How to find a Preschool that's as good as our Daycare

Hi there fellow Parents, 

So here's the scoop...

I've been in denial for some time now...that is, about moving our 2.5 year old son on to preschool.  You see, we've got him at THE best home day care in the Bay Area.  Check that...I can confidently say that I'd consider our home day care one of the best in the country (having lived in Manhattan for 15 years).  We've got the most dedicated, passionate, nurturing, creative, kind, emotionally intelligent, powerful, nature-loving, intuitive, healthy,  inspiring caretaker on the planet.  She's a magician.  A baby / infant / toddler-whisperer.  In fact, she makes me - not only want to be a better mom - but a better person.  Which is why I'm in denial.  Other parents at our day care have been asking me for MONTHS, "Where to you plan to send your son to preschool?"  And I'll be completely transparent...I haven't lifted a finger in terms of doing a search for a preschool.  Because...again...I'm in denial.  I just can't stomach taking my son out of their care.  I refuse to do it.  As a matter of fact, I'd leave him there until he turns 18, if I could.  But I can't.  Which is where you come in.  It's finally time to get on a waiting list somewhere.  I've been putting it off long enough.  Any suggestions?  And obviously - the bar is set VERY high.  So I'll only consider the best of the best.  As you can tell, it's pretty clear what I'm looking for in a caretaker / teacher.  Thoughts?  We live in Kensington...so Kensington / Albany / North Berkeley / El Cerrito would be ideal.  And we're big fans of an outdoor curriculum...nature-learning.  Any help would be greatly appreciated! 

Many thanks in advance, 

Jess & Walt D. 

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If you want the best, I cannot recommend Gail Pavolsky enough. I've had my kids in her in-home daycare for the last 3 years, and she's opening a preschool in late January/early Feb, in Kensington. The new school is outdoor play based, on the Unitarian Church's land. The awesome part- Gail provides a healthy homemade lunch for the kids. You should call her and meet her and her staff and see what you think for yourself. 

Here is her current daycare: https://www.berkeleyparentsnetwork.org/recommend/preschool/galoshes 

And the new preschool: https://www.berkeleyparentsnetwork.org/recommend/preschool/good-earth-s…

You may not be able to leave your son in this wonderful provider's care until he's 18, but (unless the daycare has an unusual rule about maximum age) there's no reason you can't keep him where he is until he enters kindergarten!  The difference between daycare and preschool for 3-5 year olds has nothing to do with the label on the door; it's about the learning environment created after you enter that door.  If your caregiver, as many daycare providers do with preschool-age charges, offers your son preschool-type opportunities to learn self-care, gain physical and social skills, explore the world, play with blocks and books and art supplies, hear and tell stories...well, what's the rush?  Don't fix what ain't broke.

Sorry I don't have any recommendations for a preschool, but where is this home day care you speak so highly of?!  I have a 3 month old and need to go back to work soon.

Kensington Nursery School (KNS) 52 Arlington inside the church building. Lots of great outdoor space, field trips to nearby Blake Gardens, I used to teach there for 7 1/2 years before having my own kid. Great place with lots and lots of great messy hands on play and outside time. Established in 1940. Check it out. http://www.kns-ca.org/

Why do you need to switch to a preschool? Plenty of kids stay in childcare until they are in kindergarten.

If you must switch, I wish you luck as the perfect place does not exist!

You are setting yourself up for disappointment.

That being said my kids loved Ducks Nest on 4th St in Berkeley. 

Good luck!

So leave your child with your nanny until he goes to Kindergarten... or college. Sorry, but although you don’t actually give any specifics, your expectations for perfection sound unreasonable. 

Hi Jess and Walt - 

I know exactly how you feel. I adore our nanny-share so much that we've kept our daughter there for afternoons even after we stared preschool.

That said, we absolutely love the preschool at Berkeley Rose Waldorf School! The classes are play-based and the teachers are incredible both to the kids and as a resource for the parents in the class. Entering the 2-3-year-old class last year felt like joining a loving family. The day is full of free-play, both inside and out, but there are also lots of songs and games that work on gross and fine motor skills (every time I visited the class and saw a cute game going on, the teacher would lean over and whisper to me about the actual skills they were learning, which was wonderful). They are also very focused on social-emotional learning and teaching the kids to include everyone in their games. The atmosphere is also quite magical with lots of wooden toys and things that encourage imagination rather than prescriptive play. Absolutely no workbooks, just age-appropriate activities that will get them excited about school and build the neural pathways for better learning later. And there are lots of parent nights to help families with questions about the kids' developmental stages—the teachers have been a fantastic resource whenever I need advice!

In case it's not obvious from this post, I'm completely smitten with this school. If you have any questions, I'm happy to talk more about this, or you can check out the Berkeley Rose Waldorf School Facebook page or website. Best of luck! 

PS - Your kid is probably young enough for the youngest class, which is only three days a week (and even in the older classes you could choose to enroll part-time), so perhaps you could stay in the daycare a couple days a week. That's what we did, and it made for a very easy transition to school.

Hi, it sounds like you feel like you have to switch your son from daycare to preschool because it's the "done thing." But if you, your child and your caregiver are all happy, why fix what isn't broken? Stick with the daycare and enjoy!

The Good Earth School is a new preschool opening in early 2018 run by an amazing woman and I don't think you'll be disappointed.  It is a Reggio-inspired school focused on the outdoor classroom.  Our daycare provider is opening the school and she is all the things you described, incredibly compassionate while creating many opportunities for the children to learn both "soft skills" like sharing, saying please, and dealing with stress and the skills needed to prepare them for formal education. My son is 2 and can identify letters and numbers and has also taught me to take a deep breathe when he thinks I am upset.  My son is a bit shy and it takes him a while to warm up to new environments and Gail has not only made him feel comfortable but he runs to her every morning and gives her a hug as soon as he walks through the door. We're excited about the school which will be located in El Cerrito Hills.  Check them out at www.thegoodearthschool.com, they are currently enrolling kids for early 2018. 

Tbere is nothing set in stone about when to send a kid to preschool. My twins had a phenomenal nanny. We tried a half-day, 3 day a week preschool when they were 3 and our kids HATED it. And we later learned it was for a good reason. We kept them with the nanny another year and put them in a really good PreK at 4.5 and they love it and are thriving.  They are great socially, are ahead of their peers in functional skills and are blossoming in their academic readiness. Keeping them with their absolutely phenomenal nanny was a great move. She took them to groups,  to enrichment classes, group play dates and field trips-and as a result, our boys are far better adjusted and able to master a wide range of situations that their 2 and 3 year preschooled peers never got a chance to do. If you found a gem nanny, hold onto her and fold in activities and you will never regret it!