families needn?t look
beyond a fifteen block radius. Books,
websites (we like Go City Kids) and even
the yellow pages can be used to create a list of preschools in your neighborhood.
To be clear, we are not suggesting you
select your child?s school from a yellow
pages advertisement. The goal of this phase is simply to define an initial list of
potential schools. You will eliminate schools that do not fit with your family?s
needs in the evaluation phase.
After
assembling your laundry list of potential
preschools, the next step is to define your preschool short list. Many preschools
have websites that will give you some of the bare facts of their program, such as:
program hours, tuition fees, types of
students (e.g. co-ed or single-sex),
educational philosophies,?etc. These basic facts will help you begin shortening your
list. Since we recommend sticking to your neighborhood if possible, it should be
easy to stop by schools and talk to
parents. If you like what you see and what you
hear, contact the school to request an information packet and enquire about
open
house tours.
Remember that many schools have a rolling admissions process that
begins shortly after Labor Day.
Make every effort to select your target preschools
as early as possible. Do not be late to the admissions party!
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