As a parent, looking down the barrel of how to manage your child’s educational life down the line, you might be wondering how you should approach it when they’re getting to that pre-school age, or even while they’re still at nursery age. Education plays a predominant role in a young person’s life, often until they’re 18, but at the very least until they are a teenager. There are parents who think that choosing more education for your child can be “too much,” but are there benefits of early education that make it worth it?
It helps to keep them busy
While this might not sound like the most convincing answer to why you should have your child kickstart their educational life in early years schools, the prospect of being able to keep your child engaged and to have them receive attention throughout the day when you might not be able to devote yourself to it as much as you want can be a lot more valuable than it seems at face value. A lot of parents are working at home, now, and many of us have noticed that it can be tough to spend all day of every day with a child when you’re trying to get work done. Having an environment where you know they will be safe, receive attention, and be kept engaged while you’re able to focus on your work or other responsibilities is worth thinking about, at least.
Helping to prepare them for education
One of the more rigid benefits of early education is that your child is likely to have quite a literal headstart over the others that they go to school with. Early learning often involves things like literacy and numeracy skills that might not sound overly complex to teach, but the fact is that there is a shortage of just those skills in children at the moment, with more and more growing up lacking the skills they should have at their age. Early education can make sure that you’re not leaving your child with a skills gap that you are later going to have to work harder with them to then try and fill.
Providing social and emotional education
A lot of parents have some gripes with the traditional education system. For instance, there’s the constant debate as to whether or not schools should be quite as focused on skills that lead to employment rather than to the complete education and fulfilment of a child’s needs. However, with an early years learning framework, the subject matter of their education is often on the more holistic side. It depends on the kind of establishment that you choose, but effective socializing, learning about emotional expression, and a focus on mental wellbeing is at the centre of many an early years learning establishment’s focus. Be sure to take a closer look at the childcare and preschool options around you to make sure they’re providing that holistic learning experience for your child.
Get them into the habit of learning
Any parent can tell you how tough a transitionary period can be when your child is first going to school. Struggling with getting them out of bed, handling the tantrums and tears as they get used to a new environment, and having to schedule homework into their lives when they get home, none of these tasks are easy. While early years learning might not exactly replicate this experience entirely, it can help your child develop a decent daily routine which includes getting ready for and going to school. It also makes the classroom environment a little less daunting for when they go to school for real. There will still be some transitionary friction, in all likelihood, but it should be much easier to handle.
Growing a love of learning
It’s not just what they learn that’s important, nor the fact that they get into the “habit” of school. Positive experiences in early learning can translate to the enthusiasm and a passion for learning that can go on to last them the rest of their life. If they feel a proclivity for the educational environment, it will help them engage much better with school in the future, which is naturally going to contribute to a successful future. Of course, nothing’s a guarantee, but it’s definitely an advantage.
Whether or not you choose to have your child go through early education, before they start school fully, is up to you. However, there are benefits that should have your full consideration before you make that choice.
