Finding a Great School For Your Child

A great education is often the key to a successful career and childhood, so parents today are highly invested in finding the best preschools, art schools, private high schools, and more for their children. Parents today have many options for what sort of education they think that their child should get, and the best private middle schools, prep high schools, and more are out there. When parents move to a new area, or when their child first becomes old enough for school, it is essential to find the right education for them. Parents in or near West Kendall in Florida, for example, can look online, such as “private schools in west kendall” or something similar. Searching “private schools in west kendall” or “best preschools near me” is often a great way to start this search if the parents don’t have references they can turn to for finding a school for their kids. How can this search be done?

Preschool

Many parents opt to send their kids to preschool, and these facilities and their well-trained staff can go a long way toward preparing a child for their later education. Parents whose child first turns old enough for preschool, such as age three or four, can find one nearby. The parents can look online for a list of local preschools, then start crossing names off the list as needed. Schools that are too far away, have no more openings, or too expensive can be crossed off the list early, and the rest can be checked out in person. Parents can visit these schools and get a feel for how well funded they are, and interview the staff to see if they meet the parents’ expectations. And of course, the child’s own input is important, too. A four-year-old won’t ask for a teacher’s credentials, but then again, parents will want to see that their young son or daughter is comfortable there. If the child is frightened or otherwise doesn’t like the school or its staff, then it is out of the running. A child may only get a good education if they can integrate well.

Other Schools

Compulsory education in the United States runs from kindergarten to 12th grade, or K-12, and parents can find a fine school for their kids. There is no shortage of options, and parents can look online if they need to, just like with preschools. Searches such as “best high schools Boston MA” or “private schools in west kendall” can provide a list of schools, but there may be more criteria for these than preschools. The child has more demanding needs than a three or four-year-old, and searches such as “private schools in west kendall” only provide a list of names. An older child can fully articulate his or her preferences and opinions on schools.
What should a parent-child team look for in a school? One major divide in the K-12 education system is between private and public middle and high schools. Private schools only account for 25% of American schools, and only enroll about 10% of American preschool and K-12 students, but they can offer some advantages. It should be noted that the perks of a private school come with a price tag. Tuition tends to be high at private schools, which puts them out of reach for some families and renders this decision moot. For parents who can indeed afford either school model, they may weigh the advantages of a private school vs the tuition and see what works best.
Private schools are privately funded and set their own coursework, as per the name, and offer more college prep than public high schools do. The counselors at private high schools spend nearly 55% of their time on college prep for students, more than the 22% that public school counselors spend on this. What is more, private schools have fewer students per teacher, ensuring more focus on each student. Private high school grads tend to go on to college more often than public school grads. Public schools are much more affordable. And either way, a school may be more attractive to a child or teenager if it offers programs and clubs that they like, such as the soccer team or a marching band.