gryphea

SOunds like you want a daycare then?

snowhugs

thanks for all the help,
Please do not judge me so quickly, I adore my kids, want what is best for them, and feel that starting school at almost 7 is very late!!!

I understand from reading all your replies that your children have all settled well, that is great I hope mine will too!!

I will continue to feel uneasy about the system, I will have to wait and see!! Daycare is NOT what I am after.... I can do that myself the whole idea was that she goes somewhere where she can learn and develop, whilst I am at work NOT sitting in front of someone elses TV all day, or crawling on floor with 1 year olds!!! AS i wrote earlier I have found some preschools appear very advanced, so I hope this will meet her needs!!

I would love to stay at home all day and be the perfect Mum, this is not a financial option for us either here or in Canada such is life... once again thanks

Elaine B.

You should see if there are any good daycare centres in the area you are moving to. Before I moved back to NI my little boy attended a daycare in Toronto. The daycare was actually in the school and it was run as a not for profit it cost roughly $700 per month. When it was time for Kindergarten they just walked up the corridor. I think the kids benefited as much from the time spent in daycare as spent in JK/SK.

gryphea

What you are talking about is dayhome. You will not find a preschool able to accomodate any more than about 2-3 2hr or 2.5hr shifts a week, and in the year before kindergarten you may find 5 mornings, certainly not 3 full days, it simply doesn't exist. This doesn't sound like it will fit in with your work shifts- hence I suggested daycare. I am no way judging you, my two go to daycare 3 days per week as I too work. My 3 coming on 4 yr old learns a lot in day care, equivalent to a UK nursery, eg a place they go to- no telly, no 1 year olds. Indeed a couple of the ladies there are teacher immigrants who are not allowed to teach here.

Gryph

scrubbedexpat074

I think we (from the UK) have been pre-programmed to compete in education, told over and over again that children need to get started as early as they can. I think this is exacerbated by a need to have an advantage when leaving school to get a decent job and join the all important housing ladder etc. For me this comes back to the country being grossly overcrowded.

In England we both had to work to pay the bills so as a result our daughter went to a private nursery/pre-school from the age of 11 months. It actually worked out cheaper than a child minder. She was there for three and a half years and we emigrated on 5th September 2005, the day when she would have started primary school. To say she was advanced was an understatement. She had quite a tough first year in Canada as a result waiting to start start school, but it gave us time together as a family which was irreplacable. She started school eventually, follows the french immersion path, loves it and is probably at the top of the class.

My son was 1 when we emigrated and after my wife fell into a job she wasn't even looking for I found myself at home with him. Now after three years at home with him, I'm now starting my last year as a stay at home dad. Academically he is certainly not where is sister was when she was four, but he could ride a bike with out stabilisers when he was three, he can skate and he can swim 100 metres.

I know I am lucky (and privileged) to have been able to afford to stay with him all this time, in England he would be at school now and I have another year to skate, swim, cycle with him, maybe help him read a little if he's interested.

Now I've gone off on a waffle, anyway, I was a teacher in England, and one of the greatest things I find here is that children can stay children a little longer and they may get where they're going a year or two later, but what's the rush, there is more to life than academia and pre-school here is sufficient for the social needs of 4 year old.

Waffle, waffle.... sorry.

Alberta_Rose

I know it seems we are quick to judge and some people simply cannot afford to be at home with their kids all day every day, much as they might like to. I know that ... been there, done that!!!

All I was saying is not being fully academically challenged at age 4 or 5 will not matter in the longer term (if you don't let it). And they will be busy doing other things ... either with or without you.

Life IS different here. It's what we came for! Good luck with it all!

moondevil

i have to admit morwenna that when i was in the uk, i was the same with my 3yr old, but now we are here and the kids are settling in, i would not go back to the uk school system for my kids
The teachers are great and my kids love school, not just the learning, but there teachers and friends are so full of life.

My eldest has really struggled settling in as she is used to the uk way of doing things, but the school has been fantastic with her and is working hard to help her settle.

i totally agree with what you said, plus although i can work, i have opted to take more time out to spend with the kids and i love it

amardan

To be quite honest I am very envious of people with pre school children as my children are 11yrs and 10yrs and I wish we were here when they were pre-school age as my son struggled in his school in the UK and I didn't realise just how bad things were until we came here. He has had to go back to grade 6 which I think is great but because he didn't get the help in his infant and junior school he finds the changes in his new Canadian school very challenging. If we had come here when they were younger he would have been allowed to develop at his pace then be pressured to keep up and miss some vital parts of the curriculum. Whereas my daughter is completely different. They are only small children for such a small time and the fact they can be allowed to be children and not pressured into growing up and being little adults is a godsend in my opinion. That's why so many children in the UK who start school at 4yrs, granted some are ready and some are not. Can end up labelled as special needs due to the fact they were not allowed enough time to develop at their ability without being rushed. As teachers are not allowed to do repetitions so if you missed it the first time, hard luck I am sorry if this sound like a rant but I just wished UK took a leaf out of the Canadian book allowed children to be children

iaink

Shop around the schools.

In my kids school board some schools junior and senior kindergarden can be found as either full days every other day, or half days every day. Its certainly not out of the question for her to skip a year and enter grade one early.

For example my bosses daughter graduated high school and was at University at age 16, and had graduated into officer training by 19...talk to the boards about your concern.