per year than I did for law school (30K for three years) since no local preschools have graduated a supreme court justice :-P

[bab]

"Only 13K a year with no programs or athletics?"

Yeah, no.

[ijack]

Aug 19, 2013 11:48:31 GMT -5 Que? said:

Aug 19, 2013 11:45:56 GMT -5 juliahenry said:

Around here schools like what you describe are often basically SN schools, with a high number of kids with unique challenges. I would not send my kid there. If it was really and truly a school for bright, non-SN kids, then I might consider it. But I would be very very careful before signing up for that type of arrangement.

My oldest is in a magnet school (so, small and specialized) and my youngest is in a private preschool program. I'm not opposed to public or private, but I do believe in finding the best fit for each individual child.

It's a mixture of both kids with special needs, gifted kids and typical kids. That's actually a healthy environment IMO, and I would want my kid to have friends from all walks of life. I think our public school does a great job of that, there are no other options for SN or gifted kids so they are all integrated. I think that's ideal.

ah damn, now I'm back to being on the fence about it. An integrated classroom is pretty awesome.
I'd maybe give it a try for preschool and see how he likes it.

[sonrisa]

That is still 15 kids who interact together on regular basis. I'd be okay with it if the school appealed to me. Is private schooling financially comfortable until college for you guys? If not, you could do this for preschool and switch at kindergarten. I'd try to have any transitions match the natural educational ones rather than pull her after 3rd or 4th grade (if you can avoid it).

[juliahenry]

Aug 19, 2013 11:48:31 GMT -5 Que? said:

It's a mixture of both kids with special needs, gifted kids and typical kids. That's actually a healthy environment IMO, and I would want my kid to have friends from all walks of life. I think our public school does a great job of that, there are no other options for SN or gifted kids so they are all integrated. I think that's ideal.

It sounds like you have already decided, and if you are convinced that this is the best model of education for your child, then that sounds great.

What I will say though is that, as the mother of a child who is designated as gifted by the school system, that very mixed model has been hugely challenging for us. The range of abilities in the class has been too large and my son's education has suffered as a result. The kids with SN who wind up in this sort of class are often relatively high-functioning, but not typical. In our situation, this led to bullying incidents targeting the brighter kids and a general mess. Having experienced a more mixed class, we jumped at the chance of less diversity of abilities and I would never willingly put my kid thorough that again.

i don't believe that hugely diverse classrooms generate openness and cooperation. Instead they often result in an inability to meet anyone's needs and challenges for all the kids. At least, that was our experience. I hope yours is different.

[sonrisa]

That sounds great for preschool, then.

[snickers]

No, kids need to learn and grow from their experiences with other kids.

[pixelpassion]

Aug 19, 2013 11:26:24 GMT -5 W.T.Faulkner said:

The only reasons I'd consider this school are: 1. the public school G would go to is atrocious, 2. G is exceptional (either with pretty serious special needs or super-gifted).

If neither of those are the case, I think the public school is the better option.

This. 

13K a year was my yearly tuition for gradschool. It doesn't sound worth the money for an elementary school unless it's for the reasons that whatthefaulkner mentioned. 

[Jermys]

I wouldn't sacrifice the playground. Kids that age need play more than academics.