Thursday, July 5, 2012

The Benefits of Preschool Education

Preschool education can be very beneficial for children, both academically and socially. Preschool prepares children academically, socially and emotionally for kindergarten.

Attending preschool can have long-term academic benefits for your child, by ensuring that they arrive in kindergarten ready to learn. Many preschools offer academic programs as part of their curriculum. They help children to develop the skills that they will need to learn well in a classroom environment, and they begin to teach the basic lessons that will give your child a head start when they arrive in kindergarten. The academic benefits of attending preschool will be particularly important during kindergarten, but the effects will continue throughout their educational experience. Ensuring that your child has the best introduction to learning will give them the best chance of doing well throughout their school career.

Preschool can also help your child to develop their social skills and to become more emotionally mature. Spending time with other children of a similar age will help children to learn about communication, sharing and interacting with others. They will learn how to work and play on their own or in groups, to follow rules and instructions and to cope with being away from you. Preschool can help your child to become more confident and independent. Adjusting to a classroom environment at an early age, and without the additional academic pressures of kindergarten, makes the change much easier for your child.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Preschool Educational Games For Maths

Preschool educational games for maths are so important, children learn more, and at a greater speed, during their preschool years than at any other time.

We need to show them the positive side of learning, that it is not 'work', but 'fun' to learn.

Children love the magic and mystery of playing with numbers, they will delight as they begin to grasp number, and its fundamental meaning, but this is not something that will happen over night, it will take time and patients.

Singing number songs is a great start to introducing your child to numbers.

There are many number songs, and also many CDs and DVDs, that can help you if like me you are not a natural born singer. But it is the enthusiasm you put into the songs, which will have your child asking for more!

Children need to do hands on activities such as Sorting and Matching before they will understand that counting is actually referring to sets of items. We can encourage our children through a wide range of activities so that they can understand and enjoy learning maths. Some great games can include learning maths with shapes, ordering and sequencing and games for counting and recognising numbers up to 10.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Preschool Education - What You Must Teach Your Preschooler

Many members of my mother's generation did not even attend kindergarten. Many members of my generation did not even attend preschool. With my son's generation preschool has become a necessary part of preparation for formal education. In fact for most children, formal education actually begins with preschool. That does not mean that preschool education begins the first day of preschool. In fact, if you want your child to successful in preschool and beyond then you must prepare your child for preschool. What are some of the things you will need to teach your preschooler?

First and foremost you must help your child become as independent as possible. This means toilet training and basic hygiene as well as the ability to dress themselves. Prepare your child mentally and emotionally for the idea of independence from you and other primary caregivers. Preschool teachers are obviously caring and helpful but they will not be able to give the same level of attention many children are accustomed to from their primary caregiver.

There are also some basic concepts that children must learn. These lessons will be solidified during preschool but if a child grasps them before preschool that is even better. This includes knowledge of colors and shapes. Do not spend a lot of time drilling this knowledge into your child, but instead casually introduce it to your child through daily life. Name the colors of the clothes your child will wear that day. Point out various shapes during the day or even cut food into a shape of the day.