We all want our kids to start school the right way. But stressing out about this alone can be a one-way ticket to disaster! So, how can you make sure your kids get off to a great start on their journey of education? Of course, there’s no one defining answer, as all kids are different.
There are some methods you can try, a few of which will work for your children. From encouraging learning at home to using various learning styles, here are some suggestions.
Start School the Right Way with Language
Language is one of the first things children learn. Even from babbling babies, recent studies have shown that tots even develop accents before they can speak. Just Google the “scouse babbling baby”! All jokes aside, starting school for the first time is challenging for many kids. But they will have an advantage if they understand language. This guide, “Phonological vs. Phonemic Awareness: A Parent’s Guide,” can help you understand your role in development.
Encourage Learning at Home
Learning doesn’t begin in class. It starts at home. From the very moment a baby enters the world, they take in everything around them. Learning at home is vital today, as 67% of Gen Alpha kids aren’t at a good enough reading level! Here are some tips for educating toddlers:
- Remove distractions from the learning area so children can focus their attention.
- Focus on subjects of interest to make learning fun and more engaging for them.
- Use tech-like tablets in the right way to help kids use learning games and puzzles.
- Remove feelings of being overwhelmed by teaching the kids to stay organized.
- Make a big deal of achievements, no matter how small, to encourage learning.
Your children will have an easier time at school when they know what to expect and how learning should be done. Tech like tablets are fine, but only when used as learning tools. Making it fun with toys and colors and even celebrating small achievements makes kids want to learn.
Use Daily Tasks for Instruction Learning
Some kids will have a hard time committing to school if they don’t follow simple instructions. A teacher has to control an entire classroom full of children, and the kids need to be respectful for the best results. Daily tasks like small chores such as putting away their clothes encourages children to respond to instructions. This is also a great way to introduce common expected manners such as asking them with “please” and thanking them when they do as they are told.
Teach the Kid to Communicate Needs
Just as teachers communicate what they want your kids to do, it also helps when children can communicate their needs to educators. Simple things like needing to go to the bathroom will help with embarrassing situations that can lead to classroom antics such as name-calling and bullying. Yes, even toddlers can bully each other. Small sentences such as “I need help with…” or “I am hurt” can help the toddlers convey what their needs are to their carers.
Personal Dressing and Feeding
Even from a very young age, most children want and need to be somewhat independent. There are various studies that outline severe emotional issues later in life when a child has everything done for them by their parents. If it is safe for a toddler to do something on their own, then allow them to do it. This includes things like getting dressed, washing their hands and face, and feeding themselves. It can be pretty surprising how much they can do when you let them!
The Art of Storytelling
When they begin school, children should be able to listen to, respond to, and tell stories between 2 and 5 minutes long. Storytelling is a proven way for children to learn about and understand the world around them. For a child, the world is usually about as big as the room they are in! But that’s okay. Reading and telling them stories yourself is an excellent way to teach children about telling stories. Stories help them engage on a creative and logical level.
Start School the Right Way with Sharing
There are tons of things on a starting school checklist, and mainly, they relate to organization. But there are pretty critical social skills that your kids need to master for an easier time at school. One of these is sharing with others. But how can you help your kids with this?
How do you help children learn to share?
Teaching a child to share can be one of the more challenging tasks. However, things like putting favorite toys away, teaching empathy and spending time with other children are advantageous.
What age should you teach your child to share?
Studies show that a child under the age of 3 years old cannot understand the concept. It is recommended you begin teaching about sharing between the ages of 3.5 and 4 years old.
Why is it so difficult for children to share?
Sharing requires an understanding of complex social concepts and is, therefore, hard for tongue children to grasp. These include empathy and ownership which develop at around 4 to 5 years.
Do I force my child to share?
It can be somewhat counterintuitive to force your child to share. Sharing is a skill that must be developed, and encouraging it can actually lead to children not wanting to do it at all.
How do you deal with kids who don’t share?
Not wanting to share is not a shameful thing,even though it is parents who feel embarrassed by it. Learning to share through turn-taking games and understanding other emotions will help.
It can be embarrassing for parents whose kids won’t share. However, sharing is a learned skill that comes with higher cognitive development. Children will learn to share as other complex concepts develop. It can be detrimental to this development if you force your child to share.
Becoming a Social Butterfly
Whether introvert or extrovert, you are a social being. Children are the same. Social interactions and connections at a young age will have a profound impact on their development and make it easier for them at school. Friends, playgroups, and sports activities are powerful ways to socialize children in the dynamic conformist setting of a school setting. Being social can also help unfortunate situations that can occur at school, such as loneliness, isolation, and bullying.
Logical Matching and Sorting
Most school curricula are formed around logic with a sprinkling of creativity. Others are somewhat reversed depending on the school. However, logical activities will have a dramatic impact on school performance in the early days no matter the establishment. Basic matching and sorting activities help build a solid foundation within tiny brains for the math that is about to come. Without a good starting point, children can struggle with starter math puzzles at school.
Foundational Mathematics with Patterns
Being able to identify basic colors, patterns, and shapes is the starting point of child education. You can help your child with this no matter where you are. In fact, it will help to expose them to various scenarios, whether at home or out and about town! Games such as pointing out specifically colored cars, streets, and even clothing can help establish a solid knowledge base. Hanging wall charts with shapes, colors, and numbers in their room will also help with this.
Basic Number Recognition
Further to number charts, children who can understand numbers will have an easier time when it comes to classroom mathematics. This doesn’t have to be anything too daunting. However, your child should be able to count to 20 or 30 before they start their first year in school. You play a vital role in this as a parent. Whenever possible, help them point out and recognize numbers. You can do this with books, online games, and counting things like toys whenever possible.
Encourage Different Learning Styles
There are a few different learning styles, and your child may use one or all of them. While 65% of children get distracted by digital devices, it could be that they are trying to learn using a specific learning style. This might be confusing, but here’s a quick rundown of learning styles:
- Observe your child to learn what type of learning style they are best suited to.
- Visual learning is when children learn by observation and images they can see.
- Auditory learning comes from listening to what is being said or done at the time.
- Tactile learning is learning about things by touching them for understanding.
- Kinesthetic learning means learning about the world through physical actions.
Learning styles essentially come down to using the senses. Some children are quick to learn via visual imagery. Other children grasp complex subjects when they hear the sounds. However, most kids use a variety of learning styles, and each one is suited to specific activities.
Start School the Right Way with Support
Finally, you are the rock that your kids need when they go off to school! It can be emotionally hard to prepare yourself for your child starting school. But they can only be as organized as you are. Teaching them about what to expect and basic skills is only part of it. You must organize your day so they start each morning as well as they can. Getting up earlier than usual to make breakfast, making their lunch packs the night before and pressing clothes is your new normal!
Summary
Teaching your children basic language skills is a great way for them to start school the right way. Of course, this also applies to numerical skills. Social skills such as sharing are essential. However, you also must organize yourself so they can have the best possible start each day.
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