The time has come to register your child for kindergarten. While you could go the traditional route and register for the local public school in your area, there is another option: enrolling in private school. You may think that at this young age, the school your child attends does not make that huge of a difference. But the opposite is true. Right now, your child is very impressionable, and the school he or she attends early on will have a big impact on the rest of his or her life. Here are three reasons a private school may be the right choice.
Classes seem to be smaller.
Though not all private schools have smaller classes than public schools, this tends to be the trend. Smaller classes are very beneficial in kindergarten, where the teacher has to do as much supervising as teaching. With fewer children to worry about, he or she will be able to spend more time actually teaching and focusing on each child as an individual. The best private schools also have aides in the room, so your child will get even more adult attention.
Parents are more involved.
Often, private schools have smaller staff teams and rely on parents for more volunteer work. This fosters a closer-knit community among the parents at a private kindergarten. How does this benefit your child? Well, for one, they get to see their parents working together as a part of a community, which sets a good example for them later in life. You're also more likely to arrange play dates and the like when you get to know other parents better, and your child will enjoy this increased socialization outside of school.
There's less emphasis on testing.
State tests were created with the best intentions, but oftentimes, they cause teachers to "teach to the test" rather than really making sure children know and understand the material. Private schools often opt out of state testing, so there's less pressure on the teachers to meet these standards. They can use more creativity in their teaching methods and amend them to meet the needs of the specific students in their room. This often leads to the incorporation of more hands-on activities, which are great for kindergartners who don't like or want to stand sit for so long.
To find out if a private kindergarten is right for your child, make plans to visit a few in your area. You should very quickly know whether or not it's the right atmosphere for your little one.