Taking your kid to preschool marks a new phase in their development. Like most parents, you may have doubts about your child's readiness for preschool. You might also feel the pressure to start academic coaching as you choose the right preschool for your child.
Apart from potty training, there are basic things your child needs to know for them to be prepared for child care. The article highlights four things your child should know before starting preschool.
1. Social Skills
Social skills prove to be more helpful for your child than academic skills at this stage. Your kid will have enough time for academics during their years in school. Social skills, however, will help them have an easy time starting their academic journey.
It is essential to ensure your child knows how to play and share the necessary things with others when away from you. Also, teach them good manners and join them during pretend play. The best way to teach these skills is by planning a lot of playdates before preschool.
2. Communication
Proper communication is essential before your child joins kindergarten. Therefore, you should ensure your kid can express their needs to their teachers. They also need to know the appropriate ways to talk to their peers.
Start encouraging your child to talk in complete statements of about six words. For instance, they should be able to ask for help when they need it and express their emotions.
3. Organisation
Guide your child on how to get organised before joining child care. Get bins and baskets where you can store similar items together and ensure they know where their toys belong after playing. Find ways to make cleaning up fun, by singing along or listening to music.
You can also put up a coat hook for them and have a basket underneath to practice storing their bags. These skills will help the child during cleanups at kindergarten.
4. Dressing and Eating
Kids should be comfortable handling their clothes, such as using buttons or zippers. They also need to know to handle simple tasks such as unwrapping food or tying their shoes. But don't put too much pressure on your child because some kids take time to learn these skills.
Allow your child to practice how to dress until they can do it without help. Let them handle zipping up and buttoning their clothing and also open food packages. Praise them for the small tasks they accomplish.
Preparing your kid for preschool will help them have a smooth transition. You can start preparing your child weeks or months before their first day in child care. Take the time to talk to them and ensure they understand what to expect from their first experience in preschool.
For more information, contact your local preschool.
Share11 August 2020
I'm always on the lookout for new and exciting resources to liven up my childcare education program. These days, it's important that children are always learning at childcare, but it's equally important that children have fun. I like to find topics that match up with the topics that my kids are passionate about. If they are obsessed with trains, then I'm going to make sure we do a whole program on trains to keep them engaged and interested. If you are also a childcare educator or teacher who is looking for new resources for education programs, then please keep reading.
