Quality Pre K Programs | Now more than ever, there is a need for quality, professional childcare for children of all ages. Modern lifestyles are very fast-paced, focused on the individual, and career oriented. This means that, compared to past decades, families are living farther and farther apart, both parents are working more out of the house, and older siblings or neighbors are much too busy with their own lives to consider babysitting on a regular basis. Without the traditional means of support for parents with young children, many parents are now left with one option: preschool. While many parents may be hesitant to send their little ones out into the world without their parents by their sides, there are more and more studies coming out that show us that preschool is very beneficial for our young children, and may even give them an advantage over their peers who did not attend pre-kindergarten schooling.
It’s a Fairly New Concept
Many people may be surprised to hear that preschool is a fairly recent concept in the U.S. In fact, the first publicly funded preschool program, called Head Start, wasn’t created until 1965, by President Johnson. Head Start was a program that was created with the goal of offering guidance for children and families for proper nutrition, healthcare, and general education. Preschool programs have made a huge leap in the percentage of children in attendance over recent decades as more and more parents become comfortable with the idea of sending their youngest children to school. When Head Start first began, for example, only 10% of four-year-olds around the nation were enrolled in the program. By 2005, however, a total of 61% of four-year-old children attended some type of preschool program around the country.
Major Advantages
Some of the advantages that children gain through attending quality pre k programs like the ones offered by A Child’s Academy include:
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- Providing a safe, stress-free setting for learning new skills, including proper classroom etiquette and how to interact appropriately with peers and with caretakers who are not family members
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- Being immersed in an environment of diverse peers and adults, blooming and strengthening the child’s view of themselves and others as active and cooperative members of a global community
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- Enabling children to make their own choices, find out what activities they enjoy, learn how to bond with others and make lasting friendships, and giving them a sense of independence and personal responsibility and freedom
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- encourages linguistic and cognitive skills by immersing children in an environment in which they must interact and communicate with a range of different types of people, as well as introducing children to activities and projects, as well as the vocabulary that goes with them, that they would not typically see outside of a classroom setting
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- Developing rough and fine motor skills, especially in young children, including helping the child learn how to walk, hold and use a crayon or paintbrush, eat using utensils, and other basic early life skills
- Introducing children to a structured environment away from parents and siblings in order to better prepare them emotionally and mentally for kindergarten, teaching young children that a classroom can be a fun, safe, and exciting place for them to learn, play, and grow
While many families originally sign their children up for preschool programs out of necessity, more and more parents are realizing that the benefits of a preschool setting for their children are well worth the time spent away from their little ones. Contact us today for additional program information.
