E's New Preschool

Well, we've progressed another step in our transition to Denver. E is now enrolled in a preschool. We've decided to go with Callan Rose. I looked at about 6 preschools total. Some were close to our home and some were close to my work, E's new preschool will be about 2 minutes from our new home. Although it's about a 15 minute backtracking drive currently. So, we'll have to allow extra time until we move into our new place.

There are a lot of reasons that we decided on Callan Rose. First, E and I went there on Tuesday to visit. We didn't have an appointment, the director really emphasized that the school is open door (although securely locked) and encouraged us to come in anytime. So, we showed up there and as soon as E and I got to the door, E threw up everywhere. Not just a little bit of spit up, but a pretty major mess. The director immediately went into action getting paper towels, water for E to drink, a mop, etc. She was soooo understanding. I kept apologizing and she just was unwavering in her sympathy. Although I was very embarrassed, we returned the next day to visit the school again. This time we actually completed the tour. The school was clean, bright, and the classrooms were large and well-organized.

I also liked that they use Core Knowledge in the pre-K classroom. I was a little bit unfamiliar with Core Knowledge, but I was able to take a look at the classroom lesson plan that is sent home each week with the parents. It seems to be thematic and really well-rounded. Movement, math, music, social studies, science, language, and social skills are all included in the curriculum. This week seemed to be kind of bird themed because they were playing Duck, Duck, Goose for the movement, Bird Watching in science and learning about Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake in music.

Another really major reason that we ended up choosing this center is that they are willing to give us their half-day rate as opposed to full-day. Many of the other centers were going to charge us for full-day even though I'll be able to pick E up by 1 pm. The other schools' half-day programs seemed to end at 11:30 or 12:30 and they were unwilling to bend. Callan Rose was really willing to work with us on that. So, we'll see how it goes. E's first day will be on the 16th.

Our inspection is scheduled for tomorrow. I'm not too worried about it, but maybe I should be? The home was built in 1978, but it's been very well-maintained and updated. We should know by tomorrow afternoon if there are any major issues with the home.