Preschool: Looking beyond kindergarten

Schooling is one of the most crucial milestones for your children. From their first day to the day they graduate high school, school creates new milestones and memories for them. School can also prove to be a very confusing time for children, especially on the very first day.

Having been put in an alien environment after spending all those years in comfort around family, a child would feel extremely uncomfortable being put in a place with a bunch of strangers. The concept of education is also brand new to them, and grasping concepts would prove to be a bit of a task for their impressionable young minds.

This is a tale as old as time, and many might find the confusion cute, but it can cause visible distress to your child. Initial schooling stages can have long-lasting impacts on them even after kindergarten.

Hence, a lot of parents have begun opting to send their kids to preschool, an educational institution where parents choose to send their children around the age of three years old. Children who attend preschool are better prepared for when they begin formal education, avoiding the risk of falling behind their peers in terms of conceptual understanding and acclimating to a new environment. The system brings with it many hidden perks for the children both in the short and long run.

A preschooler is more likely to form strong social and emotional connections with new people, which will make future friendships easier for them. Children in preschool spend a lot of time with people other than their immediate family, thus enabling them to warm up to new conversations and social interactions. It also provides children with a safe environment to open up about their emotions as well as those of their peers. They learn about sharing their toys and food with their friends, as well as how to sit through lessons without any unnecessary interruptions. Thus, preschool also helps set the tone for society.

These institutions also instill the spirit of play and physical development within the children, helping them to be active and stay healthy. Through many games, preschools also teach children lessons about teamwork as well as strategy.

Playing enhances the children's motor skills and coordination. Along with teamwork, playing also helps familiarize them with the concept of conflict and how to properly resolve it, thus enhancing their communication skills further as well as their control over their emotions.

Preschool also has the power to create and nurture curiosity in children. While their minds are still impressionable, they are exposed to completely new ideas and assisted in finding outlets for their creativity through play and art. Kids around that age are known to have highly imaginative minds and are also very curious about what goes on around them.

They even grasp the basic concepts of the new subjects, like math. It also helps lower the requirement for students with special needs, as all kids would be starting off at the same level. The "special needs" category then only needs to be reserved for people with genuine learning needs.

After spending a few hours away from home and away from their family, children also learn to be more responsible for themselves. They learn to make their own choices and form their own view of the world, which helps them slowly figure out what they wish to do with their lives.

Along with themselves, children also learn to take care of each other and have each other's backs. Parents can also breathe easy knowing that their children are well taken care of, thus continuing with their work and other tasks.

Preschooling enhances the quality of your child's education. It serves to prepare children for school as well as some aspects of the real world. Finding the right preschool with the right faculty can help your child gain steady footing as they slowly step into school, which will help decide their future.

(The author is the founder of Bachpan Play Schools and Academic Heights Public Schools, and he co-founded Rishihood University and Must & More Diagnostic Center)