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Start Learning Preschool

I'm looking for a preschool that includes learning to read and has some math & science in the curriculum?

This is my first child and I feel at a loss of where to start looking for a pre-school. A lot of them seem like a daycare. Since I am a stay at home mom, I'm not looking for daycare, I'm looking for outside education and stimulation experiences for my daughter. I live in the NW side of San Antonio, TX so if anyone has specific school suggestions that would be great. If not, I'm also looking for some guidance on where to start. Thanks!

I think I may be able to help you with this.

I am not sure quite what research the first responder was talking about. It seems vague to simply say "research says" without backing it up. Research actually suggests something quite different - that the ages of 3-6 are a wonderful time to give children a learning opportunity. Children are natural seekers of knowledge at this age. They have just come out of an age where they took in so much information. Three things they naturally learned were language, motor skills, and order. Now is the age where they want to seek to refine those skills and a proper school setting can do that well. I can provide evidence of these studies, but it sounds like you already know that as a mother.

We have a program set up where children are able to work on a variety of subjects. They are given the opportunity to learn many different subjects. There are 6 main parts to our curriculum:

--Practical Life
--Sensorial
--Language
--Math
--Cultural
--Science

For a child just starting off in the classroom, the Practical Life and the Sensorial areas are the main areas they take an interest in. This is natural for them, as the practical life area gives them a sense of ownership over themself and the classroom. They begin to take responsibility for themselves in a very real and natural way. They begin to build confidence and begin to understand order. The sensorial area helps a child refine those senses and isolate one skill so that they can begin to develop focus. The children are drawn to all of the materials because they both fit the needs of the child and are attractive. This combination makes them naturally WANT to do them.

The language, cultural, and the math materials are all an extension of the sensorial and practical life materials. They move from a very concrete, physical example of what we are learning and move into a more abstract concept. For example, a child growing up in this method knows exactly what the difference is between one, ten, 100, and 1000 because they have felt it in their hands consistently over a 3 year period. They do not simply look at the number 4239 and are able to say it's name. They have also built that number with special materials that give the child a concrete understanding of the difference.

The classroom setup allows for a 3 hour independent work cycle. This gives the child a chance to develop focus and concentration. It also provides the child the ability to explore the whole classroom and a variety of subjects. The teacher is trained as an observer, to watch the children in the same way that a scientist might study nature. As the teacher sees that a child is ready to move on to something or is ready for more direct instruction, the teacher will step in and help. There is no sense in the child that "I have to get this right and get it done quickly," similar to what you might find in a more traditional program, where the teacher sets a specific pace for everyone. There is more a sense of continual discovery, where your child will love the learning process.

There are some schools like this in San Antonio. I am not familiar with these particular schools, nor the person that runs them, so I will list them here and suggest you look at them. I would also suggest watching the videos in my "Sources" below before you visit these schools so you have a sense of what to look for. Here's the list I have:

CHILD MONTESSORI SCHOOL (Initiate Member School)
2829 Hunters Green
SAN ANTONIO 78231
72 Students 2 - 9 Years Old
Ms. Jean Stein
~210/493-6550 (Fax, 210/493-6550) August-May, Summer Program-Yes
E-mail: jcs8192@aol.com
Web: www.childmontessori.com
Programs Offered: Music, Art, Spanish & Computer

SAINT MARY'S HALL MONTESSORI (Full Member School)
9401 Starcrest Drive
SAN ANTONIO 78217
138 Students 3 - 6 Years Old
Mrs. Nur Mangalji
210/483-9100 (Fax, 210/655-3000) August-May, Summer Program-Yes
E-mail: nmangalji@smhall.org
Web: www.smhall.org
Programs Offered: Music, Spanish, Extended Care, P.E., Library, Technology & After School Enrichment

THE JUDSON MONTESSORI SCHOOL (Full Member School)
17722 Rogers Ranch Pkwy
SAN ANTONIO 78258
303 Students 3 – 13 Years Old
Mr. Ralph Huber
~210/492-3553 (Fax, 210/492-3484) August-May, Summer Program-Yes
E-mail: r.huber@jms-sat.org
Web: www.judsonmontessori.com
Programs Offered: Music, Spanish & P.E.

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Growing and Learning in Preschool