As my child transitions to kindergarten, I think I am mainly thinking about how the
logistics of life will change.
He'll be going to a new school.
We will have to talk to him about having a new routine.
Things like are they going to take regular bathroom breaks.
How does that work if someone needs to go to the restroom?
Are we giving her all the tools that she needs to be successful in kindergarten?
Soon your child will start kindergarten.
This is a significant milestone for your entire family.
You may wonder as you prepare for this transition if your child is ready.
What does it mean for a child to be ready for school?
A ready child has a love of learning, is healthy, curious about the world, interactive
with others, has self-control and a family that supports
them.
All of our students are successful in different ways.
But I think for the students who are able to problem solve better,
be able to self-regulate and know that when they are sitting down
doing an activity or at a reading station they can kind of move forward.
They can take challenges keep going or ask for help when they need it.
But the most important thing for them that we want is just the ability to play at home.
Or at a preschool setting or whatever their play setting might be.
And to also have that time to interact with adults and children and have those experiences
that might be different than a typical day.
So we always tell them, "You don't worry about the letters and reading because that's our
job and we will work with you."
In addition to the support children receive at home from their families,
the learning experiences offered in an early childhood program also support children's successful
transition to kindergarten.
In high quality early childhood development and learning programs,
either in a center or a family child care home, children become familiar with routines,
practice social interactions with peers, and engage in hands-on learning experiences.
When you hear "school readiness" you think of
you need to know your ABCs, you needs to know your 123s,
you need to know all the colors, you need to know all the shapes
and when certain kids don't know that, parents get concerned.
And I think that reinforcing the importance of the social-emotional skills is what school
readiness is to me.
So in our school we focus on the entire growth and development of the child.
And we promote learning through play.
So in our play-based environment the children get to explore the environment.
They get to experiment and manipulate the various activities and materials in the classroom.
And it is only through this hands-on learning, through this manipulation with the hands that
the children begin to develop theories of the world around them.
Partnering with the families with a family day care provider like me is really important
because we are developing here.
We want to build a foundation, a good foundation for the child so that he will be really ready
and he will nurture this love of learning.
You know, learning is a life-long process.
The transition to kindergarten is a process that works best when families,
elementary school staff, and early childhood educators come together to support each individual
child.
I work as part of a school readiness team.
This project consists of people all throughout the county
from the libraries to the Health Department to elementary school principals, kindergarten
teachers, preschool teachers, Head Start.
And it's giving the message to the families, to the community, that we think your child's
school readiness is so important that we are willing to pour lots of people,
time, monies, resources, efforts into this activity to make sure
that your child has the optimal preparation for school.
Over the years we have lots of experience with entering kindergarteners, and we know
some of the questions that parents might have such as, "How is my child going to get on
the bus?"
"Who's going to meet them?"
"How are they going to go to the bathroom?"
"How are they going to navigate the cafeteria and all the things with eating?"
"I'm not sure my child can do that.
What is going to happen if they can't?"
We know this, we've heard this, we understand parent's concerns.
And so we really try to incorporate some of those answers into our kindergarten orientation.
As well as, please ask.
Don't be afraid to ask.
Anything that is concerning to you we want to hear, and we want to make sure that you
understand what your child is going to be doing every
day and how we are going to help them adjust to school.
I think an important part of getting kids ready for school is just the larger community
that we live in.
And we live in such a diverse wonderful community that we are so excited when our families come
in and say they took this trip during the weekend, they
went to the park and they just went for a walk, or they went to the library and they
got a book.
Few things are more powerful for school readiness than a library card.
Kind of going and visiting a library together as a family.
Engaging in literacy in meaningful ways as a family, preparing them for kindergarten.
Community resources are valuable in supporting children's success in kindergarten.
For example, visiting a local park and exploring the outdoors exposes children to new experiences
and vocabulary.
Checking out books from the local library and incorporating story time into your daily
routine at home is a great way to model the importance of reading
to your child.
These types of experiences expand a child's background knowledge -
helping them make connections to themselves, their peers, their community, and the world.