ASK AMY

It is your choice whether to send your son to preschool. Story time, play groups and time with you are all vital to his emotional and intellectual development.

According to a statement by Zero to Three, a child advocacy group, "Learning social skills is certainly very important for young children. The more experience they have interacting with peers, the more they learn about how to get along with others, and the richer their world becomes as they develop new relationships." My own experience as a mom and as a substitute teacher at a preschool convinced me that 3-to-5-year-olds can benefit from a quality preschool experience -- partly because they can learn these "pro-social" skills independently of their parents.

If you are not sending your son to preschool because you want to keep him to yourself, then that seems like a stifling choice if he could otherwise be enrolled in an enriching preschool program. If you are not sending him to preschool because he's fine right where he is, then more power to both of you.

Dear Amy:

A recent letter from "Bad Neighbor in Maryland" prompted me to write. She was worried about the condition of her house in a nice neighborhood.

She should focus on the outside front of the house.

Even little kids can help. It takes little money to clean up, rake up, weed, prune and perhaps slap a coat of paint on the mailbox.

A focused half-hour here and there makes progress.

The neighbors will be thrilled to see any progress on the outside, especially if the house has been an eyesore.

Suzanne

I agree that a half-hour of energy can reap big payoffs -- especially when it is concentrated in one area.