The Right Preschool for Your Child

I am sure that any parent about to start their child at preschool already has ambitions for what they would like their child to achieve as an adult. Every parent wants their child to be successful but not every parent is so sure of how to reach this goal.  And there are only 16 – 20 years to produce this adult.  The pressure is on to accelerate the child through the process!  The child must be pressured into reading and writing – surely that’s what’s needed? Or is it?

Research has shown that the best predictor of success in life is not the level of academic knowledge but how well we interact in our environment and relationships.

The future changes rapidly, but there are timeless qualities which ensure success under any circumstance. The other day, talking to a fellow guest at a wedding, he described how the workplace had changed and how often jobs are spontaneous groupings with specific roles requiring different skill sets for each project. For success under these circumstances, academic knowledge is not enough.

So as your young child enters preschool for the first time what is needed to produce a child who is intrinsically motivated, creative, a problem solver and a confident and competent life-long learner?

First Preschool Experiences

Often the schools in South Africa focus proudly on teaching academic subjects such as reading and mathematics at an early age. Social pressure amongst parents leads to parents using social media to boast about their child being able to read at an early age. However when one looks at the Scandinavian countries which lead the field in literacy tests done at a later stage of school life, one finds that this is totally not the focus of the preschool years.

How much better to lay a firm foundation on which later academic learning can stand fast!

Early Childhood

Early childhood – the stage between 3 – 6 years of age is the time when these qualities can be developed.  A young child can be taught to read and write but it takes time away from what is really essential because that cannot be so easily instilled at a later stage.

Early childhood is the time for mastering spiritual, intellectual, emotional, social, and physical skills. Children must develop a positive self-image, imagination, wonder, humour, and joy.

This is not done by spending hours/days/months learning to read but by playing in an environment specially prepared for the child’s stage of development. It needs to be an environment which caters for all the child’s needs.

Research shows that modern urbanization is not always the best environment for young children. They still need a natural environment as described by people like Richard Louv in “Last Child in the Woods”. They still need time to dream which could also be described as a time to be creative. Constant activity and entertainment leave no time for any original thoughts. Think of Einstein as a child. The housemaid named him the “Dopey One” because he didn’t speak much. Think of Mandela. He spent many days as a herd boy out in the stillness of the hills of the Transkei.

Give your child the best and come and see Hatfield Montessori Preschool on Saturday 16th October 2021 between 9am and noon.