A question I hear repeated, nearly every time I exit my house, is... which school does your son go to? Do note, my older son is only 3. When they hear he doesn't go to school (yet) they switch their curious voice to a concerned voice and ask when he will start school. As if it was a ticking time bomb to not go to school by age 3. Honestly, I think this parenting peer pressure would get to me if it wasn't for Finland's esteemed and high-ranking school system and that fact that Finns start grade 1 at age 7! We are clearly not doing too bad academically despite the late start... dare I suggest we may be doing this well because of the late start!! My opinion.
The thing about these 'schools,' which are in reality school-like kindergartens, is that as much fun as they may be for our social kiddos they tend to have a serious undertone (even overtone), from what I hear. It's not all ball games and coloring books but math and reading for the early years. All that sounds fantastic, actually, and my son is not only very social but also genuinely interested in all of the above, including scribbling, picking out alphabet, and reading out numbers (in three languages!). What I find amusing and occasionally disturbing about this school-going is that these kids are, after all, only two or three years old. No, I don't find it at all disturbing that he's not in any school, kindergarten, or nursery. He doesn't even go to weekly clubs besides Sunday school. During the day he's often the only kid at the playground. He's fine with that, especially since he's got the dog, baby brother, nanny/helper, and mom to keep him company. He enjoys when the school buses return and all the kids from ages 3 months to 14 years play together outside. He interacts well with other kids, adults, and animals. So the socialization aspect is taken care of as is enough of the academic through his genuine interest to explore subjects, the latest of which has been astronomy.
Another side to this issue is that many of these parents who are startled by our decision not to institutionalize our son's learning yet also have a full-time mom at home. I'm not saying just because a parent is an an accompanying spouse, as many expats here are, that they should stay at home and keep their little kids home as well. I'm sure most have their hands full as it is, maybe with volunteering, church, coping with and adjusting to this new environment, networking, hobbies... Situations vary, obviously, so no need to go further into analyzing and scrutinizing other people's decisions. All I will say is that due to my own situation and my own cultural background the combination of being on maternity leave and having two kids that are both still small means that they are both at home, together, with me (and our nanny/helper). In fact, the general mood in Finland is that kids who have a stay-at-home parent should not be given a sought-after and government-subsidized place in kindergarten. Again I'd say situations differ and there are many reasons why doing so may be the best option for some families. But, in my case I simply enjoy being at home with both of the kids.
The thing about these 'schools,' which are in reality school-like kindergartens, is that as much fun as they may be for our social kiddos they tend to have a serious undertone (even overtone), from what I hear. It's not all ball games and coloring books but math and reading for the early years. All that sounds fantastic, actually, and my son is not only very social but also genuinely interested in all of the above, including scribbling, picking out alphabet, and reading out numbers (in three languages!). What I find amusing and occasionally disturbing about this school-going is that these kids are, after all, only two or three years old. No, I don't find it at all disturbing that he's not in any school, kindergarten, or nursery. He doesn't even go to weekly clubs besides Sunday school. During the day he's often the only kid at the playground. He's fine with that, especially since he's got the dog, baby brother, nanny/helper, and mom to keep him company. He enjoys when the school buses return and all the kids from ages 3 months to 14 years play together outside. He interacts well with other kids, adults, and animals. So the socialization aspect is taken care of as is enough of the academic through his genuine interest to explore subjects, the latest of which has been astronomy.
Another side to this issue is that many of these parents who are startled by our decision not to institutionalize our son's learning yet also have a full-time mom at home. I'm not saying just because a parent is an an accompanying spouse, as many expats here are, that they should stay at home and keep their little kids home as well. I'm sure most have their hands full as it is, maybe with volunteering, church, coping with and adjusting to this new environment, networking, hobbies... Situations vary, obviously, so no need to go further into analyzing and scrutinizing other people's decisions. All I will say is that due to my own situation and my own cultural background the combination of being on maternity leave and having two kids that are both still small means that they are both at home, together, with me (and our nanny/helper). In fact, the general mood in Finland is that kids who have a stay-at-home parent should not be given a sought-after and government-subsidized place in kindergarten. Again I'd say situations differ and there are many reasons why doing so may be the best option for some families. But, in my case I simply enjoy being at home with both of the kids.
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