School bag…check
Water bottle…check
Snack- check
Her teddy buddy…check
Aditi was compiling a list of stuff that her daughter would need at the first day of school. Sanchita her 5-year-old was ready to go to school! Aditi had been working on polishing her counting skills, phonetics, how to introduce herself, rhymes and so on.
But was she missing on something while getting her kindergartner ready for her big day?
Research says that children who are developmentally ready to ‘learn ‘at the onset of school life tend to do better in school – which sets their ball rolling for further success in life.
First thought on hearing “School Readiness” comes reciting ABC, counting 0-9, recognizing colors, and the likes.
But it is not about getting on with a formal approach to education as early as possible. It is about the development of the whole child. Hence, parents need to be mindful of the fact that School Readiness is not about your toddler and preschoolers:
It is about preparation for later i.e. when they step out of the care of their home. Getting hold of invaluable life skills i.e. ability to:
It is the positive experiences that babies, and newborns receive which contributes to their school readiness!!!
School readiness can be actively facilitated with a little forward planning. During the early years academic learning cannot be compartmentalized from their social and emotional well-being. Enabling and supporting him/her to playfully explore the world around, helps them build connections in their brain thereby ensuring in-depth learning. Curating meaningful experiences and conversations, develops the child’s appropriate skills required to facilitate optimal learning when they start school.
Each child is unique and develops in their own way. A little prep and heads up for infants and toddlers before school has a long lasting and positive impact on their development. Parents are their child’s most important and on-going educator—support and encourage them
“The formal portion of education that happens at school is just the tip of the iceberg. The real deal begins at home”
Additionally, the parents and caregivers at home need to keep in mind that they need to develop a sense of enjoyment and love for learning in their little ones. So, if we really want to give them a head start for school, readying them with a sense of their own competence and ability to make choices, stands undisputed.
They need to savor the joy and expansive learning of childhood!
Research findings has identified three determinants of later achievement in school:
Tip – Facilitate:
Not just rote learning: Developing quantity association w.r.t numeric. can be done while eating his favorite cookies.
Common adjectives: more, less, big, small, angry sad, near far and so on…
The right phonetic for each letter: garden has the right phonetic sound for letter “g” and not giraffe
2. Dimensions of Social and Emotional Competence – Children who can organize their behavior in a manner consistent with classroom expectations and engage with persistence on learning tasks exhibit higher levels of achievement in school. These are paramount skills to excel not only during school years but life as a whole –
Competencies linked empirically to school success comprises of:
Coping with the new school environment, and adhering to the rules
Tip- Encourage your child to develop relationships with other (unfamiliar) children of a similar age in your locality and arrange suitable ‘play dates’ to help hone on both their relationship building and emotional regulation.
3. Cognitive Functioning
This covers functional areas of planning, predicting, focused attention and problem solving which are vital for success at school. It broadly consists of:
“Take out your aprons and wrap them around, fetch your brush and paint, get some water in a cup and then begin to paint.”
Tip:
Get their minds thinking:
In case you notice difficulties with school readiness (if the child is reluctant to follow instructions, not able to grasp things despite multiple practice or has some other learning issues) it is recommended that you consult an expert or reach out to us for guidance.
Let us build a better tomorrow…
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