Transitioning to school is easier for some kids than it is for others. In fact, a significant number of children experience difficulties and anxiety when it’s time to start attending school. This is where the importance of ensuring your child’s school-readiness comes into play.

“School-readiness” refers to how prepared your child is for the transition to school. School-readiness encompasses children’s academic skills, language development, social adjustment, physical development, and emotional intelligence. As a parent, you play a vital role in helping ensure that your child is ready for school. By working together as a family, you can give your child a head start toward success.

Below are a few ways you can help your child become more school-ready:

Enrich language development

Language skill development is something parents can help children acquire as early as infancy. In fact, the best school-readiness tool for infants is their parents talking to them! The more we talk to babies and expose them to new words, the stronger their language skills will be when they start school.

You can enhance children’s language development skills by asking them questions and encouraging them to respond. You can also incorporate educational toys so help your child learn new things while having fun at home.

Strengthen self-regulation skills using games and activities

Self-regulation is the ability to control one’s emotions and behavior. Being school-ready also involves children’s ability to control impulses, delay gratification, regulate their emotions, and focus on school work. To help strengthen your child’s self-regulation skills, you can do simple things at home, such as playing memory games or watching educational videos together. These games and activities will not only boost school performance, but will also help you reduce screen time while providing healthier alternatives for family activities.

Boost concentration through visual activities

School-readiness skills also include the ability to pay attention and concentrate for extended periods of time. To help improve your child’s focus, you can utilize visual activities such as reading storybooks or looking at picture books. It is also important to limit the use of screens at home, including television or tablets, as they are proven to be detrimental to school-readiness.

Foster emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is a skill for school-readiness and for life. One’s emotional intelligence is a key factor in determining whether or not a child can easily adapt to the school environment. An emotionally intelligent child is capable of identifying his or her emotions and how to handle them. Children with higher emotional intelligence are better able to handle difficult emotion-provoking situations.

To help foster children’s emotional intelligence, help them identify and recognize their own emotions, as well as others’ emotions. You can also help them find appropriate ways to express strong feelings, such as anger. The more skilled children are at handling their emotions, the better adjusted they’ll be for social interactions at school.

Encourage play-based learning

During the school years, your child will be spending many hours at school. For this reason, it’s important to prepare your child for school by encouraging play-based learning as early as possible (even as early as infancy). You can do this by playing with children using educational toys. You can also play school-related games, like teaching the alphabet by singing songs or making flashcards together.

Practice fine motor skills

You can also improve children’s school-readiness by helping them practice developing their fine motor skills through activities that are focused on this area. For instance, encourage kids to play with puzzles or draw using crayons, markers, or colored pencils at home during free time. This will not only help when it comes to school performance, but it will also enhance  hand-eye coordination and develop their concentration skills in the long run.

Establish consistent routines at home

Following a consistent routine at home is another excellent way to prepare your child for a typical school day. Set times for meals, sleeping, homework, and playing. Help your child acclimate to following a schedule for daily activities, as this helps children get used to adhering to a school schedule when the first day arrives.

It’s never too early to get your child ready for the transition to school. Follow these school-readiness tips to help children transition as they approach this new journey, and increase their chances of success in school and beyond.

If you’re searching for a safe place to send your child each day, one that ensures  that your little one will learn and enjoy each day spent in daycare, look no further! Our program here at Wee Care Preschool is designed to ensure that all children’s educational and emotional needs are met each day. Contact us today for more information!

Parenting can be a deeply rewarding yet demanding experience. Every child and family is unique. Moreover, parenting philosophies and styles differ. Regardless of their unique approach, if parents apply positive guidance strategies, children tend to behave better. Here are some of the important aspects of parenting that children tend respond well to, according to parents:

• Parental modeling of morals
• Logical and natural consequences
• Freedom to make choices
• Loving and nurturing relationships
• Clear expectations that allow for change and adaptation, as needed

In this post, we will discuss positive guidance strategies that can help you as you raise your children.

Teaching independence

It’s important to help your child develop a sense of autonomy and independence. Parents can involve children in some decision-making that affects them directly. For example, parents may ask children in which room they’d like to play, or whether they prefer to eat out or have dinner at home on a given evening. 

Parents can also help foster an increased sense of independence and healthy separation by encouraging children to make choices on their own.

