Chance to move to a Private Nursery Just not sure ????

[Xanniiismypanda]

My little boy (almost 4) has been given a fantastic opportunity to move to a local private nursery I just dont know how he will react to moving when he has been at the Nursery he is i since he were 2 .
Sorry this is a long one -
The staff are fantastic at his current nursery its just the other parents and children that put me off as the parents constantly stand at the school gates drinking/smoking weed and fighting etc and all he has seemed to learn from the other children is a bad attitude and quite a few swear words (more than i know myself) he has the alloted free place which is 2 1/2 days and his dad pays for him to do an extra day and a half so he goes 4 days a week which works out at
£40 a week but if i were to send him to the private nursery it works out at around £80 a week full time , the staff are amazing though the parents are a little snooty i would rather that than likes at his current nursery .
Also the private nursery is a teaching nursery instead of what he is at now they just play all day and dont really learn anything to be honest .
I know i probably seem like a snob but trust me im not
The other thing is that he class sizes are small so he will get more on on one time with the teachers and if i send him it will guarantee him a place next year when it becomes a free school and he will be able to attend until high school and the nursery fees are nowhere near as expensive as what i expected as it would be an extra £40 a week for 5 days full time nursery which is cheaper than the council run one he is currently at .
Im really not the kind of person to willingly send my child in to private education (council born , Council bred and im very proud of it) I just want what is best for him and this seems like my only option .
Any advice would be great thanks

What do you mean by 'teaching' nursery? I don't know of many private nurseries that have actually qualified early years teachers (most just call themselves teachers but don't have the quals to back it up) Whereas as state nurseries (Children's centres & ones attached to schools do)

Nursery age children are also supposed to be playing all day because that is how they learn at this age. Although it might not seem like they are learning to you- when you look at the curriculum and early childhood development research- play is THE most important thing they could be doing to learn what they need.

That is what is supported by research & the national curriculum of pretty much every country I know. Talk to your child's current key person about how they plan and assess the children. You have said that the staff at his current place are fantastic- are they usually engaged with the children? Are the children there usually happy & busy? Is your son always coming home telling you about the new things they have been doing? If so he is somewhere better than most.

It would be good to get more detail on the other place. Smaller class sizes are a good thing for sure- but what are they going to be doing all day? Can you get more info on their routine of the day- how much access do they get to the outdoors? How much time is spent in child initiated play vs adult initiated?

Honestly- my professional opinion: be VERY VERY wary of a place that markets itself as a 'teaching nursery' and has young children sitting down & being quiet for long periods of time listening to a 'teacher' instead of playing. It is not developmentally appropriate & potentially damaging. It is a marketing scam to please parents (who don't know any better).

It will not offer your child any educational benefit what so ever and they could miss out on skills that they actually need to be learning at nursery.

I know children learn through play , Since the new term started my son does not seem to love the school as much as he did last term .
The staff are fantastic but there is not enough chance for there to be one on one with each child which i feel my son needs as he gets bored so easily .
At the new nursery they are fantastic and they take the children out all the time as they have there own mini bus , I myself were very wary about private nursery's/schools but they have fantastic sat levels , I know from my own experience that smaller schools are better for the students as the teachers have the chance to get to know them better .
I am not falling for a marketing scam , I have been to the school and looked round , Asked all the necessary questions .
there are 15 students at most in the class at any one time and 4 nursery teachers , which is a lot better than his current averaging on 25 students and 4 teachers , I went to a teaching nursery myself and i ahve been looking for somewhere similar with the same atmosphere etc for my child and i honestly think this nursery can provide this .

I'm no expert, but I've never heard of a 3yo being referred to as a student before!

To be honest, I'd put more value on your DD being very happy where he is, and the staff being fantastic. Particularly as he will be moving up to reception next year.

Could you talk to the staff about your worries?

I have tried to speak to the staff but he came home today saying he did not like his class anymore as his friends have all moved up to school now

can you afford it! is it good option
if so yes change nursery
children adapt, adults struggle more with change

Xannii - at the private nursery, there will not be 15 children and 4 nursery teachers. There might be one teacher, but the others will be teaching assistants. It would be worth finding out what the qualification levels of the staff at both settings are as many private nurseries do not have a qualified teacher at all.

Xanni - agree with the above posters, I doubt their will be 4 teachers at the nursery, especially if they only charge £80 per week for full time care and only have a max of 15 "students".

However if it feels right for you and a better proposition for your child then move, I wouldn't want my DC learning sweary words either it's nothing to do with snobbery just wanting the best you can give to your child.

I massively doubt that they have 4 fully qualified teachers (early years QTS qualified NOT primary) But maybe they do.

It sounds like you have already made your mind up and just want someone to agree with you.