Our youngest kid had an interview for a preschool class next year. I think she did ok at the interview but I am not holding my breath that she will get in. There were 53 kids interviewing for 32 spots. We had the last interview today. I was told they would have the letters of acceptance out by the end of this week. My daughter was nervous going in to the interview but had a lot of fun with the teacher. She was very excited when she was done. She told her dad all about going to school when he came home from work. I do hope that she gets in, it’s a great preschool program. Our other daughter did go to this preschool and loved it.
So dopers, send some positive vibes this way and hope with us that Emily gets into this program. J
That was supposed to be a 
Consider the vibes sent.
And remember, you can never be too friendly to the gentlemen of the Application Review Committee. 
Aren’t parody threads supposed to go in the Pit?
I’m sorry, I guess you’re completely serious, but this just saddens me to no end. An interview for preschool. I have no words.
I knew this went on in New York City, but SCRANTON, IOWA???
:eek:
I actually Googled Scranton, Iowa… population 604 and 60+ miles from Ames, Iowa, the closest city with a population of 50,000.
And there’s a huge demand for preschool and cutthroat competition???
Am I missing something?
Sorry to interrupt, but I seem to be on the wrong planet. I was looking for Earth. Anybody have a map?
The preschool isn’t in Scranton. It’s in the next town over.
The huge demand is that this is a great program.
The teacher has limitations as to how many students she can have. She does interviews so she gets a better feel of who needs the program the most, who can take the class next year ( age related ) and the kids that really need the social interactions with other kids before going to kindergarten the following year.
I did not feel that my son needed it, when he interviewed, he did not get in. Our older daughter did need it and did benefit from it. I am on the fence with our youngest daughter. She does need the social part of it. She is what the would consider an “older” four so her chances are better to get in than a child who has a summer 4th birthday.
There used to be another program but it got cut due to budget issues.
There is another program that is run through the communitity center, but its $60 a week for two half days, the preschool program that we interviewed for is 5 days a week.
Another program that we have in our communitity is Head Start, but it is a lower income preschool, and we do not qualify ( not that I am complaining, as I enjoy not being qualified! )
Good luck!
I know how you feel …we had to wait ages to find out if Charlie was getting into the kindergarten we wanted.
Good luck!
I have two boys, 5 and 7. When the first went to pre-school, I was absolutely astounded that he had to pass some acceptance criteria.
Even worse was when they went to kindergarten and had to not only take an IQ test but needed a letter of recommendation! I swear I’m not making that up.
Isn’t it crazy they what they have to know before they can be taught!
My nephew had such an interview earlier this year. At one point he was given a piece of paper and asked draw something about his family. He drew a five dollar bill. When asked what that meant he told the interviewer that it was what his daddy promised him if he behaved well that day.
Nephew got accepted.
(My brother doesn’t employ bribery to keep the kid in line-the little guy knew at an early age what money was for and that he definitely wanted some.)
Hope your daughter gets in.
I teach preschool, and you’d be amazed at the cutthroat competition that I hear about for my kids getting into private schools for Kindergarten and up as they leave our school.
We don’t conduct interviews at my school, but the competition to get in is pretty intense. We go by church members (it’s run by a Lutheran church), siblings of former students and then general acceptance. There’s always a waiting list. We have parents signing up their newborns for the two-year-old class, two years in advance!
I can’t even imagine trying to conduct interviews for three- and four-year-olds. :eek:
Well, think of it from the school’s perspective. You’ve got a certain number of slots, and twice as many kids who want to get in. You could do a lottery, I suppose, but since you’re aiming for a particular learning environment, which you know would benefit from a good mix of kids, why not do a selection process where you can optimize that?
Just because there is an interview doesn’t mean that the place is elitist, cutthroat, or unrealistic. It doesn’t mean the children are put into a high-pressure audition for a place. Nor does it mean the parents buy into those values. It just means there is more demand than there is supply, and the school decided to do something other than pull names from a hat. There’s not necessarily anything to be sad about.
OK, pragmatically, I understand it. Still makes me sad that we’re launching kids into the world of competition so early, that a 4-year-old should have to worry about did-I-get-in, didn’t-I-get-in. Plenty of time for that later, IMO.
Question for the thread at large, are there still any decent preschools with open enrollment? What happens to the luckless (or talentless, or just plain ordinary) toddlers who don’t make the cut into the exclusive schools - or are they all exclusive?
We found that it was especially helpful to put both of our children into a Preschool preparatory program when they were three years old. They not only learned the best methods for testing and interviewing, but many other important social and academic skills as well. Plus the contacts and networks they made there will doubtless be invaluable throughout their academic and work careers. It was a bit dear but money very well spent if it gives them a leg up on the competion.
Is this mainly to make sure the kid isn’t going to swear all day in class, or is it based on perceived intelligence? Seems that the smarter kids already have a head start. What sort of things do they look for?
Okay, it sounds as if they aren’t just looking for the best and the brightest, and I’m okay with the idea that they just don’t have enough spaces for all the kids who might want the program, especially in an area that might not have all that many choices. But it concerns me that they take older fours over younger ones. Seems like the kids who will be younger when they start school would need the boost a little more.
Not that you can do anything about that. Just sayin’, is all.
They take the older ones first because the younger ones may not be ready for kindergarten the following year any way. If you have a child that turns 4 in January they will definately be starting kindergarten the next year , 5 at the begining of the school year, turns 6 halfway through the school year. If you have a child that turns 4 in August if they don’t make the preschool cut this year they can still make it the next year. That way they will still be in an ok age range for kindergarten when they go, example - turns 4 this August, doesn’t make the preschool program, turns 5 next August makes the program, the following year they turn 6 right before heading into kindergarten.
If our daughter doesn’t make it, I won’t send her to any programs before sending her to kindergarten. I will just buy more books and do more work with her at home. I would like her to go for the social aspects of the program. She is at home with me all day long and then her siblings after school. She doesn’t spend a lot of time with kids her own age. I think her going to this program will help her develope “people” skills that she needs before sending her to a larger kindergarten class.
I trust the decisions of the teacher. If she feels that our daughter doesn’t need the program or if there are other kids who need it more, it’s fine. ( But I still hope she gets in! )
I’m being wooooshed right???