Hands up – do you feel like you could use some more support as a parent? Lacking in community, anyone? For many of us, the answer is a resounding “yes”! In the new urban and suburban landscape, we can be separated from our neighbours even when we live close to them. We live different lives, each in our cars going to our separate jobs. Although we live in a townhouse complex and know our neighbours fairly well, there are days when we can go for a walk through our neighborhood and see no one at all.
I grew up going to a parent participation preschool. I am the eldest of three, and I went through the preschool myself, then watched my brother and sister go through it. A parent participation preschool is a cooperative society. It’s a school run by parents who hire a teacher and manage the running of the school. Parents are also teaching assistants in the classroom and help out in the class twice a month.
Why put all of this work into your child’s schooling? A cooperative school gives you a great opportunity to be intimately involved in your child’s early learning. It’s a good way to break down any fears you or your child might have about going to preschool. Cooperative schools also offer parent education nights when you can get together with other parents at your school to learn about parenting together.
The other benefit to a cooperative preschool is one that is intangible but even more critical. By volunteering with other parents and their children, you build community. I didn’t realize this until the end of my daughter’s first year, but by getting involved in a cooperative preschool, we’ve built a community around my daughter that will extend into her teen years and beyond. People in my community care about my daughter. They have created their own independent relationships with her. They will continue to care about her as she grows up in this community. I still have friends from my days at the preschool, and so will she.
Are you involved in a cooperative preschool or playgroup? Why?