Little Wiggles & Giggles Learning Center Prepares Kids for School
As a daycare with preschool, we’d like to share some basic preparation checklists for pre-k and kindergarten. Children grow up so fast, don’t they? Before you know it, your infant grows into a toddler. Soon after, your toddler moves on to pre-k, to learn the alphabet plus shapes, colors, and numbers. Then you blink and your preschooler is going to kindergarten, and continues on through school. To make the transition easier from toddler to pre-k and from pre-k to kindergarten, read on for some helpful information.
How to Know if Your Toddler is Ready to Go to Pre-K (AKA Preschool)
If your toddler has separation anxiety, or doesn’t get along with other children, pre-k probably isn’t in the foreseeable future. Before any toddler can learn shapes, colors, and numbers, they need to grow up a little. At Little Wiggles & Giggles Learning Center, toddlers move on to pre-k when they’ve developed more, both emotionally and socially. They have to be able to spend time away from home, and play well with other kids. Other emotional and social development may include:
- Listening to Simple Instructions
- Recognizing Other People’s Emotions
- Taking Turns
- Sharing Toys
- Sitting Still During Story Time
- Doing Things by Themselves Sometimes
Pre-K Teaches Children Shapes, Colors, the Alphabet, and Numbers
Early childhood education begins before preschool at Little Wiggles & Giggles Learning Center. We teach kids by playing and singing with them, and use other learning methods. When children start pre-k, they can usually recognize some shapes and colors, recite the alphabet, and count to five. In pre-k, we reinforce these lessons, and start focusing on others, like teaching them to:
- Recognize Letters From the Alphabet
- Count From One to 10, Maybe Even Up to 20
- Draw Shapes and Color with Crayons or Pencils
- Cut and Glue Arts and Crafts to Develop Fine Motor Skills
- Build Reading Skills with Rhymes, Songs, and Poems
Pre-K Helps Children Learn to Follow the Rules
Part of participating in pre-k is learning to follow the rules. Let’s face it, when kids go to kindergarten, and continue through high school and adulthood, they’ll have rules to follow. The earlier children learn to follow the rules, the easier it should be for them to do it later (theoretically.) In pre-k, children have to follow the rules too, such as:
- Looking Eyes (Look at the person talking)
- Listening Ears (Listen to the person talking)
- Quiet Mouths (Don’t talk while a person is talking)
- Helping Hands (Help others when need help)
- Walking Feet (No running inside the school building)
These are just examples of rules many preschools have. At Little Wiggles & Giggles, we try to positively enforce these rules. Other rules preschools abide by include:
- Be Kind to Everyone
- Raise Your Hand
- Take Turns
- Always Share
- Practice Good Manners
Children Can’t Go to Kindergarten Until They’re Fully Potty-Trained
Except for previously established medical conditions, kids need to be potty-trained before they can go to kindergarten. At Little Wiggles & Giggles Learning Center, we’re happy to help kids get potty-trained. In Pre-K, we always make sure to take kiddos to the bathroom before a meal, after naptime, and whenever they need to go. If you’re not sure whether your preschooler is fully potty-trained, consider these signs:
- Wet Diapers Need Changing Less Frequently
- Doesn’t Like Dirty Diapers
- Can Quickly Yank Down Trousers or Hike Up Skirts
- Able to Push Down and Pull Up Undergarments
- Understands Bathroom Terminology
Signs That Your Pre-K Child is Ready to Go on to Kindergarten
Besides knowing the alphabet, shapes, numbers, colors, and being potty-trained, kindergarten readiness measures up to other standards. In Pennsylvania, we have the Kindergarten Entry Inventory (KEI) assessment. It’s made up of 30 questions to determine a child’s social, emotional wellness, and physical development. The questions also assess their English, language arts, mathematics, and learning abilities. Many Kindergarten teachers also assess if a child:
- Speaks in Complete Sentences and Be Understood by Others Most of the Time
- Uses Words to Express Needs and Wants
- Understands Two-Step Directions
- Makes Comparisons and Describe Relationships Between Objects
- Knows at Least Eight to 12 Letters and That Letters Make Sounds
- Can Count to 20 and Recognize Single Digit Numbers
- Plays with Large and Small Objects in Constructive Ways
- Completes Steps of a Simple Task
- Knows How a Book Opens and How to Follow the Words On a Page
To find out more about our Pre-K program, call Little Wiggles & Giggles Learning Center at (570) 208-9125. Like and follow us on Facebook for updates. We’d be happy to share more information to include in your preparation checklists for pre-k and kindergarten.