Knowing when to praise children

It’s important that when we praise our kids, we do so appropriately and effectively. One of the most common mistakes we make as parents is offering praise for every single thing they do. For instance, it is appropriate to praise children when they complete their homework without any prompting from parents. However, it may seem insincere if parents tell their children that they are “so smart” every time they complete a task. 

It’s also important to remember that not all children are motivated by praise. In fact, some kids may even become resentful towards their parents if they suspect they are only receiving praise by appeasing their parents. 

It’s important for parents to use effective praise when possible. For example, you may recognize kids for making good choices. Remember to acknowledge the specific behavior when praising.

Consistent Discipline

When parents are inconsistent with their discipline techniques, it can lead to a variety of difficulties. For instance, let’s imagine that a parent puts a screaming child to bed early after screaming for more than ten minutes. If the parent occasionally gives in and lets the child stay up late, the child may learn that there are times when crying yields desired results. As a result, children learn they can scream even more in the future to get what they want. 

Additionally, inconsistent discipline can lead to general anger and frustration from children, as they are often at a loss about how to behave.

For these reasons, it’s essential for parents to implement a set consequence for a specific behavior. For example, if parents decide that screaming will result in going to bed early, they must follow through with this consequence each time their child screams. If the child misbehaves in another way, parents need to come up with a different consequence for that behavior.

Let children learn from their mistakes

It’s vital that children are given space to learn from their mistakes. Parents can allow children to experience natural consequences for their actions, or simply let kids think about the situation before discussing it. 

For example, if children leave their toys on the floor, you might establish that they have to pick them up before they can continue playing. Also, if older children stay out past their curfew, the consequence may be that they can not go out next time. While this may be difficult to resist, it’s important for parents to avoid jumping in right away because we don’t want children to feel they are being punished for simply making a mistake. Mistakes are an important part of learning and development. However, it is also important for parents to be ready to step in to offer guidance and support, or when natural consequences don’t lead to change in the future.

Conclusion

Positive guidance strategies are essential for parents to implement because they establish a positive dynamic between parent and child. Furthermore, these strategies are beneficial for children of all ages, as they help nurture a healthier and more positive relationship between kids and their parents, as well as other relationships in their lives. Parents need to implement these strategies and discipline consistently so that children can learn how to behave appropriately. 

In addition, it’s important for parents to give children space to learn from their mistakes. Implementing these strategies consistently will result in children who make positive choices and adhere to adult expectations, which allows parents to trust their children to make good decisions as they grow.

If parents consistently implement these strategies, children are more likely to follow rules and display respect to those around them.

At Wee Care Preschool, we dedicate ourselves to early education. We offer a variety of programs that guide children toward making good decisions and learning discipline. For more information, contact our center today.

When you were a child, your parents probably worried about how much time you spent watching TV. But nowadays, it’s not just TV time that concerns parents. In this digital age, households are often filled with a variety of electronic devices. Kids have access to phones, tablets, and computers. As parents, it’s important for us to curb their screen time addiction.

In this post, we will talk about the different ways to limit your child’s screen time. According to research, too much screen time can result in children not getting enough sleep, getting low grades at school, and obesity. 

First, let’s look at the stats related to why many children spend so much time on screens:

• On average, children ages eight to ten years old are exposed to different media for about eight hours per day.
• Teenagers, on the other hand, spend about 11 hours consuming media.
• 75% of preteens (age 12) and teenagers (ages 13 to 17) own a mobile phone.
• 71% of children and teens have TVs in their bedrooms.
• 84% of children and teens have online access.

Looking at these stats, it’s no wonder that kids and teens are fixated on electronic devices. Sometimes it may seem like they’re unplugged from the rest of the world.

In other words, screen time addiction is a  prevalent issue for many families. At some point, children’s addictions can adversely affect their emotional well-being and physical health, and even compromise their safety. They might eventually find it hard to forge meaningful bonds. The biggest danger to kids is that they might encounter shady individuals online who solicit sex or influence them to do drugs.

How to Curb Your Child’s Screen Time Addiction 

Establish family rules about screen time

Everyone needs to adhere to these rules. If children break a rule, restrict access or confiscate their electronic devices.

Be mindful of how much time your child is spending on social media

Look at what kids are viewing and posting online. Some children gain access to adult-oriented media or chat rooms. Others are being swayed to engage in online activities that are not suitable for kids. Is your child cyberbullying others? Or is your child being bullied online? If you don’t like what your child is doing online, it’s time to take his or her devices away.

