To wonder when nursery and pre-school started being called "school"?

[RedskyThisNight]

As per title really. There seems to be an increasing number of threads where the OP talks about their DC going to "school" so responders naturally assume that the child is at "school" for 9-3 type hours, is at least age 4 and goes there every day. Only for the OP to reveal later that their DC is only 2/3 and actually goes to nursery/pre-school which quite often fundamentally changes the answers.

When and why did this change in terminology happen?

It was always called school where I grew up, in the 80's and 90's so I don't think it's a new thing. I think it's an area of the country thing.

All of the nurseries/preschools were attached to schools, ran the full school day, with the children wearing the same uniforms and taking part in the same assemblies etc as the rest of the school though. And literally everyone in the area started at 3. Private preschools and nurseries just weren't a thing. In fact, most people in the area that I come from don't realise that this isn't formal schooling and don't realise that you don't officially have to go to school until 5.

This caused me A LOT of confusion when I moved to England and had children. My family are still really baffled that my kids don't start school for a year or more after their cousins do.

My little one has started nursery which is attached to a prep school. In September when my little one turns 3, dc would be in the older nursery so I will call it school because it's inside the school. The nursery that dc goes to is for example called " Apple Tree Nursery" and in September, the setting dc would be in would be in the prep school itself as opposed to the little outer building and would be wearing the schools uniform doing full days from 8:15-3pm. Also it's easier for me to wake up dc in the morning say it's school time now, let's go to school instead of let's go to day care/pre school/reception/nursery/crèche/kindergarten or whatever.

Nursery school round here is from 3. 9-3.30 term time, same building, same headteacher.
I call it school (it is school) but tend to refer to it as nursery school to avoid confusion. I know not all councils have nursery schools.

I know one person who refers to school-based preschools as schools as a way (IMO) to make themself feel superior to parents who’ve kept their children at private nurseries until reception because they want to or need the longer hours and school holidays provision.

@Whatwouldscullydo

Probably about the same time as " graduation " became a thing with toddlers in caps with rolled up certificates

this is a very American thing... got a pic of me 'graduating' preschool from 35 years ago

@GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER

And when ‘pupils’ turned into ‘students’. I still go WTF? at 3 year olds being termed ‘students’.

High time to return to students being post 16 only, in further or higher education.

That's nothing, where I work all 'students' are now referred to as 'Learners'!

In Scotland they are called nurseries. Often nurseries are located in schools but they are still nurseries.

It's not called school until they go to school in primary one aged 4.5 to 5.5.

I call it nursery. When my youngest attends 3 hours a day, term time only.

What I object to is daycare centres being called nursery. They are not!

My Dh often irritated me when talking of picking up one or other Gdc from ‘school’ when it was nursery, and they were 2!

He has form for using a slightly wrong word for things, though - another was ‘carry cot’ (which we had for dds) when he meant the travel cot we had for Gdcs.

Very minor irritations, though - he’s not a bad old bugger really.

In my experience, round about 20 years ago when the local primaries started up Nursery classes. The kids were going to the school. They had qualified teachers. They used a section of the school playground. Their older siblings went to the school. They wore the same school uniform as Reception (joggers, shirt, sweatshirt, trainers, shorts in summer). They were part of the school and it was therefore normal for the children and parents to see it as going to school - they went to school and were in the Nursery Class.

There was a distinction between that and Pre School, which was usually a church provider in our area, Nursery, which was an expensive private organisation in a fuck off big Victorian House, usually and toddler groups.

It's not a new thing.

My three year old goes to a private daycare nursery that is open 07:30-18:30 year round, and a state funded preschool nursery that's term time only, 09:00-13:00, has a compulsory uniform. The first has an owner and staff are called by their first names, the second has a principal and staff are called Mrs Smith. I don't think it's unreasonable to call the second place a school!

