Marley is at that golden age of 2.5 where, for us, the decision to enroll her a preschool or keep her at home came upon us. Crap. What do we do? Where do we go? Cue my massive meltdown (I have a child old enough to be in school?!?!), and the obsessive research that goes into finding a place worthy of my child. Why did no one truly prepare me for this stage? Have you started this hunt? Have you seen some of the places out there? Gross. Not only that, but then you also have to wrap your head around how much money some of these companies are charging for daycare/preschool. Has everyone in the world won the lottery or something?
Trying to find a place that has a clean, bright, safe, friendly environment, AND a nutritious menu AND a great educational program AND one that is affordable IS HARD. I thought for sure I was going to drive myself crazy asking people for recommendations, stopping strangers to interrogate them, touring facilities, calling/emailing potential places and agonizing over this monumental decision. Talk about pressure.
Oh, and then there is the decision on what kind of school you would like to go with: Montessori, co-op, high/scope, Reggio Emilia, traditional daycare…. oh yes, this decision is a full time job and requires some research. One more thing to add onto the ‘am i making the right parenting decision’ guilt trip. Like we as parents don’t have enough to stress and worry about as it is. The competition to get into some of these places is FIERCE, the tuition (yes, as in college or university) is high, and some even require a application/interview process.
No, really, I am not kidding. The kind of pressure are we putting on ourselves as parents these days is astronomical, it’s a wonder we make it out of it alive and sane. It’s not fair. I recently read the book Bringing Up Bebe, and it not only opened my eyes up to a different approach in parenting, but also to some of the major flaws in the way our government assists the public with child care. The creche’s in France seem phenomenal and are government run and paid for, they take much pride in caring for their younger generations. Yes, there is some assistance in Canada with child care, but let’s be honest, the standard which we set our child care requirements is not nearly high enough, and some of the more ‘affordable’ options are downright atrocious. How is the ‘average’ income home, let alone a ‘lower’ income home, supposed to afford proper child care?
It’s maddening to me that we are comfortable with having lower standards for our children’s early years, and that some places seem to take advantage of that. On the other end of the spectrum, you have the higher end places that are just so over the top that it’s actually laughable. Yes, your child’s education and care is top priority, but at what cost? Is there really that much of a difference if you have your child in a regular daycare vs a $20,000 a year private preschool? Yes, absolutely, but to make it worth that extreme? It’s not fair, and it’s not right.
After spending many hours searching and debating where we wanted Marley to attend, I am extremely thankful to have her placed in the same Montessori School that my brothers and good friends of the family attended (thanks Leslie!). From the time I found out I was pregnant, I knew in my heart that I would love for her to attend that particular school. I had attended many school trips as a assistant through my brother’s years there, and had witnessed firsthand just how great the teachers and the program was. It is not easy to find a school that really has it all, but is affordable at the same time, but I am lucky enough to have one. I am totally grateful and relieved to have this aspect of this phase out of the way, I am 100% happy and comfortable with our decision and can not wait to see Marley flourish in this environment.
Have you been doing this kind of research as well? How did you make the decision you made in regards to child care?
