Knowing all you can about preschool expectations and activities before your child meets the minimum requirements to attend can help set them up for success. Typically, children can begin preschool at age two if potty trained, but preschool is not required in California. Does preschool attendance matter, then? Without hesitation, two longtime area preschool directors I talked to say it does!
Foundations for Learning
“Preschool provides a foundation for learning and the opportunity for young children to interact with peers and teachers,” said Christine Aiello, Pre-K Teacher and Director of Miss Barbara’s Child Development Center in Marina. “They’re also developing language skills and learning to make choices, share, and care for themselves and others.”
Preschool is so vital to your child’s social-emotional and cognitive development that the California Department of Education has published three volumes of preschool learning foundations to provide educators and parents with an idea of the broad range of knowledge and skills preschool children usually achieve when given the opportunity in a high-quality program. If that’s not enough to convince you of the value preschool can provide, consider the real-life wisdom we gathered—and learn whether or not your child is ready.
Approaching 43 years at Miss Barbara’s, Christine said, “The sooner a child is exposed to early childhood development activities, the better. The center teaches children ages 2 through 5, and the learning experiences in each class build upon one another.”
Lydia Mansour, Director of Pre-K and Kindergarten at Santa Catalina’s Lower and Middle School, has more than 30 years of experience in early childhood education in public and private school settings.
“The beginning is everything,” she emphasized. “Introducing your child to school in a developmentally appropriate manner at a preschool or Pre-K that believes in educating the whole child and whose teachers build and nurture trust with these youngest learners goes a long way to help a child develop a love for school and learning.”
Markers for Readiness
Sending your precious toddler off to school can be scary—especially if you’re not confident they can handle being away from you for part of a day and can communicate their needs.
To know if they’re ready, Christine said you’ll want to notice whether they want to play with other children, participate in hands-on crafts such as painting and Play-Doh, and hear stories and songs. Even more essential is that your child can follow simple instructions, focus on a task, express their emotions, and take care of basic needs such as putting on and taking off shoes and jackets.
“Children who are ready for preschool are likely able to recognize and/or name 6-8 colors, match or sort items by color and shape, join in art and music activities, understand concepts such as: in, out, under, on, off, front and back, and know their basic body parts such as head, shoulder, knee, and foot,” added Lydia.
“Most quality preschool programs and Pre-K classrooms utilize a developmental readiness screening that can help parents decide whether or not their child is ready. Schools that do this usually include a tour for parents and children, and their administrators work closely with parents to help them figure out what, if anything, they can do to help with their child’s readiness.”
Preparing Your Child for School
Both preschool educators agree that the COVID-19 pandemic pushed back the ability of some young children to hit certain developmental milestones when they might have otherwise because parents stepped in with more support. There are many ways to help your child inch toward independence, though.
Lydia suggests a fun way to get your child excited about doing things independently is to make a game of it. “For example, you can race each other to see who can get their shoes on first! The more confidence a child has in their abilities to function without a parent’s help, the more successful the transition to preschool or Pre-K will be.”
Giving your child more opportunities to interact with peers through group play and gym classes, and going on outings such as museum visits, can also support your child in being preschool-ready, said Christine.
Easing First-Day Jitters
As excited as your child might be about being a “big kid” by going to school, they will likely feel some unease—especially as the first day nears. To wipe away worries, Christine suggests taking a tour of the centers you’re interested in together and visiting at different times so your child can see a variety of activities and routines and observe transitions.
“Storybooks about school and school routines, and that show school as a fun place to experience learning ‘adventures’ are also very helpful for a child that appears apprehensive or unsure about starting school,” said Lydia.
Other tips for easing the first-day jitters: Ask your child how they’re feeling about starting school. See if you can arrange for your child to meet their teachers beforehand. During that visit, your child might be allowed to walk around and explain the various activities they will get to do. Together, these activities can help replace anxiety with positive anticipation.
“It’s perfectly normal for your child to be feeling a mix of emotions. Let them know it’s okay to feel that way and reassure them that it will be okay,” Lydia advised. “Also, practicing the new ‘school-day’ morning routine with your child and driving past ‘their’ school as often as possible will help a child feel a strong sense of connection with the school.”
One last word of advice: Before your child becomes a toddler, if you’ve heard about a good school, get on the wait list!
WENDY J. ROSENTHAL is a writer, credentialed educator and tutor, and solopreneur of a boutique marketing company. She is certified in Youth Mental Health First Aid and is the parent of two teen boys. She and her children reside in Salinas with their rescue pup Sherman.