ASK AMY

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Thursday, February 2, 2006

Dear Amy:

I am the mom of a wonderful 3-year-old. I feel like I am the only mom in my area who does not send her 3-year-old to preschool.

Is it an academic requirement that children attend preschool?

We go to the library for story time and attend play groups. My son knows his numbers, colors, etc.

My son will be almost 6 when he starts kindergarten.

If I were to send him to preschool now, he'd have three years of "school" before kindergarten!

When I'm asked if he is attending preschool, my response is: "No, I'm keeping him to myself."

Is this being selfish?

Why should I pay to send him to preschool when I could send him to day care? Preschool and day care are the same thing, right?

No Preschool for Me

Preschool and day care are not the same. Preschool and day care generally have different hours of operation, staff that have different certifications and qualifications, different standards regarding the ratio of staff to kids and different age ranges of children who attend.

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