Help! Will taking my PFB out of pre school doom her in prep for reception next year?!

[Fostec1]

My child does to an independent pre school two mornings a week (with her year younger brother) and one full day (without him). She also attends the local pre school one morning a week. I have recently started helping out in a reception class and suddenly feel a panic that in less than a year she will be in formal education five days a week and I don't want to miss any of this precious time we have now!

I was thinking of stopping her full day at nursery so her, her bro and me could have a fun filled "trip" day once a week every week.

However nursery have said they think she will be at a disadvantage come September in being prepared in doing a full day at school, if anything they would suggest increasing her hours rather than cutting them.

I can't put her in for a full day on the day I volunteer as they are full, and I don't want to stop the village pre school morning as half of the children from there will go to her reception class and I think it will be an advantage knowing some children there already.

Help, any advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation what on earth did you decide to do? Or am I being a bit PFB?.....

I venture to suggest that they are thinking more of their income than anything else here. None of my 3 dc did more than 2.5 days per week at pre-school or nursery. One never even did any full days, only mornings. They all coped fine with starting school.

I would think that but they are very over subscribed and would have no problem filling her place. I also wonder about the being ready for school thing when suddenly they have a 7 week hol before starting school anyhow!

My two only did 2.5 hours per day before starting school and it never hampered them in any way

I think the days you have with her are more important. DS was at a full time nursery but I kept him off a day a week to spend time with me.
It hasn't caused any problems so far in reception, he is settled and at the same stage work wise as the rest. He finished nursery knowing all the jolly phonics despite a fun day out with me weekly instead of a day at school.
He's already starting to read a bit after half a term.
You don't get these early years back- enjoy!

She's only in for 2.5 days as it stands. I just worry about taking it down to 1.5 days, only mornings, no lunches and one morning in a different pre school. But then I think, she's only three and a half! Can it really be so important?! She's doing well with phonics but after seeing that they do it all anyway at school I wonder if there's much point doing it now?

When I had 2 in preschool at the same time, I staggered their days so that I had at least a morning with each of them on their own plus a morning on my own.

What's important at preschool really is not phonics. The important things at preschool is social skills, self-care skills, learning to be happy in the care of non-family and learning how to behave in a communal situation (eg sitting in a circle and following instructions). Oh, and being able to recognise your name printed on a label.

Thank you for your replies especially LifeisGoodish. I did wonder about collecting boyo at lunch time but I worry that PFB will totally be aware that he's leaving and she's not (not that either of them don't love it there but I think splitting them may upset the apple cart) I was totally amazed by what they are doing at pre school but after working at a school the work they are doing in Pre school is almost exactly what they are doing in reception. So as long as you do some form as social, personal education with them is there any gain in the formal educational schemes?!

It'll be fine. They're in education for years and years. Make the most of this time you have together.

IIRC one child went Tues-Wed-Thurs, and the other went Wed-Thurs-Fri, so I never picked one up and not the other.

Could she do another half day at the local pre-school and drop the independent school? If you're not planning for her to stay at the independent school is there any point in her going there now? Or are you using it to cover working hours?

I'd be more interested in her spending time with the children she will go to school with than at the other pre-school. Could you up her time there and drop the other?

I also can't see any need for phonics in preschool other than what they happen across when playing. I'm sure there are things they do as precursors to phonics, like finding things beginning with a sound, but phonics proper is probably best left to the school.