Believe it or not, now is the time to start considering preschools for the 2010-2011 school year. It is important to start looking now to know what your options are and to have the most options available to you. You can find a list of open houses in my previous article. Last year, I started looking at preschools for my daughter in March. At that point, some of my options were limited (class choice, days, location). However, I think that we ended up with the perfect fit for us.

There are many considerations when looking at a preschool. The structure of preschool, curriculum, facilities, class days and times, etc. Different programs will work best for different families and even different children. I wanted to provide some insight from our preschool search last year and from my experiences as the membership co-chair at a cooperative preschool..

In our situation, I am a stay-at-home mother and was looking for a part-time pre-school. My daughter had turned 3 in early January, so had just missed the cut-off for the previous year. The cut-off for most 3 year old programs is that the child must be 3 by December 1, so with a January birthday, my daughter was going to be one of the older ones in the class. The same December 1 cut-off typically applies in 4 year old classes as well. The school my daughter goes to also offers a pre-K class that has a 5 by June 15th at the end of the school year cut-off.

Some of my considerations were:

• It was important to me that my daughter be in a consistent class where everyone was there the same length of time and same number of days. I also wanted a school where I liked the program for both this year and next year so that my daughter would not have to change schools.
• My preference was for a Tuesday-Thursday half-day program as a 3 year old, and a Monday-Wednesday-Friday half-day program as a 4 year old.
• I wanted a program in the morning because my daughter was still napping.
• I also wanted a play-based curriculum that incorporated learning themes during circle time with lots of free-play time including some outdoor play.
• I wanted a pre-school that encouraged parental involvement and interaction with other families, but not necessarily to the extent required for a cooperative.
• I wanted a pre-school that had different classes that meet at the same time so there is the classroom atmosphere.

Other questions that I wanted answered:

• Field Trips - What types of field trips do you do and what are the transportation arrangements? I wanted her to go on field trips, but I was unsure about other parents driving and car seat installation.
• Potty Training - Do you require children to be potty-trained? What expectations are there around a child's independence in using the bathroom?
• Immunizations - Are children required to be up to date on immunizations?
• Volunteer Screenings - Are parental volunteers required to undergo any type of screening?
• Fundraising - What types of fund-raisers do you do? Are they mandatory? I did not want to become a salesperson and wanted to factor required fundraising into my tuition comparison.
• Tuition - What does the tuition cost? What extra programs or fees are there?
• Other Activities - What activities does the school do outside of school?

So the above was my "wish-list". I ended up compromising on a few of my wants, and receiving satisfactory answers to my questions.

Half-way through the school year, my daughter loves her school. When she tells me something new and I ask how she knew it, I'll often hear "my teacher taught me." During the holiday break, I was constantly asked "Is today school day?" I can already see that it will be a long summer break.

So, watch the weather, bundle up, and keep enjoying the playgrounds. Do you have a favorite playground? Please, share your experiences in the comments.

Anna Mae Trievel is a stay-at-home mother to a 4 year old. She publishes information on events and activities for preschoolers through a website, blog, Facebook page, and Twitter account.