Our Son Raylan just finished his first year of a Headstart preschool program. He will be going to Kindergarten when school starts back in the Fall. I had always known beforehand that I wanted to enroll him in an early childhood education program, but a lot of people felt differently about my decision.

 Since Raylan is our only child, everyone assumed that we wouldn’t let him start school until he was ready for Kindergarten. So when I signed him up for Headstart last year, I got bashed quite a bit. Being from an extremely small town, everyone can be so narrow minded and opinionated. I even received messages from some moms who tried to make me feel bad about my decision to send him to school before Kindergarten. They tried to make me feel like a bad mom and they tried to make me feel guilty! In the messages I was told that a mom should keep their children home with them as long as they can. These women also tried to justify their actions by saying that children can learn just as much at home than in a school setting, pretty much saying that early childhood education was useless. Well I’m here to disagree. Enrolling Raylan in a preschool program was the best decision that Justin and I could have ever made. The first two weeks was a little trying considering Raylan had never been to school before and a lot of tears were shed. However, after the first two weeks; Raylan grew to love school. He was eager to go every day and see his new friends. He built great relationships with other children. He also came out of his comfort zone and shyness. Raylan also has learned a tremendous amount from what time he spent in Headstart. Everyday he was excited to come home and tell me what he had learned during that day at school. I noticed that he learned much better under the direction of someone else other than myself. For whatever reason, children listen to their teacher’s much better than they do their parents. I watched as his speech improved. I also noticed that his knowledge on so many things had broadened. Raylan loved getting to take part in science experiments and He loved learning about the weather. He also loved getting to go on school field trips. All of these things were such great experiences for him.

School was also great for him because it gave him a sense of responsibility and time management. He now knows what to expect when he begins Kindergarten. For me, I didn’t want to throw Raylan into Kindergarten blindsided. I know my child and I know that if I had done that, he would have been very overwhelmed. I wanted to give him that Headstart. I wanted him to know what to expect of school before the busyness and the responsibility of Kindergarten took place. Kindergarteners these days are expected to know and do a lot. After having a year of Headstart, I feel that Raylan is now mentally and emotionally prepared for Kindergarten. Like I said, Headstart was a great fit for Raylan. It truly was the best decision that we could have ever made for our son. So if you’re on the fence as to whether or not to enroll your child into a preschool program, I think you absolutely should. I know you will miss your child. I missed Raylan like crazy while he was gone to school, but I wasn’t about to hold him back from learning and experiencing things just because I couldn’t bear the thoughts of letting my baby go. It would not have been fair to Raylan to hold him back like that nor would it have been fair for him to not be fully prepared for Kindergarten. So I set aside my feelings of my only child leaving me and I did what was best for him. He may be only little once, but his education will last him a lifetime. I wholeheartedly agree that we should instill learning at an early age. I fully support early childhood education preschool programs 110%.