What is the most important thing when choosing a kindergarten?

When sending children to kindergarten, parents will encounter various problems. For example, when choosing a kindergarten, they often don’t know how to choose, and parents often argue about this issue. Here I will teach you a principle. It is not necessary to choose the best kindergarten, but to choose a kindergarten that suits your own situation. You must comprehensively consider factors such as distance and economic conditions. Only in this way can you make the best comprehensive choice.

What is the most important thing when choosing a kindergarten?

1. Legal qualifications of the kindergarten.

It depends on whether the kindergarten has obtained a license from the local education department. If it has, it is a legal school; if not, it is an illegal school. The benefit of running a school legally for parents and children is that all aspects of kindergarten management are supervised by the education department, and even if it is not done well, the management department will regularly inspect and supervise. Of course, this is not a necessary element in choosing a kindergarten. Because obtaining qualifications does not have a direct relationship with whether a child is suitable for kindergarten. Some Waldorf kindergartens or small family kindergartens run by parents themselves do not have qualifications, but they are highly recommended in terms of humanistic care and children's spiritual growth.

2. The environment of the kindergarten .

Parents can consider the sanitary environment, space size, safety facilities, etc. One reference for the size of the space is to understand the class size of the kindergarten. The general standard class size in traditional kindergartens is 20 students in the nursery class, 25 students in the small class, 30 students in the medium class, and 35 students in the large class. If it is a Montessori mixed-age class, the class size is 35 people. The number of teachers is generally 2 teachers and 1 childcare worker in each class. Another part about the environment is that it is best to take the children to feel it. Sometimes children's feelings about the environment are different from adults'. Children may not really like an environment that their parents are satisfied with.

3. Understand the daily routine of kindergarten.

By gaining an in-depth understanding of the child’s daily schedule in kindergarten, we can understand whether the kindergarten’s teaching philosophy, parenting philosophy and parents’ parenting views are consistent. Understand the kindergarten's meal arrangements and whether the combination of coarse and fine foods, and meat and vegetables is reasonable.

The above listed things are basically the general things to know about choosing a kindergarten. Parents can also learn other information based on the circumstances of their children and family. However, as a kindergarten operator and someone who has worked in early childhood education for many years, I sincerely advise parents that the above information should only be used as a reference. Generally, formally run kindergartens will not have major problems with the above items; they just have their own characteristics.

Here are two suggestions for parents:

1. The principal of a kindergarten.

When parents choose a kindergarten, they must find an opportunity to talk to the principal. Of course, the larger the kindergarten, the smaller the chance of meeting the principal, so parents should find a way to do this. Why do you want to see the principal? The principal is the soul of a kindergarten, and which aspects of the children's growth the kindergarten focuses on are directly decided by the principal. No matter what the front desk receptionist describes, the teachers must carry out the principal's requirements. Therefore, parents must have a chat with the principal to determine whether the kindergarten’s concerns are consistent with theirs.

2. Kindergarten teacher.

It’s the same principle. No matter what the kindergarten is like, it is the teacher who will interact with the children every day. The most important things are whether the child likes the teacher and whether the teacher can pay attention to the growth of the child. When parents come into contact with the teacher in charge of the class, on the one hand, they can chat with the teacher to understand the teacher's personality and professional ability. At the same time, they can also find ways to learn about the teacher from other parents. If the kindergarten allows, they can observe how the teacher and children get along during the trial period. These can truly reflect the situation of a teacher. A good preschool teacher should first of all truly love children, secondly be emotionally stable, and then have professional ability.

As for other situations in the kindergarten, such as what special classes and extracurricular classes are available and how much knowledge the child can learn in the kindergarten, these really should not be one of the conditions for choosing a kindergarten.

The most important thing for children in kindergarten is whether it can provide them with a safe and loving environment (physically and psychologically). When children have enough sense of security and enough love for the surrounding environment, they will have enough ability to explore the world.