Young children learn like sponges. Every new experience is a learning experience.
There is nothing more important than the early childhood years. Early childhood education is about honing and molding a holistic set of skills, which ultimately forms the basis of a lifelong love of learning.
There are endless benefits to early childhood education and here, we list just a few.
Socialization: Socializing with people other than family members is essential for a child’s development. The earlier we do this, the better, as it helps children overcome shyness and gain self-confidence.
Learning Cooperation: Being in an early year’s setting teaches children the importance of sharing, cooperating and turn taking from a young age. This is especially important for the first child, who may not be used to sharing with their siblings at home.
Promotes All Round Development: The approach taken by the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework focuses on first building a strong foundation for a child’s social, emotional, physical and mental development, which will ultimately prepares them for the challenges of modern life.
Fosters an Eagerness to Learn: Early Years Programmes are often guided by learning through play. This instills a love for education and learning within children. Learning through play provides a natural problem solving and investigative approach to learning. A child is able to follow their own interests. This love and passion for education, for reading, for learning, for discovering, for nurturing – takes root in preschool.
Concentration: During preschool years, children explore and discover new experiences, new friends and new environments. Their minds are so lively and imaginative.
As early childhood educators we help to balance this zest with the ability to listen, follow directions, take instruction, attend to tasks and participate in group activities to develop the critical life skill of concentration.
Promotes Confidence and Self-Esteem: This is an important value that children benefit from early years settings. A strong sense of wellbeing provides children with confidence, optimism and self-esteem which will encourage children to explore their talents, skills and interests.
Positive interactions with other children and teachers promote a positive, healthy and secure view of themselves that will allow them to approach situations and problems confidently throughout their lives.
Exposure to Diversity: Valuing difference and diversity are crucial to a child’s early development. Early childhood education serves to guide children to appreciate and accept differences amongst each other.
It is important that children understand that everyone is unique and that we are all so special in our own way.
Early Years Education and Preschool is so much more than playing. Learning through play provides so many opportunities to achieve skills without the pressure of applying formal sit-down table style teaching practices. Learning through Play programmes are highly inclusive and provide all children with fun opportunities to learn at their own pace.
As teachers our role is to create opportunities where children build skills around all areas of learning through fun activities, where fun and engaging conversation and a child’s natural inquisitive nature leads to a love of learning. Check out our facebook page and follow us on Instagram to see what our Windsor Community teachers and children enjoy on a daily basis. You will be inspired to join us.