It’s that time of year, when we start thinking about preparing children for starting school. Many caregivers are wondering how they can help their children enter kindergarten with the tools they need to be successful. When should we be thinking about school readiness? Everything that children need to prepare for school, they begin learning from the time they are born.
Babies are born ready to learn. No need for new backpacks, notebooks or new clothes; babies are motivated to make sense of the world around them through everyday experiences, in the safety of a loving relationship. In the first three years, their brains are making connections and developing more rapidly than at any other time in their lives. We don’t need to remind them to do their homework. Whether we realize it or not, they are doing it all the time!
Language and literacy skills begin to develop in infancy. Language emerges through the first sounds and gestures babies use to communicate. Sounds and babbles become words and eventually language. Before children learn to read, they need a strong base of language. Talking to children, singing and reading aloud are all activities that build the language skills that form the essential foundation for literacy.
So put away the checklist of school supplies for now. We can offer children the essential tools for school readiness without going to the store. A safe, loving, nurturing relationship and a language-rich environment are what children need to jump-start their brain development. What’s the best way to prepare young children for school? Talk, sing and read together every day!