Never place TVs in children’s bedrooms

When children are exposed to different media, it might include content related to drugs and sex. Obesity is another risk that comes with too much TV time.

Prohibit children from using electronic devices during meals

When family members are looking at their phones, it takes away from time spent enjoying a meal together as a family. Even parents should put their phones away and focus on the family during mealtime.

Parents should place computers and laptops in a common area of the home, such as the living room. 

This way, parents can remain aware of their children’s activities.

Mobile phones should be banned at bedtime

Keep children’s phones elsewhere when they go to bed, which will help them have a good night’s sleep.

You don’t need to purchase fancy phones for children

They may not be responsible when handling electronic devices. Carrying around an expensive phone can also make your child a target for robbery. Contemplate whether or not your youngster needs a phone at all. If you deem the phone necessary, purchase a relatively inexpensive one.

Examine your child’s phone bill to make sure there aren’t any red flags

If you come across anything concerning, discuss it with your child and limit or restrict phone access. You may even need to confiscate the phone for a certain period of time, if necessary.

According to doctors and experts, children under two years old should not have screen time at all

As for kids ages three to eight, limit screen time to less than two hours per day.

It’s important to encourage children to be honest if screen time is affecting their school performance

Carve out five minutes every night for family discussions and make sure screen time isn’t the main topic of discussion.

As a parent, you can take steps to prevent screen time addiction by establishing clear screen time rules and expecting that kids adhere to them. It’s not easy, but it will teach discipline. It will also teach your child to be accountable for their screen time, and it will enforce the notion that screen time is a privilege. 

When you curb your child’s screen time addiction, you are helping your little one become a healthier and well-adjusted individual. Even though screens can serve as a convenient distraction for children, they should not be a parent’s constant go-to for keeping them quiet or well-behaved. Explore other activities that can enrich and stimulate your child’s mind and body in other ways.

At Wee Care Preschool, we encourage healthy activities that can help prevent screen time addiction. Call us today for more information.

Engaging in creative play is an essential part of a child’s early development. Parents who organize and participate in activities that foster creative play can help their children in two ways: 

• It reminds children that they are loved.
• It teaches children how to face life’s challenges and problem-solve.

Creative play can involve simple activities or specific materials, toys, and equipment. Children who engage in creative play are more likely to develop important life skills through visual arts, role play, music, dance, and drama.

In this post, we will explore the different benefits of imaginative play for children. 

Communication development

Creative play provides a wonderful way to enhance your child’s language skills in a safe and supportive environment. 

When children take the lead during imaginative play, they are more comfortable talking about themselves. They can use words freely without the fear of embarrassment if they misuse them. Imaginative play helps kids build their vocabulary and broaden their imagination.

Playing make-believe with other children, especially when using materials geared toward creative play, helps kids develop an understanding of language, which helps them interact with others more effectively.

Physical development

Engaging in arts and crafts activities helps children develop fine motor skills (which refers to the coordination between small muscles) and hand-eye coordination. These abilities are vital as children near school age. Allowing them to practice this kind of creative play helps kids hone these skills. Eventually, your child will learn how to hold a pencil and write correctly.

Can your child already make scribbles using a crayon? Consider this a significant milestone in terms of physical development. From a baby who doesn’t know how to grip things to a youngster who can hold a crayon and draw on paper, this is a huge step!

Intellectual and cognitive development

Critical thinking, problem-solving, concentrating, and expanding the imagination are the types of thinking skills that improve during creative play. By using different tools and materials and learning new concepts, kids can better understand their environment.

During play sessions, you can create simple challenges for your little one. Ask questions like:

• “Will this amount of glue be enough?”
• “How can we stop the paint from dripping?”
• “Does this shape fit here?”

Let them experiment as they seek to answer these questions.

Creative play also enriches mathematical and scientific skills. It’s essential for children to get a headstart when it comes to these areas because it will help them in various facets of their lives. Creative activities allow children to think and come up with solutions independently.

Emotion management

The range of emotions that a child may experience can be overwhelming sometimes. Strong emotions are difficult for young children to understand and articulate effectively. Engaging in creative activities can help little ones explore these feelings. When parents interact with children through creative play, it gives us the opportunity to help them understand their emotions, and also teach them how to express these feelings appropriately. 

