Social and emotional development in kids

Sometimes I wonder if parents are the ones thinking or worrying too much. Here I am, barely 3 months since H entered the big school, and I'm already considering taking him out. It's not that H's school is not good, I just don't think that it suits him now (maybe if he was older I'd think differently). So anyway, I went to check out this Waldorf-inspired preschool yesterday. I know I mentioned before that while I like Waldorf's play-based philosophy (kids are free to play, imagine and create), I've never considered a Waldorf school for H since I don't quite agree that kids are not exposed to anything academic. I don't want to sound kiasu, but some kids are more than ready to learn academic subjects (in a fun way of course)! Anyway, my reason for going against my original stance is that I think H would benefit from an environment in which his social and emotional skills get developed. He doesn't really need more academic inputs. Perhaps being in an environment in which he gets to just play and interact with kids would be more beneficial for him.

Before I visited the school, I was already quite convinced that the Waldorf-inspired school is the way to go for H. But the school visit was somewhat disappointing. The teacher who showed me around didn't really understand nor address my concerns. I'm not sure if it's the language barrier. The school's supposed to be English based, but I felt this particular teacher's command of English isn't quite up to mark (perhaps the reason why she couldn't respond to my queries). So I'm torn - it has a good reputation for happy children and caring teachers. Should I ditch my lousy experience from this visit and register H anyway? I don't really want to keep changing schools, so I have to make sure that the next school H goes to is the one for him. Besides, the fees aren't cheap. I remember telling my Waldorf-trained sis (the one's who's been encouraging me to put H into the Waldorf school) once "Why need to pay so much for H to go play in school? He can just play at home!" I still think what I said is true since we don't restrict H's playtime at home. In fact, he plays all day at home. And he doesn't need toys, he's got fantastic imagination.

Last night I asked H if he had fun in school and he said yes. I then asked if he's starting to like his big school, he said no! Kids are really funny, you really have to ask the right question cos I would have assumed fun = like, but apparently not! He told me again that his current school is just learn learn learn and no play. I told him that he can learn in school and play at home, but he disagreed, "I also want to play in school!"

Well I guess H needs more than just play, he needs to have friends to play with. And this is extremely important as only through play and interaction with others would kids develop the ability to understand their own emotions, read and comprehend emotional states in others, manage strong emotions and their expression in a constructive manner, regulate one’s own behavior, develop empathy for others, and establish and maintain relationships. These are all what you can't teach in an academic setting.

I found another school today which claims to nurture well rounded kids, balancing both intellectual and emotional development in a fun manner. Sounds really promising. Will have to check it out.