When it is time for your child’s preschool admission, there are many aspects playing in your mind. You want to choose a place where the child will be physically safe. Additionally, you want a nurturing space that will ensure the holistic development of your child. Given that 90% of a child’s brain development occurs by the time they reach 5 years of age, it’s crucial not to compromise on quality.

Why Asking the Right Questions Matters

Asking the right questions before preschool admission is crucial since it ensures the school’s values, teaching methods, and environment align with your child’s needs. With the child reaching several child development milestones in this phase, you want to make sure that your choice of preschool will focus on the holistic development of the child. Questions about teacher qualifications, the curriculum the school follows, student-teacher ratios and more are crucial.

Additionally, asking the right questions will help you confirm that the child is in safe hands and that the school has implemented the necessary arrangements to ensure child safety.

Top 10 Must-Ask Questions For Your Child’s Admission

1. What safety measures are in place?

First, is the school committed to child safety, and what protocols do they follow? Some aspects to check for include:

• Live CCTV footage
• Child-friendly infrastructure
• Stringent background checks of staff
• Dispersal policy, and more

2. What is the curriculum and learning approach?

It is important to check whether or not the preschool follows:

•  The preschool should follow a scientifically developed curriculum that focuses on different content areas to ensure the holistic development of the child. 
• Is the emphasis on active learning, and whether or not the pedagogy is play-based?
• Does it equip children with 21st-century skills?
• You also need to check what learning outcomes are being targeted.

3. What are the teacher qualifications and child-to-teacher ratio?

A key question to ask is, are the teachers qualified to be able to handle young children, and also what kind of training do they receive on a consistent basis?
Checking for an optimal teacher-to-student ratio is also key, since young children need personalised care.

4. What is your sick policy for children?

Young children typically are still developing immunity. It is important, therefore, to check what the policy is at the preschool for dealing with ailing children.

5. How clean and hygienic are the facilities?

Hygiene is of utmost importance when it comes to young children. Do check to see:

• What is the level of hygiene followed when it comes to the upkeep of facilities?
• How often are classrooms cleaned?
• Are toys sanitised?
• Since children will be having meals at the preschool, it will also help to check how hygienically food is prepared and served.

6. How do you communicate with parents?

Parents need to be kept informed of their ward’s progress in school. To that end, you need to ask what the communication channels are. It will be ideal for the preschool to have a user-friendly application to ensure real-time information dissemination.

7. What is the fee structure and policies?

To avoid any unexpected issues later, you should thoroughly examine the detailed breakdown of the fee structure and the policies regarding the due date of the fee.

In addition, check the refund policy.

8. What is the admission procedure?

To avoid last-minute issues, it’s wise to learn about the playschool admission process and required documents.

9. Can parents visit or observe the class?

As a parent, you may want to see the pedagogy in practice. To this end, it will be helpful to ask whether, as a parent, you can visit the facility in advance and observe the workings of a class.

10. How do you manage special needs or dietary restrictions?

If your child has any special needs or has any dietary restrictions, a key question to ask is whether or not the preschool can cater to it. Children are often known to be allergic to certain foods, and the preschool needs to make sure that they are in a position to cater to it while working out their menu.

Preschool Admission Checklist for Parents

The below table will come in handy to give you a quick overview of aspects to check for. 

Factor	Sample Questions Parents Can Ask
Safety	Are classrooms monitored? Are entry points secure? What is the dispersal policy?
Curriculum	Is the programme play-based or academic? What learning milestones are covered?
Teachers	What are the qualifications? How many children per teacher?
Hygiene	How often are classrooms cleaned? Are toys sanitised?
Communication	How often do you update parents? Is progress reported?
Fees & Policies	What is the fee structure? Are there refund or leave policies?

To Sum Up

Examining the aforementioned aspects thoroughly will assist you in making the best decision for your child. Since early education significantly influences a child’s long-term outcomes, the research mentioned above will contribute to a strong future for your child.

At Footprints Playschool, we have a strong focus on holistic child development. We design our scientifically developed HighScope curriculum to stimulate children’s natural curiosity through active, participatory learning.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. How can I check the quality of a preschool?

This involves researching several areas including but not limited to 1) whether or not the school follows a scientifically developed curriculum 2) what are the safety protocols are, 3) what the teacher-student ratio and more

2. Should I prioritise fees or curriculum when selecting a preschool?

The first focus should be on the curriculum since that will determine the child’s learning outcomes. That said, you sure need to evaluate the fee to see how it aligns with your goals.

3. How are food and nutrition managed at preschools?

Quality preschools offer nutritious meals to children. This menu is prepared by nutritionists and ensures that there is no junk food that is offered to children. Emphasis is also laid on catering to any allergies or dietary restrictions that the child may have.

4. How is the preschool infrastructure designed for child safety?

Quality preschools take great care to ensure that the infrastructure is child-friendly. This pertains to classrooms, the use of non-toxic toys, slip-proof floors, and more.

5. Does the preschool follow a No Junk Food policy?

It is important that the preschool follows a no junk food policy, as that will impact the physical growth and development of the child.

Additionally, the child forms his or her relationship with food early. It is important, therefore, to not have them hooked on junk food.