Why Choose an In-Home Pre-School?

Since I've started my in-home pre-k program, I've always been asked one question: Why In-Home? Why not choose a large center, filled with other students, teachers, staff, and resources? Why would I willingly open my home to strangers, inviting people to come day after day to the place where we live, eat, and sleep? Why would I want the responsibility of finding families, the excessive cleaning, and the loneliness that must come with working by myself all day long?

My answer is always the same, year after year. Quality. By opening my home to these students, I have the opportunity to provide care that is of a standard you could never find in a larger center. It is true that larger centers usually have more resources available to them, but at what cost? When you cram sixteen 4-year-olds into one classroom with one teacher, how could any one child possibly get the attention that they deserve? They cannot. They do not.

I know how the children suffer in those larger classrooms. I have seen it firsthand. I have been that teacher who battles each day to give my students the individual attention they need. I am here to tell you now; it does not work. Centers care about one thing: Quantity. If they can fill up that classroom to the brim, they are set. In the long run, everyone suffers - teachers, students, and even parents.

When I open my doors each day to my in-home pre-school program, I greet my students with open arms. Each child receive a hug, a high-five, a handshake. They come in knowing that I will be the face they see all day. I will be the teacher who is there from the time they arrive to the time they go home. They feel secure and comfortable. They are safe and confident. They are a part of our school family.

Having my own program means that I can set my ratio. Our class remains small, and our experiences are huge! We spend each day asking questions, observing, learning, and having fun. We can explore, grow, and think outside the box. We are a family, and we learn how to treat each other as such.

The proof is in the pudding.

And by pudding, I mean the huge smiles on our student's faces day after day; I mean the excitement that radiates from every inch of their tiny bodies.

A quality program is what it's all about. And that is why I will continue to offer mine at Miss Mae's Pre-K, day after day. Year after Year.