What is your greatest concern as a parent of a preschooler?

Lice!





Seriously, my biggest concern was that my children were in a safe environment, surrounded by loving teachers that valued my children as individuals, and would take the time to get to know them.





I also wanted to make sure that academics took a back seat to creative, imaginative play. It's through this type of play that kids learn to solve problems, negotiate, and work and play in groups harmoniously. Kids have a lifetime to learn math and reading. Let them get the most out of their childhoods!What is your greatest concern as a parent of a preschooler?
We'll assume that you would only be sending your child to a preschool if you felt good about the safety and general environment of the place. That said, I have one academic concern:





Reading.





You want your child to be reading easily - and thinking that reading is easy - by the time he enters first grade. Sure, he's not going to be reading Steinbeck or Melville at that point, but during the preschool years, you want to be doing whatever you can to help him get there.





Preschoolers should know the alphabet pretty well, should know the sounds letters make. If not, work on these things with your child. If he is already there, work on putting sounds together to make words: ';B-I-G....big.';





When he gets to that point, work on very simple sentences: ';I am big.'; and then transition to the easiest books. Spend at least 10-15 minutes per day on this, and work up to 30 minutes per day by kindergarten. Spend more if your child wants to spend more. Listen to them read, even if it's just a word or two and then you read to them.





Why the focus on reading? Well, preschool is just that: pre-school - it's what you need to be thinking about *before* school begins in earnest. You can learn a lot of things without knowing math, but you can't really learn anything until you know how to read.





It's an important time and a fun time. Enjoy your reading time with your kids!