Choosing a preschool for your child can be a tough decision. Do you choose a private preschool that is more pricey than the rest? Or do you choose a traditional preschool that teaches only ABC’s and 123’s? The decision is crucial as it will be the beginning of your child’s educational journey. You want to start your child off on the right foot so much deliberation must be done during this decision process. Below are a few tips to get you started on the path to choosing a child care solution for your child.

Determine the Reason for Schooling

Are you enrolling your child specifically for learning opportunities? Will you child only be going to preschool part-time? Do you need child care for more than eight hours a day? These are all aspects you must consider. If your child will only be going to preschool part time, then you may not need to lean heavily towards the educational aspects. If your child will be attending the day care center for the entire week with 6 to 8 hours each day, you may want to consider a more structured environment so that your child can learn while they are away.

Discuss with other parents

Another great way to choose a preschool for your child is discuss local options with other parents. Get a feel for the preschools and private options in your town by discussing the schools with friends and family. You most likely know someone who has children, older than your own, who can help you in this process. With parents who are experienced, you will get a first-hand account at that the preschool or day care can provide your child. You will know what the educational opportunities are as well as safe and security of your child. Speak with people you trust to get the most information you can about local facilities.

Research your options

Make a list of every preschool and child care center in your area. Then begin to mark facilities off the list based on certain criteria. You will need to make a list of criteria you require such as hours available, educational opportunities, etc. Use this list to mark off potential schools until you have narrowed your choices down. Then make PROs and CONs list for each school to help you narrow down your choices. You can even visit each school to get a better idea of what they have to offer your child.

Review Sites

Another option is to go online and look for local review sites. You can even research the schools individually in a search engine to find out if any bad press or reviews exist. This will give you a better idea as to what you can expect from potential schools. If a school is horribly bad, there will be some record online as to what took place at the school. The internet is a powerful tool and can easily help you find out information, be it good or bad, about a facility. You can even take to social media sites and get opinions on local facilities to help you with your search.

Overall, it is important for every parent to research the options available locally. Take a look at each facility individually and determine which preschool is the best fit for your child. And remember, you are never locked in to one preschool. If you enroll your child and feel as though they are not getting the education they need, simply try another school. You will eventually find the perfect fit for your child and they will be well on their way to building the foundation to their education.

Michelle Patterson is an educationalist who has been studying the varied forms of child education in our country. She is an unabashed fan of the Montessori system and spends a lot of time advocating its use for better children’s education.