Beyond ABC and 123: How to prepare your toddler for preschool
Georgia, a typical three year-old is playing in her back yard. She stoops to watch a doodle bug crawl across the deck. She picks it up and watches it curl into a ball in her hand and squeals in delight. Next she marches through a puddle, singing a song and slashing water as she goes. Then she finds a mud puddle and with both hands squishes the warm goop through her fingers. From across the yard her playmate calls to her from an empty cardboard box that their space ship is about to leave and she better hurry up or she will be left behind on the moon. She runs to the “space craft” waving her muddy hands at her mom shouting, “Mommy this time I’ll drive!” Her mom says “See you later. It’s a long trip from the moon to the earth.”
It is clear that Georgia is having a great time playing in her back yard. Her sense of wonder and energy is readily apparent to her mother who sits on the deck watching her. But her mom wonders-- what is the value of these experiences for preparing Georgia for school? Do they matter, or is this idle time? Would her time be better spent with flash cards, educational computer games or T.V. programs or more structured activities?
To address these concerns it is helpful to think about what prepares children to succeed in school. Some parents are surprised to learn that so-called educational materials available on the i-Pad or television have very limited value for teaching children anything. In fact, some research has demonstrated that there may be a relationship between excessive T.V. viewing and attention deficit later on. Flash cards are boring and do little to inspire the inquisitive, creative minds of young learners. So what is best for advancing brain development and learning potential? Well, Georgia is showing us. Look at how she directs her own play. Her mom encourages this by following her child’s lead and bringing words to the fantasy. Georgia shows us the importance of sensory play by splashing in water and feeling the mud. Combining motor skills (running, stooping, marching and feeling) with words establishes neural connections (that’s when brain cells fire together and make a connection in the brain) between speech and movement. Her excitement in observing the insect will encourage her to continue to interact with nature. Perhaps most important is the fantasy play. Through make-believe children build the neurological foundation of logic, language, and reasoning (some research supports a connection between pretend play and self control).
With this information in mind, the message to parents concerned about experiences that prepare a child for preschool is this-- let children play. Children learn through activity. Passive experiences like flash cards, computers and T. V. are not valuable experiences for toddlers, and may even cause damage if excessive. The parent’s role in preparing their child for preschool success is to provide objects and opportunities for their child to take the lead in their own play. Parents can make toys and objects available that allow the child to invent the meaning (dolls, empty boxes, dress up clothes and so forth). It is best to limit toys that dictate how they must be played with (toys that require batteries). Sensory materials are important because children are drawn to them and they build small motor skills, stamina needed for pre-writing, and coordination of hand and eye (play dough, clay, paint, rice, pasta, mud, and water). Physical activity should be encouraged because this is how children develop coordination and agility (any thing a kid can climb on, music for dancing, jump ropes, balls and tricycles).
Parents also have a role in the play itself, but it is a passive one. Rather than directing play, it is best for parents to follow the child’s lead. Parents may gently scaffold between what a child knows and what he or she is learning about. For example Georgia’s mom said “it’s a long trip from the moon to the earth.” Other examples of scaffolding (or expanding) are playing next to a child and using materials in a way that the child may not have thought of. Or a parent may use statements like “have you thought of…?” when playing with a child. Parents are advised to resist doing all of the problem solving. It is best for adults to provide guidance that helps the child do the work or do the thinking. (Parents should give their children things to think about.) By following rather than leading our children in play we show them that their ideas are important and that they are independent. This builds a sense of mastery and competence that drives their confidence and success in formal learning environments.
In summary, the best way to prepare our children for success in the classroom is by letting them do what nature intended children to do-- explore their environment, express their ideas and delight in their discoveries. So parents are advised to leave the drills and software behind, turn off the i-Pad and join their children in play.
Books
Diamond, M. & Hopson, J. (1998). Magic trees of the mind: How to nurture your child’s intelligence, creativity, and healthy emotions from birth through adolescence. New York: Dutton.
Greenspan, S. (1999). Building healthy minds: The six experiences that create intelligence and emotional growth in babies and young children. New York: Perseus.
Healy, J. (1994). Your child’s growing mind: A practical guide to brain development and learning from birth to adolescence. New York: Doubleday.
Lieberman, A. (1993). The emotional life of the toddler. New York: Free Press.
Segal, M. (1998). Your child at play: Two to three years (this is a series). New York: Newmarket Press.