Many parents are now thinking of finding the ideal nursery school for their children that start next year and it is not a decision free of some anxiety for them, as it is a fundamental decision in the lives of children.
Thinking of helping them make this decision we have interviewed Deheni Rubio who is a clinical psychopedagogue, degree in neurolinguistics, specialist in cognition and language, teacher and doctoral student. We can find it on their page mimamadice.com. She is also the mother of a 22-month-old boy she loves with all her heart.
How to find the nursery school we are looking for?
When your friends ask you, what school did you finally get your son to, don't answer "it's the one they recommended us" better say "it's the one that made us fall in love".
You have endless answers to give. The only thing to do is to inform yourself well, to decide which one is the most convenient for the child and his family.
What should we look for in a nursery school fundamentally?
When we decide that our child starts kindergarten we can have many doubts and uncertainties, however, there are basic questions that you can use to look for and take into account when you make this decision. Believes that the objective of nursery school is to favor the formation of habits and stimulate important skills for the subsequent acquisition of complex learning (such as literacy or mathematics).
Is it important to be clear about your priorities?
Consider two starting points: what school you would like and how close it is to your home or work.
- In the first, consider what are those skills that you expect to be developed in your child. For example, that develops critical thinking, languages, habits or that is mixed, secular and with a mostly academic rather than recreational approach. That is a school only for the first years or one that has later grades. Answering these questions raises the kind of skills we want our children to develop for later schools.
- In the second, the decision you make should also be based on the time it takes you to get to that school, how close you are, how you will make that transfer and how much it implies in economic cost.
Should we prioritize in our choice centers with our ideology or beliefs?
It is important that the center you choose is consistent with the principles you do at home: family culture, religion, monthly income, parenting and values that you transmit. The way in which we educate our child should be an extension in school, if you do not scream at home or do not exercise verbal / physical punishment, you should look for a school in which they follow the same principles. These characteristics do not have to be fought with limits, habits and the transmission of knowledge. What we are looking for is a professional environment, where the individual characteristics of children are prioritized to develop their abilities.
What should we ask to be sure to make a good choice?
As I mentioned, we seek to develop in an integral way all areas of development, such as linguistic, psychomotor and perceptual, in addition to strengthening self-esteem, the capacity for reasoning, analysis and socialization.
What questions do you suggest?
Ask how they develop skills that interest you particularly. Do not hesitate to answer all your questions and get answers that satisfy your curiosity. Not having them can give you guidelines to know that this school is not the one for your needs.
Can you give us some examples of things we should ask?
- Methodology. Principles on which they base school philosophy, the main skills and competencies that they seek to promote in students. Number of children, teachers, support teachers and nannies per group. Schedules of routine activities, philosophy that prevails in relation to discipline and rules.
- In relation to teachers, are they qualified in areas related to early childhood education? Do they have constant updates? Do they use group / individual dynamics? How do they follow up individually or make adjustments? How is the way to assess children's progress? How is the interaction between teachers / students. Friendly, affectionate?
- Relationship with parents. Is there frequent communication with the parents? Can you have an appointment with either the teacher or the psychologist if you have any questions?
- Safety, knowing what actions the school takes to protect the safety of children daily and in case of emergency, for example, who or who can pick up the child, how the delivery of the children is made on departure, have supervision of some type, have a registry of teachers and cleaning staff, have medical insurance or accident expense insurance, if there is a security person at the door, such as entry control for people outside the institution, and do the staff Are you trained to evict or protect children?
- Security of the property and facilities. Ask if they have a civil protection license or equivalent (this guarantees that the facilities are safe and suitable for children of this age, for example non-slip strips on the stairs to move children, bathrooms or furniture corners, have fire extinguisher and emergency exit) and if the windows have insurance or security bars.
- Hygiene and organization. The center is clean and pleasant to look at, it has adequate lighting and ventilation, the materials are organized. Look at the bathroom, is it spotless?
Not necessarily, this decision depends solely on the family. The greatest uncertainty is based on the issue of socialization, some people say that it is favored through contact with other children and environments other than home; but there are also those who with many bases will say that socialization does not necessarily develop in school.
And who is right?
Personally, both are right, all families are different and know what is best for each of its members. The educational bases are mainly at home, such as values, respect and civic attitudes. The school is an extension of the good customs and learning that we want our son to adopt in his day to day.
What does a good nursery school provide for children?
A good nursery school brings confidence in their skills and knowledge, recognizes their efforts, boosts their abilities. It reinforces self-esteem, the capacity for reasoning, analysis and socialization. It promotes the management of emotions, problem solving and dialogue. As mentioned above it becomes an amplification of the uses and customs that are done at home.