In Wales schools have nursery classes which, in some areas, offered full places to 3 year olds. It was a school class a separate nursery and it’s the entry point to the school (you don’t re-apply for reception year).

So here, it is school.

Nursery and preschool follow the same early years learning so not sure why people think they are different. There is no difference in the education except that if a teacher runs it the ratio is 1:13 instead if 1:8. Our nursery has an early years teacher with the 3-5yo group.

@NeverDropYourMooncup

In my experience, round about 20 years ago when the local primaries started up Nursery classes. The kids were going to the school. They had qualified teachers. They used a section of the school playground. Their older siblings went to the school. They wore the same school uniform as Reception (joggers, shirt, sweatshirt, trainers, shorts in summer). They were part of the school and it was therefore normal for the children and parents to see it as going to school - they went to school and were in the Nursery Class.

There was a distinction between that and Pre School, which was usually a church provider in our area, Nursery, which was an expensive private organisation in a fuck off big Victorian House, usually and toddler groups.

It's not a new thing.

My DD went to school nursery and it was very definitely called nursery. The sign outside even read "Cherry Tree School and Nursery".

(not the real name)

I’ve just read the word ‘school’ so many times it has started to look wrong written down. Anyone else ever had that? When you question how to spell/ pronounce easy words?

Mine went to a school nursery. So they were in a school, wearing a school uniform, participating in school activities. all the teachers referred to it as school, they closed for the school holidays, older siblings were there in other classes etc. So we always called it school!

@Doggydreaming

It was always called school where I grew up, in the 80's and 90's so I don't think it's a new thing. I think it's an area of the country thing.

All of the nurseries/preschools were attached to schools, ran the full school day, with the children wearing the same uniforms and taking part in the same assemblies etc as the rest of the school though. And literally everyone in the area started at 3. Private preschools and nurseries just weren't a thing. In fact, most people in the area that I come from don't realise that this isn't formal schooling and don't realise that you don't officially have to go to school until 5.

This caused me A LOT of confusion when I moved to England and had children. My family are still really baffled that my kids don't start school for a year or more after their cousins do.

Yes, I wonder if it is a regional thing? In my experience, the above is still largely true, though more children also attend private nursery prior to 3yo now, and a minority stay in that setting until school.

I wonder how it works in other parts of the UK where people don't know what school they will attend until they apply. There must be a less straightforward route from nursery to school.

Also, I always thought that Reception was a rough equivalent to the last year of nursery in scotland?

In fact, most people in the area that I come from don't realise that this isn't formal schooling and don't realise that you don't officially have to go to school until 5.

You don’t officially have to go to school at any age. Otherwise nobody could home educate.

It’s always been Nursery School or Pre-school for me so naturally some people shorten it to nursery and some to school.

@thefatpotato

I call it nursery. When my youngest attends 3 hours a day, term time only.

What I object to is daycare centres being called nursery. They are not!

Yes they are. Our daycare is called Name House Nursery and the preschool is called Different Name Nursery School. They follow the same early years curriculum.

Here's a link to the NI government's description of the different kinds of childcare available. Note day nurseries

My grandmother would be 92 if alive. It was nursery school to her!
Nursery or school make sense as a shortening.
The question is, when did we start calling it preschool?

What is a daycare centre compared to a nursery?

Not sure I've heard anyone use the term daycare centre.

My Goddaughter is in the "Nursery" half of the mixed Nursery/Reception class. So in reality for her there will be no difference in September when she is in the Reception half. My younger DD had similar but the classes were separate and they had their own classrooms... but she still wore uniform and it would be all day now not just 3hrs (she was the last year before the change). We didn't even have to reapply at four as it wasn't an English state school (an MOD school abroad so English curriculum but some slight differences in organisation)

Other places the nursery is a lot more separated, even if it is attached to the school.

Shirley Hughes' book "Lucy and Tom Go to School" is not about actual school though is it? So it's not a new thing.

Around the same time people started talking about their toddlers and meaning 5/6 year olds.