Seriously??

Kate and I have been checking out preschools lately. Kate loves it. She says, "I have to do work. I need to go to school." I don't know where she got that but it's funny. She loves being around kids, and when the baby is here in August, I really want her to have her own, big girl thing to do.

As we look at these schools, I have to admit I'm way out of my element. The level of chaos in a preschool far exceeds my capacity. But all the kids and teachers seems to be loving it so here's to them.

But I do have my limits. At one school we visited, the director was explaining one of the school's policies to me and I could barely keep my composure. Here's what she said - "If a child is playing a math game and says that 2+4 = 5, we don't correct them or tell them that they are wrong. We don't want to discourage them!" I stood there with my mouth hanging open in disbelief as she continued, "We want them to like math, so we just try to model the right answers in hopes that they will get it right next time." Ummm, seriously? You've got to be kidding me. I promise you that kids who think 2+4 = 5 will not have math as a love of their heart over time. I swear it was the stupidest thing I've heard in a long time. And probably the thing that shocks me the most is, I'm sure it's a philosophy being taught in a university setting somewhere. She also added, and I guess this won't surprise you based on what I've already shared, that they don't tell the children "no" or "don't do that." I certainly think there is a time for redirection, but how can you not acknowledge the need to tell kids - who are just small people - no. Absolute lunacy. So the search for Kate's school continues...