Preparing Preschoolers for Kindergarten and Beyond
Why does my child need to prepare for kindergarten?
Won’t they learn everything they need once kindergarten starts?
Today’s kindergarten classroom is fast-paced and advanced. Some of what is taught in kindergarten today used to be introduced in first grade. Because of this, your child needs to have a specific set of foundational skills prior to the beginning of kindergarten. These skills will make it easier for them to understand and retain kindergarten concepts.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of children who start behind, stay behind...”*
If a child isn’t prepared for school, it doesn’t take long for them to fall behind. Once behind, they often quickly become overwhelmed. Children who don’t have a strong foundation in the basics begin to struggle with understanding their assignments and have a hard time keeping up with peers. Over time, these children often lose heart and give up. This is not the way students should start out their school years.
Don’t wait until kindergarten starts to see if your child is ready. Prepare your child beforehand. It can make all the difference in their future.
*America’s Early Childhood. Jumpstart, 2009
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“Because my son joined our family at a later age, we were not able to prepare him for school during those formative preschool years. As a result, he has struggled in reading as well as test-taking and studying in general. I would tell parents of preschoolers to take advantage of these preschool years to prepare your child for what is to come. If you put in the time and effort in the early, formative years, it could save your child from having to do remedial work later on. My son had to work hard for years at remedial concepts because he was not at grade-level. While working on those concepts, he was falling behind as expectations increased from grade to grade. This made it so difficult for him to catch up. I keep thinking that if we had been able to get him help before he went to school, he wouldn’t have had to do so much remedial work. I would advise parents of preschoolers to put in the work now to save you triple the work later.”
Toni - mother of an 18 year old
Here’s what parents of older students want you to know.
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“My son has struggled with academics for many years. I feel that if he had gotten a better foundation when he was younger, it would have made a huge difference. Since I didn’t know much about how to help my son learn to read or what he would need later on, he wasn’t as prepared as he needed to be. It seems like they cover concepts so quickly these days. If the student is not prepared, the curriculum can move too fast for them. I also found that being behind for so many years has affected my son’s emotional well-being. As a parent, you want your child to be prepared for the next grade. But when they are constantly behind year after year despite working hard with a tutor, it can really start to affect them. I wish I had known how to better prepare my son for school when he was younger.”
Susan - mother of an 18 year old
Preschool and Beyond is here to help.
We provide:
Guidance
When your child starts one of the academic tracks at Preschool and Beyond, an experienced educational coach guides you every step of the way on the path to kindergarten. You will learn how to best teach your child according to their specific needs and personality.
Confidence
At Preschool and Beyond, it is my goal to send confident, happy children into kindergarten. When children enter kindergarten prepared, they have the confidence to take on the challenges of today’s kindergarten classroom.
Readiness
You want to be sure that your child is going to be ready as possible for kindergarten. By adequately preparing your child for today’s advanced kindergarten curriculum, you can equip your child to reach their full potential.
What They’re Saying…
“The teacher gave us a list of first trimester goals and my son has already accomplished about 75% of those goals.”
My son just had his beginning of the year assessment in kindergarten and the teacher let me know that he is ahead of many of the other kids in his class. The teacher gave us a list of first trimester goals and my son has already accomplished about 75% of those goals. We couldn’t have done this without Preschool and Beyond! As a plus, homework time is much easier than it could have been because my son got used to sitting down to do the sessions with his educational coach before starting school. My son also struggles with ADHD. The strategies we learned in Preschool and Beyond sessions have helped him to stay more focused while learning.
Rosie R.
