We skipped Zee’s pre-kinder years and enrolled him when he was 5 years old straight to kindergarten.  

And maraming nagtatanong sa akin if its a practical move to skip the junior years at diretso Kinder nalang.

First things first, ano bang say ni DEPED regarding this?

• KINDER lang ang required ng DEPED before Grade 1.

Yes, hindi required ng DEPED ang pre-kinder and toddler classes, so regardless if nag pre kinder and junior classes ang child basta nag kinder sya ay okay yun mommies.

• Dapat nag-KINDER bago mag Grade 1.

Hindi kagaya noong time natin na pwedeng Grade 1 na agad pag pasok, kailangan dumaan sa Kindergarten at may LRN (Learner Reference Number)  na galing sa school.

• The child must be 5 years old to be accepted in Kindergarten level.

Children aged five years old by August 31 are eligible to enroll in Kindergarten.

Kaya kahit gusto natin na Kinder na agad if hindi pa pasok sa age requirement ng DEPED hindi pwede mommies. Kahit memorized na nya ang Alphabet, marunong na sya mag-read at mag basic mathematics at younger than 5 years old sya, hindi pwede. (Refer to this news)

IS IT PRACTICAL NOT TO ENROLL MY CHILD IN PRE-KINDER CLASSES?

As I’ve mentioned earlier, we’ve decided to delay Zee’s formal schooling, hindi namin sya inenroll sa Junior Kinder or Pre-Kinder Classes in school but we homeschooled him during his pre-kinder year.

Why? First, we couldn’t find the right school for him during that time, and mas practical naman talaga since hindi naman required ng DEPED ang junior years, we’ve decided na kami nalang magturo ng basic english, math sakanya.

PRO’s

1. It can save you money from tuition fee expenses.
2. It can save you time sa paghatid sundo sa anak sa school
3. It can give you another year to bond with your child because you are your child’s first teacher
4. A peace of mind na hindi sya mahahawa ng sakit sa classmates nya
5.  Mas relax yung academics side and pwede mo sya ienroll sa mga activities na mas enjoy nya. We enrolled Zee sa Music School and Reading School while hindi sya naka formal school
6. You can focus more on building his or her character and values.

CON’s

1. Your child will need to catch up in school’s academic aspect
2. He/She will adjust socially dahil nasanay sya na kayo lang palagi magkasama (sepanx)
3. There were times na napapagod ako especially for moms without a household helpers like me kasi you also need time to prepare the lessons especially ma-arts and crafts ang toddler stage
4. You’ll also have the tendency to spend more kasi feeling mo hindi naman sya nag school so might as well enroll sya sa ganito.. sa ganyan.. ibili sya ng ganito.. 

MY MOMMMY SUGGESTION

If you’re considering this option of not enrolling your son in a formal school setting for his pre kinder years. Follow a curriculum for pre-k (may mga free online), buy books for pre-kinder, join group play dates for his socialization skills, enroll him to activities that interest him (hindi yung bet mo lang momsh haha), monitor his improvement para hindi naman din sya zero pag pasok sa school.

Honestly kami, masyado kaming naging relax, kaya the next time na gagawin namin ito, mas ok na may guide. Helpful din kay Zee na nagsummer class sya before nag-kinder kasi naging familiar sya sa school environment lalo’t first time nya nag formal schooling.

If you’re a busy mom, don’t feel guilty if your only option is to enroll him in pre-k classes, if money is not also an issue why not di ba? They are many play-based schools now na hindi din naman magiging pressured ang toddlers.

We all have different situations and different seasons, yung nag work sa iba, pwedeng hindi mag-work sa akin, yung sa akin, pwedeng hindi possible sakanya. Discuss it with your spouse mommies.

Hope you learn something from this post. I know how it feels in the end, we all want the best for our kids.