High quality, affordable preschool resources abound on the Internet. Add in that it’s super fun to work with a curious preschooler, so why wouldn’t someone do preschool at home with their child? Why would a homeschooler outsource this fun and precious time? Are there benefits of preschool?
To save our high school (or other higher level student)
High school has been going well so far, but one major hurdle for us is getting quiet time. We live in a small house, and I have yet to synchronize nap time for the little ones. High school level work requires nice sized, uninterrupted chunks of time to think and reflect, and the pressure to make that happen without sitting Little Miss in front of the TV all day amounts to a lot of anxiety on my part. With an outside preschool, Care Bear has 8 full hours of uninterrupted quiet time each week. No excuse to not get work done!
Reduce mama guilt
High school has started to consume me. I never thought it would be so hard to mentally shift from high school to preschool when making homeschool plans, but it’s not an easy task for me. I’ve also struggled with finding a time in the day that Little Miss is responsive to lessons, and Tulip, the littlest, doesn’t need anything. Not getting around to actually doing any fun preschool projects has made me feel guilty. At least for this one year while I figure out high school, and our little infant grows into a toddler, an outside preschool feels like a breath of fresh air.
Network with the Ummah (community)
Alhamdulilah, a masjid by our home offers a preschool, providing an Islamic environment and helping foster an early Muslim identity. The benefits of preschool at the masjid are for myself too! It’s far too easy to stay in the house, or only talk to moms at Care Bear’s fencing practice. I need to have times I am meeting with other Muslim mothers, making connections for the sake of Allah.
Make friends
Along the same lines that I network with other Muslim mothers, it’s good for Little Miss to make friends. It’s so fun to talk about what we want to thank Allah for in her bedtime routine, and she thanks Allah for her friends at preschool. It’s precious to see her give salams (Islamic greetings) to her friends when we leave her preschool. She can learn sharing and cooperation at home, but the preschool is a nice place to meet others, and possibly connect outside of the preschool for further friendship.
Get out of the house
So, I already mentioned that it’s too easy to stay in the house, but it deserves repeating. I can be a homebody sometimes. After many years of being incredibly busy, I like the quiet of my own home. A small child does not appreciate the same solitude and quiet that adults do, though. Before we have to go out because we are getting stir crazy, it’s nice to have scheduled time that we go somewhere each week. Sometimes I need a schedule to get my bum in gear and get us all ready to go, too! photo credit: Steve A Johnson via photopin cc
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Wow!! I don’t know I could make the switch quickly either from preschooler to high schooler either. I have two in high school, and have no idea what that must be like. It is good for our children to be around other children who are being raised the same way. Followed you here from the Family Fun Friday.
I had an idea of what it would be like (totally refreshing to have the variety), and I was totally wrong! You’re right, it’s great to have kids see others that live in a similar way, especially if it’s the minority. It feels less isolating. Thanks for stopping by!
thanks for linking up this week for MMM link up party! I have started doing some preschool activities with my little one too so my older kids could get some quiet time. It is a nice way to connect with my little one!
I’m looking forward to some more intentional preschool time with my little one. I think now that I will have a year of high school under my belt, it’ll (hopefully) be easier to manage both. 🙂
Having little ones around always keeps a check on our perspective, doesn’t it? I don’t have littles any longer, but I have a granddaughter and another grandchild on the way. Mine are growing up (now middle and high schoolers), but the littles always keep your mind fresh.
Good post, Shannen.
Thanks! You know, it wasn’t until I had two little ones at the same time that I really understood the drain of parenting. It’s good (usually, LOL), like working out can be hard work, but very beneficial. Still, it’s like the saying goes, “You think you know, but you have no idea.” 🙂 Yes, perspective forever changed.