When I became a mother for the first time, I never imagined how fast time would fly by and how soon I’d have to think about enrolling my daughter in school. I always said “I’ll cross that bridge when I get there”. I was enveloped in nurturing my child the best way I knew how- instinctively. My best friends mother offered to take care of her as soon as I went back to work. I happily accepted! She took care of my daughter as if she were her own grandchild. I am forever grateful to her for giving my daughter such a loving and nurturing home environment.
As time went on, however, circumstances changed and she could no longer care for Eliana. I was lucky enough to entrust a mother of one of my former students, with now picking up where my last sitter left off. From September 2009 to the present, Eliana has been with her new sitter in a similar nurturing and loving environment. As my daughter continued to grow, becoming more fluent in Spanish, and showing signs of school-readiness, I went back and forth in my mind asking myself “Should I put her in a nursery/pre-school now, or wait until it’s time for Kindergarten?”. Ultimately, the factors that helped me make the decision to enroll her in school at 3 and a half years old was the need to see her socialize and letting her realize her true potential. My husband w luckily on board with my stance.
Being a Kindergarten teacher, I naturally want my daughter to thrive academically. Everything I taught my kids, that I felt she would benefit from, I taught her. Starfall is a heavily used app on my ipad, and through that resource, Eliana has mastered recognition of all 26 letters and most sounds. I have given her “Mommy homework” which entails (for now) tracing her name, either through hand or computer-generated writing. Taking into consideration a three year olds motor skills, she did an amazing job!
To answer my question, I decided to place her in pre-school. Yes I could’ve waited to meet the age requirements- Yes, I could continue to give her “mommy homework” and go on tons of amazing interactive websites with her, but the truth is, I could never socialize her the way she needs to be. After all, experience is truly the best teacher. She has an amazing personality, and watching her interact with other children makes me feel so alive inside. Her smile lights up the room and she beams with energy. She loves children and is loved by them in return…and that to me is priceless.
