DD has been in "daycare"/"preschool" since she was 4 months old.
DS is 7 months and is being kept in a home daycare situation. I'm keeping him there (hopefully) until he's 3, then I'll put him in a more structured "school" type environment.
Beth

My son has been in preschool since he was 3 months old. I stopped working when he was 2.5 and then switched him to twice a week since he was already there and liked it. My daughter is nearly 2 now and hasn't been to preschool yet. I'll send her a few days a week when she turns 3.

My son started preschool at 2 1/2, when his big sister started kindergarten. He thrived on the daily, 8:45-11:30 am schedule, and was ready both socially and academically when it was time for kindergarten.

My children are all in school now, but they went to a part-time preschool a year before they started kindergarten. They learned what they needed to know for kindergarten, and learned the whole school structure thing. When they were younger, we were active with mommy and me groups for the socialization, theirs and mine. This worked for our family. Good luck.

My oldest is a December baby as well, but since I worked when she was young, she's been in "school" since she was 9 months old. My youngest will be 2 years old in August, and will start preschool/daycare then since I will be going back to work. If I was going to continue to stay at home, I probably would wait to send her until she was 3. You're right--there's plenty of time to prepare her for Kindergarten! You can always schedule playdates or other activities to help with socialization. Best of luck!

My son started when he was 2, but that was only 1 day a week. I knew I wanted to get pregnant, so it was nice as a stay at home mom to have that one day a week where he was in school that I could schedule drs. appts, run errands, etc.

My daugther is 2 now and I have not enrolled her for the fall. I am going to send her when she turns 3. My son will be in a K transition class this fall and it was going to be a lot of money to send both of them.

We started my son at the age of 3 w/ a two day a week program and then had him in a 3 day a week program (half days). I really wish we had started him w/ the 3 day a week program when he was three and then a 5 day a week program. With all that is required in kindergarten the more prepaired they are the better. I am not saying pushing your child to read by the age of 4 but let's put it this way....if they can't write their ABC's, know all their colors, count to 30 and be starting to write words b/f school starts then kindergarten can be a struggle. By the end of their kindergarten year they have to be able to write short stories (3 or 4 sentences) and doing simple math.
We have started our daughter this year (she turned 3 in Jan) w/ a 2 day a week program and will have her in a 3 day a week program (half days) next year. She is bored at home w/o her brother and we want her to be ready for "big school". Not just in the ABC's/123's but socially as well.
It is a tough decision and one that you have to really look at your child and see what is best for him/her. Each child is different and some aren't ready for preschool at 2 and some are.

First, let me say that I do not think preschool is bad and I don’t judge parents who chose to send their children. I would just like to offer my personal experience as a parent and former kindergarten teacher. My three children did not attended preschool and didn’t suffer any negative consequences. They didn’t have any trouble adjusting to the social or academic requirements of kindergarten. My children went to school reading, writing, spelling, understanding letters and numbers and excited about learning. They are all honor roll students and have been in the gifted program since they began school. As a kindergarten teacher I found no difference between kindergarten readiness of children who did and did not attend preschool. It has been my personal experience that children, regardless of their preschool attendance, will be successful in elementary school if they are given a wide variety of age appropriate stimulation prior to entering school.

If you have decided on preschool here are some things to look for to help you know if your child is ready: 1. Is your child comfortable being away from you for short periods of time? 2. Can your child concentrate or focus on specific tasks for short periods of time? A child who is ready for preschool should be able to attend to tasks like coloring, playing or building with blocks for short periods of time (about 30 min.) independently. 3. Is your child fairly independent? Can they take themselves to the bathroom, wash their own hands, use simple craft items (children's scissors, glue sticks) and manage their own meals? 4. Is your child ready to take part in group activities? Can they sit for short periods of time, or listen to stories without getting bored and fidgeting. This can often be very hard for some children under three who are much more interested in physically exploring their world rather than sitting quietly. 5. Does your child follow directions easily? A child who gets frustrated when asked to switch tasks or told “no” will find the structure of preschool frustrating. 6. Can your child express his or her own needs?

If you can answer yes to the questions above your child should be developmentally able to participate in a preschool program.

Both of my boys have been in daycare since 3mths old. I think it has been great for both of them. They interact well with other children and I didn't have to go through the aspect of them crying for me when I left them. If they start as a baby - it just becomes part of their routine. (they want to go on your days off work) The key is finding a "good" daycare center.

We started our twins at 2.5. We looked at many before we settled on one. I was concerned that it would be a hard adjustment, but they did great. We liked the social interaction that they were part of. They became adept at following instructions and listening to adults. And I loved to have the morning off. It was good for all of us; I would miss them so much & would be so happy to pick them up at the end of the morning.

I put my child in the 2 year class at our preschool. I wanted him to be around other kids,m so that was our motivation.

James will start preschool in the fall. He's 3. I really want him to experience the social aspect of it.

He'll be going two days per week.

I really think he'll have fun in school.