As a parent, it can be hard to be away from your child and send them off to a preschool for the first time. Remembering that quality early childhood education sets them up for success in life makes this a bit easier, though!
From interacting with their teachers and peers to discovering the joy of playing on their own, everything that a child learns in preschool will affect every aspect of their life as they grow older.
Anyway, here are all the ways that preschool Singapore sets your children up for success later in life!
1. Builds the foundation for learning
With Singapore’s rigorous and competitive formal education, it’s crucial to foster children’s affinity for learning as early as possible.
Children learn by playing with their peers or on their own. What preschools in Singapore do is provide them with a safe environment that pushes them to learn in ways that interest them.
When children are encouraged to learn however they want, this builds a positive association with learning. This means that children will be more curious and driven to learn, which they can take with them throughout their time in school.
Because if your children’s first association with learning is rigid and overly academic, they may fail to develop a sense of curiosity and be turned off by the idea of school.
2. Develops their social skills
At preschool, children get to spend an extended amount of time of their day interacting with other kids their age and adults outside their families. This gives them plenty of opportunities to build relationships and develop foundational conversation skills.
By attending preschool, your child will learn how to get along with others, share and take turns, play cooperatively, and resolve conflicts. These are all crucial social skills that will guide them in building relationships in school and adulthood.
3. Boosts pre-literacy skills
Preschool teachers expose children to a range of engaging activities and games that help build their pre-literacy skills.
Learning these skills early is crucial as they promote proper linguistic development, helping children communicate better in and outside of school, and with their peers.
For example, singing alphabet songs and learning nursery rhymes teaches children to distinguish between sounds and helps them understand read-aloud stories better.
Another thing is that pre-literacy activities are generally interesting and exciting for most children, mostly because they get to do them with their friends and teachers. This helps build a positive association with reading.
4. Fosters creativity and curiosity
According to studies, 80% of a child’s brain development occurs in the first few years. That’s why it’s important to provide them with as many opportunities for creative expression for their growth and development.
A preschool’s stimulating and engaging environment is what can help nurture a young learner’s creativity and curiosity.
Children at this age also have innately active imaginations that are just waiting to be nurtured.
Preschool teachers are trained to guide kids to develop their own thoughts and ideas in their preferred way, often encouraging them to ask questions and listen to their peer’s ideas instead of promoting a “more correct” way of doing things.
5. Strengthens physical development
While social, literacy, and creative skills may be important, they aren’t the only ones that children should learn. Most preschool activities are also designed to support children’s physical development.
Children get to run around and jump as much as they want at preschools, as well as do arts and crafts projects that require and strengthen their fine motor skills. There are all sorts of physical activities they can do in and outside of the school.
As a result, when children learn new physical skills, they feel more confident in themselves, knowing that they can now do things they couldn’t before.
