Tips to Promote School Readiness

What is school readiness?

School readiness is an important part of every child’s development. It is a process of developing skills, attitudes, and behaviours that will help children succeed in school. Moreover, school readiness is a state in which children are prepared for the challenges and demands of school. It includes children’s social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development. In order to be ready for school, children need to have strong relationships with adults as well as their peers. They also need to have good language skills and be able to follow directions.

Why are school readiness skills important?

School readiness skills are important because they help children to be successful in school. School readiness skills include things like being able to sit still, follow directions, and take care of themselves. In short, these skills are important because they help children to be successful in school and have a better chance of succeeding later in life.

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What are the prerequisites necessary to develop school readiness?

School readiness is the ability to do well in school. In other words, it is a set of skills that children need to learn and develop as they grow up. Some of these skills are:

• Basic language and literacy skills
• Social and emotional skills
• Basic numeracy skills
• Basic life skills (such as hygiene)
• Healthy lifestyle habits (such as proper nutrition)
• Basic understanding of the world around them (such as knowing the days of the week)
• Understanding their own feelings, thoughts, and behaviours
• Self-regulation

Tips to Promote School Readiness:

Parents and teachers should take the time to create an environment in which children are able to learn and grow. One way is by being mindful of the child’s surroundings. Children need a lot of stimulation from their environment, so parents and teachers should encourage them to explore different areas in their homes or classroom.

Another way is by making sure that children have a chance to be creative. Parents and teachers can do this by introducing them to art projects, music, dance, or other activities that allow for creativity. There are many ways to promote school readiness in children, but the following tips will help you to get started:

• Prepare your child

  Talk with your child about what they will be learning in the coming year. Talk about what they are expected to do at school, school-appropriate behaviour, sitting in class etc.

• Foster independence

  Help them become independent with basic tasks such as eating, dressing etc. Give verbal instructions rather than physical help.

• Follow routines

  Write down their homework assignments and finish them with your child. This helps them build and follow a routine. Use pictures to help them understand and sequence their routine. Make these part of their daily schedule. In short, children learn better with schedules. Moreover, this will also help your child be more organised.

• Make math fun

  Look for ways to make math more interactive. For instance, nowadays there are various fun ways to learn math. Try to start using these with your child.

• Early literacy skills

  Encourage reading by providing a variety of books on different topics. For example, encourage reading activities at home. Use colourful pictures with large print to start off. Secondly, do a lot of writing activities at home. This will help improve your child’s fine motor skills. And this is very important. For example, you can practise cutting, drawing, scribbling etc.

• Good night’s sleep:

Early to bed and early to rise, make a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. Make sure your child is getting enough sleep. Have a routine for waking up and going to bed.

• Familiarise new places

  Visit new places with your child. Take them to places like the library, school playground, etc. This will help your child get familiarised with the new school setting.

• Foster socialisation

  At school, your child will spend a lot of time with other kids. Help your child engage with children of their age. Arrange for play dates or activities with other children of your child’s age.

• Get help if needed

  Talk to your child’s preschool teacher to identify any signs of deficit or slow development so that these areas can be targeted before the child starts school.

• Make school fun

  Get your child excited about going to school. For example, Talk to them about your experiences. Tell them stories about their siblings’ first day at school. Talk about all the fun they will have.