Experiences of children attending two preschool settings

[CP108]

Hi everyone,
Could I have people’s honest opinions/experience on children going to two preschool settings please? At the moment I am thinking of sending my son, who’s just turned 3, to two for a few reasons, one near work and one near home but I’m now second guessing whether it’s a good idea. Any responses really welcome :)
TIA

We did this with DD2, as one was a nursery that she had been to since a baby and the other fed into her primary school. I can't remember the exact reason we didn't just move her to the feeder one, probably something to do with work hours and holiday cover.

She was absolutely fine splitting her time between the two. She found her school best friend at the school feeder one, despite only overlapping one day a week.

She had a slight preference for her old nursery as they were more relaxed and she isn't fond of being told what to do.

DD1 didn't split her time, but did move nursery at 2.5 and that went remarkably smoothly.

Small children are mostly very resilient, though obviously some struggle with transitions etc more than others. So it probably depends on what your son is like.

I work in a nursery and lots of our children attend 2 nurserys the nursery I work in is a bit out of the way but has some unique features that other nurserys can't offer so parents send them for that and then one nearer to home to meet people for school too. Also provides opportunity for different friendships (which can be for the better sometimes) we have a child who an agency staff member had a child met in their other setting and they said they were like a different child at the other setting (for the better) due to a friend who's not the best influence not being there.

We did, for 15 months. My son was full-time at a workplace nursery from 3 months (this was over 30 years ago), and as a summer-born, he was accepted into the church nursery at 3 years but it was mornings only, but free or much cheaper. So I picked him up each lunchtime and drove him to the workplace nursery for the afternoons, for that whole academic year, then went back to my job. When he was 4, he went to school afternoons only for a term so went to the workplace nursery in the mornings, then went to school full-time from term 2 (he became deaf at 5 months, so had what was then a Statement of SEN, and somehow the Headteacher fiddled it so he went full time a term early, along with his little friend, who had been at the workplace nursery and was in the same parish).
I think what I’m trying to say is that, even with his extra needs, he loved both places and wasn’t fazed by 2 different settings. As for me, I struggled with the drive, the boredom of eating lunch in the car every day and getting him to change into his school uniform in the car, but he had 2 sets of familiar friends which was a godsend, and I am glad that sending him to the church nursery helped him make lifelong friendships. We also saved a fortune as the workplace nursery wasn’t cheap!

We did 2 days preschool and 2 days childminder with our and it was fine. The childminder could do more out and about stuff and the preschool got him more used to a bigger setting.

We did but due to necessity rather than choice. DC had speech delays and was referred to a specialist unit attached to a school about 5 miles away but only 3 hours every morning. She came home, changed out of uniform and had lunch at home, then went along to the local private nursery that she’d been going to since she was 1 for 2-3 afternoons a week.
She was fine and settled into both settings. We hated the running around but as it was during Covid, we were working from home and there was no traffic. It was only for a year as she then went into mainstream local school for reception.

We did this. She started at a traditional preschool. It ticked all the boxes or providing school readiness and socialization.

Then a forest school program started nearby. We couldn’t resist, but didn’t want to disrupt her friendships, particularly because many of the students from her first school would be classmates in primary. Forest school was amazing. If it had started just a bit earlier, we would have just done that, but it was worth the busier schedule.

Just on a practical note check christmas events and arrangements in advance - don’t do what i did and let your dc rehearse for two nativity shows that clashed!!

I think it would be OK if you did 2 days at each? I worry only 1 day they take longer to settle. Our nursery has a minimum two sessions a week (can be two half days).

It was normal when mine where young... they did their 3hrs at the school nursery, then got picked up by the daycare nursery for the rest of the day. (And a couple were then picked up by their Nanny!)

The children were fine with it.