Expectations for these military affiliated preschoolers is high and the pressure for those caregivers is just as intense. While the military child care programs are based on solid research and appropriate practices for young children (Zellman, Gates, Cho, Shaw, 2008), typically parents do not want to hear their children are just playing all day. They also want to hear their children are being ‘taught academic skills’ needed for kindergarten. Caregivers are stuck in the middle trying to balance what they are trained to implement in accordance with the National Association for Young Children (NAEYC) curriculum philosophy and its accreditation standards (NAEYC, 2017) and what parents think are the best kindergarten preparedness