When children can clearly identify what they are feeling and are allowed to express those feelings freely, it can increase their self-confidence. 

Activities like storytelling, make-believe, drawing, and painting are a few activities that help children practice emotion management.

Social skills

It’s important for children to understand that each person is unique. When they go out into the world, they’ll find out that everyone is different in their own way, and it’s okay.

You can give your child opportunities to engage in fun activities that demonstrate the individuality of each child, even when given the same types and amounts of resources. This practice will also help youngsters build friendships and interact positively with others. 

Overall well-being 

Our children’s days can be extremely busy. Some kids become frustrated by their daily routines and challenges.

Set aside time to play with your little one. Engaging in creative play is a great way to teach children how to navigate the challenges that might come their way.

You don’t need to have a specific goal during your playtime. Just be in the moment and enjoy time spent bonding with your child. Create opportunities to teach children what steps and approaches they can use when faced with various challenges in their lives. Whether your child is frustrated by a simple arithmetic problem or social difficulties, creative play is a fun and effective way to teach children how to manage various difficulties.

Fun and creative activities are waiting for your child at Wee Care Preschool. Contact us for more information.

Starting school marks the beginning of a new and exciting journey. School opens new opportunities for children to interact with new peers, learn essential skills that will lay the foundation for their future academic years, and learn valuable life lessons. However, sometimes this milestone doesn’t always come easily for parents or children. Adjusting to a new environment and routine can be overwhelming for many youngsters. So how can you help your child adjust to preschool?

Entering an unfamiliar environment may make your child feel both excited and anxious. You can help your child get ready for this step by following these tips. 

Find out if anything is worrying your child

Before school starts, it’s best to have a conversation with your child about their expectations about school. Find out what your little one is looking forward to as well as anything they may feel worried about. Listen and empathize with children, and let them know that these feelings are normal. Address their concerns and offer reassurance that they’ll be safe. Let them know school is a fun place. Offer encouragement, and tell your little one how proud you are of how brave they are. 

Also, highlight the fun things your child will be doing at school. Tell children about the new and exciting things they’ll learn, the games they’ll play with friends, and new classmates they’ll meet.

Stay positive

It’s important to stay positive and supportive of your child during the transition to school. This is a big step for your child. Be careful not to let your worries bring you down or overwhelm you. 

Be sure to maintain a positive attitude towards starting school. If you’re anxious or nervous about what’s to come, your child will be able to sense it and may also begin to worry. Show your little one that you’re looking forward to the first day of school with enthusiasm and excitement. Embrace this big step with optimism, and let your child know you’re there every step of the way. 

Prepare your child for transitions

It’s a good idea to start preparing your child a couple of months before school starts. For example, find out if your child can tour the school, meet their teacher, and get a taste of any of the activities that happen during the day. Consider visiting your child’s preschool a few times before classes officially begin so your little one can get a feel for the new environment. Give children the opportunity to explore this new place and become familiar with this new setting. 

It’s also a good idea to introduce your child to the types of activities that may take place in the classroom, such as writing, reading, and drawing. This will help your child mentally prepare so that your little one will be less overwhelmed by everything that is happening when the first day arrives. It will also help your child be more able to focus on learning new concepts, like numbers and letters.

Find out what your child needs to feel safe

Your child will meet many new people and encounter new experiences at school, so understanding your little one’s safety plan will help manage this transition. Perhaps your child wants to bring their favorite toy or another familiar object. By doing this, the new environment won’t feel so overwhelming or scary.  

Establish a routine

One thing to which your child will start to become acclimated at school is a new routine. Adjusting to a new routine can be hard for anyone, which is why it’s important to get a headstart at home. Don’t wait until your child is at school before practicing following a routine. 

Begin by making sure your child sticks to a consistent bedtime routine every night. Also, establish a routine for daily activities, such as eating breakfast, reading time, playtime, and so on. 

Encourage socialization

Developing social skills is so important for young children. Make sure your child is given ample opportunities to interact with same-age peers. Set up playdates that give children plenty of opportunities to socialize with other kids of a similar age. This will help your child learn how to establish friendships and get along with others, which is vital for their success both in and out of school. 

The transition to school can be overwhelming, but with the help of these tips, you can help your child adjust to school and help your little one on this new journey on the right foot. 

For more helpful tips and resources on parenting, please feel free to visit Wee Care Preschool.