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- TEACHABLE MOMENT: "Childhood is not a race, but a journey"
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One of our favorite pre-school teachers sent home the following passage in her monthly newsletter...
In any discussion involving kindergarten readiness, I keep reminding myself that childhood is not a race, but a journey. Children do not “get ready” for anything; they “become” ready. What confuses many of us is that readiness may have little or nothing to do with intelligence. “Your child may know all the phonics rules and count to 1,000, but if he/she can’t sit still, follow directions, work independently and solve problems with 29 classmates, he/she will have trouble in kindergarten,” says Donna Foglia, a mentor teacher and educational consultant who conducts workshops on school readiness. For success in kindergarten a child’s developmental age should be 5.6 years. Behavior is the best indicator of developmental age. Two categories of children can fool you into thinking developmental ages are higher than they really are: high IQ and extremely verbal. School readiness can be observed in the following:
- • Attention span
- • Concentration
- • Ability to wait for a turn
- • Adhering to rules and regulations
- • Organization of materials
- • Self confidence
- • Ability to cope and learn at the same time
There are some things that we can do to help children ‘become ready.” The children need to start taking responsibility for their own belongings, a big job in kindergarten. Please encourage your children to carry their own lunchboxes, backpacks, etc. Also, at the end of the day, remind them to gather up their belongings and carry some things themselves. Make a list of things needed each morning and post it near the front door. Check the list with your child, an exercise in literacy as well as social/emotional development. Make your children aware of the color of their outer wear, so they can remember what they wore to school that day. Encourage self-help skills at home.
Click to see more in MAMAS of Pre-School thru Kindergarten Age Kids