Seeking 3-Year Old Kindergarten in Greenfield Area

Hi T.,
I would check with MPS, I know that they sometimes combine 3 and 4 year olds. Depending on their class sizes. I know that 65th Street does this. The other thing is the potty training issue. They dont want to be potty training the children and or changing diapers. That is why I think a lot of the schools do not do it.

Good luck
K.

I don't believe that anyone other than private schools offers three year old kindergarten in Milwaukee area. I raised all four of mine here. I did have my daughter in a headstart class from 3-4. She went to the YMCA. They don't push religion at all. We were over income for Head start but were able to get in anyway when I submitted an application. They select so many over income families a year. I didn't have to pay anything for her to go. There are also other daycare centers that offer Headstart and they're nonreligious.She really excelled there. She learned so much and their centers are so nice! Not very many communities even have 4 yr. old kindergartens anymore. Hope you find something soon!

I realize that this option isn't in Greenfield... My daughter attended Fernwood Montessori School in Bayview. We had a really good Kindergarten experience (although we started at K4 not K3) It's public and part of Milwaukee Public Schools and is a K-8. The kindergarten classrooms are comprised of 3-4-5 year-olds. The 3 and 4 yr-old stayed half days and K5s were full day. The children stay in the same classroom with the same teacher for 3 years. We are not sending our current 3 year-old to Montessori. Instead, we opted to send her to a Lifeways in-home daycare. It's based on Waldorf philosophies- very holistic, warmfuzzy, nature loving...this crunchy mama couldn't be happier. We believe that our 3 is doing better in a smaller, more nuturing environment. She may not be learning cursive writing this year (like my eldest did in Montessori kindergarten!), but emotionally we think she's better served. I'm sure you know what's best for your little individual :) Montessori can be a really great program for many kids and you can get them started early. Hope this helps a little...

Hi T.,

My sister is a kindergarten teacher, and I asked her about this. She told me that there is no such thing as 3 year old kindergarten. Some areas, including where I live in Whitefish Bay, have 4 & 5 year old kindergarten. There are preschools for children 2 1/2 to 4 years old, and most of them are run privately. When you say that you're an athiest and can't do a private school do you mean because it could be inside a church? There are many preschools that are inside churches, but have absolutely no affiliation with them other than renting space.
I live in a different area of the city, but have done alot of research on this because I needed to enroll my son for the Fall. There are Montessori programs, as well as daycare...unfortunately they all cost alot of money. I found a nice preschool that has been around for 54 years, and is inside a church basement, but has no affiliation with any religion.
I think it would help you to look around Greenfield for preschools, and a good way to find information would probably be at the Greenfield library. Also, check out Milwaukeemoms.com for more information.

T.,
There is a school at a church just south of Oklahoma on 76th...it's in the church, but not affiliated with the church. They just use the facility. The only thing remotely religious about the program, is they say a little prayer before their snack. My husband and I are agnostics, but we liked the idea of our kid learning some sort of appreciation for where food comes from, so that's how we got over that.

It's called Zion Preschool. They have k3 and k4...and you can do 2 days a week or 3. On Friday, it is a shared class with the 3 and 4 year olds. They do all kinds of projects, had a trip to the zoo at the end of the year, and even had a mother's luncheon for mother's day. We loved it. We are sending our daughter there this fall.