For most parents who are researching a preschool or children’s academy to enroll their child, the natural reaction is to search for one close to their home. However, searching for a school “near me” — close to home — might not always be the best choice. This is especially true if you commute from a bedroom community to the city to work. 

For example, many people commute from communities all around our city, Charlotte, to Uptown or another part of town for their work. We believe parents in these communities should choose a children’s academy closer to work than closer to home.

Let’s explore why…

More Captive Time Together

Imagine this typical scenario: you scramble to leave home, drop your child off at a school nearby, then drive thirty minutes or more to work. Then, at the end of the day, you leave work and drive that same duration back to your child’s preschool to pick them up.

If your preschool is on the other end of your commute, however, you could’ve spent all that time with your child. Not only do you get more time quantity, but your child is sitting still and you have their captive attention. What could be better than, say, an extra hour of quality time with your child every day?

Closer In Case of Emergency

Along with more time together, if your child is closer in proximity to your work location, you’re closer to them in the event of an emergency. While we hope there’s never a serious issue where your child would need you to show up quickly, wouldn’t you prefer to have the peace of mind knowing you could get to them in just a few minutes instead of having to make your full commute home to get to them?

Classroom Visits

It’s not just during the bad times that being nearby is helpful. Close proximity also affords you the ability to create fun memories. You can sneak away from work during lunch and eat with your child. Or, you could show up for an art or music lesson. We welcome parents to drop in and experience the natural learning environments we create and a preschool that is close by the work location makes that possible.

New Friends & Cultural Experiences

There is one last benefit that you might not have considered with choosing a preschool that is outside of your neighborhood area. After preschool, your children are going to be in the same school with the same people the rest of their educational careers. By enrolling them in a children’s academy that is in a different geographical area, they get to know more people and experience different personalities than those they’ll likely be with the rest of their childhood.

Additionally, if you live in a rural area and the preschool is in an urban area, for example, your children get exposure to people who are different from them. Expanding your child’s cultural reality is truly one of the best gifts you can give.

At Dogwood Lane Children’s Academy, we’re proud that our location allows parents from Charlotte’s rural areas to enjoy the benefits of a preschool that is closer to work, with nothing sacrificed on the quality of education. If you’re looking for a preschool, you owe it to yourself and your child to call us for a visit.