What should be considered in determining whether a preschool is the best one for your child? There are no national standards, and there is wide variation among state standards.
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Fortunately, the Texas Education Agency has established excellent standards for preschool programs in the state of Texas. They address the whole child, starting with emotional and social domains.
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The TEA standards document can be accessed by clicking the following link: https://tea.texas.gov/academics/early-childhood-education/2022-texas-pkg-comprehensive-guide.pdf. This comprehensive guide offers practical guidelines for supporting your child’s development. There is a section specifically for families, but the whole document I think, would be helpful to any parent.
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There are also other NGOs that publish what they believe should be taught at the pre-K and K levels. The National Association for the Education of Young Children is my favorite. They have 100,000 members. Their suggestions align with the TEA guidelines above. Their position statement is outlined in the following document:
https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/PDFs/our-work/public-policy-advocacy/2025_early_childhood_program_standards.pdf
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See if the school you are looking at is familiar with these standards- especially the social and emotional components of it. Unfortunately, many teachers have not read this. If not, then ask how many years they have taught and where they receive their training hours. In general, verify that the answers they provide to your questions align with what you read on this website or with the information on the TEKS Pre-K Guidelines website listed above.
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A clue in what kind of teachers you should look for is two-fold:
A) Do they seem to light up when they see the children? Do they like children?
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B) What do they think about children? Do they think they are bad and should be punished? Or do they try to see why a child might misbehave? Do they try to see a situation from a child’s perspective? Do they consider developmental timetables for children, such as those outlined by occupational therapists or Piaget? Do they allow visits at any time of day? Do they ask themselves if their circle times are too long? Do they give children enough free choice time? Do they set kind and firm limits or limits that involve shaming language or a negative tone? Do they think about and do the kind of things written about in this website?
