I finally figured out my preschool situation. Basically
IF DH is sent on TDY sometime this summer, I'll be enrolling dd part time in the local Montessori school around August. I really think it would help her and I to do so. I'll be 24/7 parenting which for her & I can be a battle of wills. We each need a break from one another which really makes our relationship much more cooperative.
If he remains here, then we'll go on with our usual schedule & have fun + learning until he eventually gets orders. Depending on when that happens, I'll either send her to the Montessori or the private Episcopalian school since she'll be just 5 or more. They'll still place her with kids who are younger, but they'll be older too. I'd rather have that in the future than currently surrounded by 3 year olds while she's already 4. Too much of a developmental difference imo.
If you're interested in learning more about the Montessori or other types of schools, look into what your library system has. There's an informative book called
The Montessori Controversy which is helpful to questions you have about the program. There's also a video out there too that my parents watched through the library system and helped to understand.
Personally, I would rather teach a child HOW to learn than fill her up with all sorts of current information to memorize without understanding the content. We don't know what will be important to know in 20 years, but at least I believe if my dd knows how to adapt, research, & figure things out, she'll be successful in whatever she chooses to do.
If you think about it, Maria Montessori was an absolute radical in her theory & methods of learning 100 years ago. We were just emerging out of the Victorian era where it was considered that children were natural little beasts who MUST be forcefully civilized and educated. Children peacefully learning from one another and the atmosphere around them? Oh heck, what was the world coming to?
But it's not for all kids or even adults, that's for sure. I just believe my little OCD wanna-be child would benefit from a more relaxed learning setting than adding to her uberawareness of schedules.