Among all the responsibilities you take as a family person, your child’s education is of prime importance. As like any parent, you may want to offer them the best in terms of education. One of the very first decisions you need to make about their education is which kindergarten to go. As this is the very first step into schooling, you need to consider making it the best possible experience for your kids. Once this first step is accomplished effectively, the entire gamut of studies for many years to come can be much easier and enjoyable to them.
As many parents are doubtful about it, you may be wondering whether you kids needed to be sent to a public or private kindergarten. As where your child needs to kick-start their education is an important decision, you are advised to do an extensive research in this regard. Here, we will discuss a few factors to consider while looking into the benefits and drawbacks of kindergartens, public vs. private.
Things to do in finding an Ideal Kindergarten
The first best step while choosing an ideal kindergarten for you kids is to ask around. Children of your friends, relatives, or neighborhood may already be into any kindergarten, so check what their experience about the schools is. You can compare various aspects in terms of identifying the reputation of a school. Say for example;
- The qualification of the teachers?
- Average experience level of teachers?
- Age and experience of the school as a whole?
- Which syllabus is followed by the school?
- What are the activities encouraged in the school?
Each school will be having its own rules and regulations related to disciplinary policies, school uniform, class days and closures, emergency procedures and many such policies which you may be aware of. Also check what are the educational philosophies of each school in terms of teaching style, student learning, and values they follow. As you kid is first out of home while joining a kindergarten, it is also vital to check the nutritional options as what is offered for snacks and lunch etc.
Private and Public Schools
Even private or public, each school will be following its own practices, guidelines, and standards. Private schools can be comparatively expensive, but may be offering more of a formal and professional setting even at the kindergarten level. Private kindergartens may have smaller class sizes. This means each student in a classroom will get more one‑to-one attention from the teacher, which may not be possible in public kindergartens. This is called a teacher-to-child ratio, which has a vital role to play in education.
Public schools may have more variety of activities when compared to private schools with more number of participants in all the programs. Students studying in public kindergartens will be having more social exposure, as there are students from different backgrounds learning with them.
To identify the best kindergarten for your kids, you are advised to go to each school in your region and talk to staff and teachers. Spend some time and find out how a typical day goes in the kindergarten there and see what you feel about it in light of your kid’s needs. Whichever way you choose to go, try to get feedback from your kids too while making decisions.