Wednesday, January 30, 2008

That all-important decision..

This year, Elliot will be three years old. Admittedly, it won't be until the very end of the year, but nonetheless, it will happen this year. Which means, I have this huge decision hanging over my head - which pre-school do I send Elliot to? It seems like a monumental decision, and one in which I have very little control over. There are currently three options, which look like this:

Option one: A new pre-school which has only opened this term, which is connected to the Roman Catholic primary school we would like Elliot to attend. It is, however the farthest pre-school to get to and in order to get to it, Elliot and I (with Second Baby in tow) will either have to take a bus plus walk 10-15 minutes, or drive (hopefully that will be a possibility!) through school-run traffic through the middle of town. The middle of town of course, runs a one-way system which means a much longer route. The pre-school itself seems rather strict, and enforces a uniform for its students. They can't/are unable to tell me whether or not Elliot will be able to attend until this September. Even with the distance, this is my first choice for pre-schools, but I'm nervous about not getting in, why can't I be given a solid guarantee one way or another?!

Option two: A local pre-school which is situated within a 10 minute walk of my house. It comes with good recommendations and is a learning-through-play type of atmosphere. This was my 'backup' pre-school, however, they have since informed me that they've filled all the spots available for the term I would like Elliot to start attending. He's on the waiting list but there is little chance of enough cancellations to bump him up into one of the availble spots.

Which leaves Option three: A private pre-school almost on my doorstep. It has a great Ofsted rating, but I dislike the idea of me paying extra money for what should be government-funded (free) sessions. Their education curriculum seems more like sit and learn as opposed to learning through play, and I'm not convinced this will be suited to Elliot's temperment, but I might not have a choice in the matter. On a plus side, the location is perfect for me, and Elliot will have a bucketload of friends who have already recieved their letters of confirmation.

It seems I'm rather late in getting all of this organised, who knew? I don't want my Baby to grow up so quickly though. As it is I get less than half of the hugs and kisses I used to get from him, he's listening to me less and less, he's more independent and doesn't need me to play with him all the time. Everyone said the first few years will fly by, and I didn't believe them until now!

1 comment:

  1. WOW, I haven't even thought about pre-school yet for Alanna. Maybe I shoudl get a lookin, huh.

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