Get Your Kid Ready to Attend the First Day of Preschool
Think back to the time when you were attending your first day in high school, college or your first day at a new job. Didn’t you feel a bit anxious especially if you did not know what to expect? You do not know anybody, so you’d rather keep to yourself than mingle. Aside from not knowing what to expect, the fear of making a flub also adds to your anxiety.
Just imagine how doubly scary it must be for a young kid to attend his or her first day in preschool. Although kids generally have more fun than adults especially when it comes to new experiences, you will never really know how good they can adjust to an entirely new environment. As a baby, the world of your child will pretty much revolve around the confines of your home.
If you do go out on play dates or days in the park, it will still be under your supervision. But once you enrol your child in preschool, he or she will be left alone with the teacher and a bunch of other kids of the same age. The classroom environment may be a bit intimidating for your child, so how will you make sure that he or she adjusts to the experience and thrives in the learning environment? That is exactly what we will learn more about here.
Ensure the Success of Your Child’s First Day in Preschool
As a parent, you might also have some things to be anxious about once it is time for your child to attend preschool. The fear or being separated from your kid as well as the anxiety of how he or she will cope should be enough to give you stress. Do not worry, however, because there are plenty of things that you can do to make you better cope with sending your child to preschool”
- Do some preparations at least a couple of months before the first day of preschool.
The first thing that you need to do is look for an appropriate preschool for your child. In some places, preschool is part of a day care system while others have a separate system for it. Once you have decided which preschool to enrol your child in, do some preparatory work like visiting bookstores so you can read age-appropriate books for your child.
- Always talk to your child about what preschool will be like.
You should also talk to your kid about what to expect during the first day of school. Tell stories about how you used to feel when it was your first day of school. Get other kids to tell your child about the same experience of going on the first day of school. This way, your child would know what to expect when the time finally comes.
- Use activity books at home so you can have practice sessions on how the classroom environment will be like.
On the academic side, you can better prepare your kid by having practice sessions for coloring, drawing, writing or reading. Ask the teacher if there are materials that you can use to study with your preschool-age child at home.
- Schedule a play date with other kids who are going to the same preschool.
Finally, having a familiar face inside the classroom may ease whatever anxiety your child is feeling. Set up a play date with another kid who will be going to the preschool so that your kid can make friends with him or her.
Matthew Young is an active blogger, who likes to share advice and tips. Matthew likes to write about kids related topics and is a guest writer for ColoringPagesABC.com.