Is Playschool Mandatory For Your Child’s Development?

Playschool is the first step of a child away from home. It’s not a daycare environment but a safe haven for learning that is enjoyable and stimulating. It's a preparatory informal stage of schooling for children before preschool. Children between 15 months to three years old can be admitted to playschools. However, parents of these toddlers are in a conundrum about whether to send their little one to a play school or not. Careers360 has analysed the pros and cons for you.

A play school is an environment designed for the early education and development of young children. These play schools accommodate a small group of children under the guidance of vigilant and dedicated teachers.

Advantages Of Sending Children To Play School

Activity Based Learning

Children at an early age learn through activities. Introducing them to a formal academic environment can be overwhelming. The pencil and paper concept can bore them and make them lose interest in studies. Students should learn about the concepts of colours, letters, and counting through games. The process of rote learning could be more varied for young kids. So learning while playing helps them to understand the world around them.

Prepares To Face Separation Anxiety

Toddlers are closely attached to their parents. Transitioning from the comfort of home to an unfamiliar environment might be challenging. Play schools provide a gradual and supportive environment where kids can learn to be comfortable away from their parents for a few hours each day. This exposure makes the toddler comfortable and confident to adjust to a formal school environment. They become capable of handling separation with time, which is necessary as they advance in their schooling.

Develops Social Skills

Play schools provide a great environment for kids to learn important social skills. Engaging in structured play with others develops social skills such as sharing, cooperation, and communication in children. Toddlers are often restless, moody and chaotic. The environment of the preschool makes them a bit disciplined and calm. The learning activities in the playschools place a strong emphasis on cooperative play and group activities. This fosters an understanding of social dynamics and teamwork. While working with classmates they face minor disagreements resulting in frustration and disappointment. This teaches them how their behaviour can impact others. Building relationships through making friends and navigating emotions is a sign of healthy social development.

Develop Motor Skills

Play schools are essential for developing a child's fine and gross motor skills. Through activities like painting, running, jumping and a variety of hands-on activities, children enhance their agility, balance, and coordination. Muscle control and strength are developed through swings, see-saws, slides and other play equipment set outdoors. These activities are good for the child’s physical fitness. Play schools help children develop their motor skills to a higher degree, which lays a solid foundation for their future growth and development.

Prepares For Formal Kindergarten Schooling

Playschool lays the foundation for toddlers to kindergarten. Children learn to survive alone without the guidance of their parents. They learned to take care of themselves by making small independent decisions. In the informal academic environment, they develop communication skills and learn to express themselves. Preschool acts as a practice manual for toddlers in academics, activities, behavioural patterns and civic sense.

However, there could be some side effects of this stage of growing up. Let’s look at those.

Also Read-10 Things Your Teen Should Know About Dealing With Medical Emergencies

Mentally Taxing

Parents are in a hurry to make their children ready to face academic challenges, however, experts are not so happy about it. As per News Daily, the experts feel that sending toddlers to playgroups might be taxing on their mental health. Toddlers of the lower age limit find it difficult to cope with the upper age limit. This might be a stressful situation at such an early age. The kids who have learning difficulties or were born prematurely suffer more from this situation.

Forced Learning

Sending kids of one and a half to two years is like forcing the learning pace. This might not be good for a healthy developmental process. Each child has a unique learning trajectory. When they are pushed into a structured environment they might get anxious. This is a hindrance to their natural curiosity and creativity, potentially leading to a negative attitude towards learning.

Separation Anxiety

Though the play school prepares toddlers to manage separation anxiety not every child can manage it well. Children typically aged one to three years are not emotionally ready to stay away from their parents. Being in an unfamiliar environment with new faces can be emotionally distressing for toddlers. It might lead to feelings of insecurity and distress. Early separation from parents might cause unneeded emotional distress in children who are not yet developmentally ready.

Lack Of Personal Attention

Toddlers are familiar with the undivided attention of their parents. When the toddler moves to playgroup with lower teacher-to-child ratios they do not get personalised attention. The need of every child is different, some might need more individualised care or certain different facilities to help their growth. When children are ignored the silent ones might get ignored in the crowd.

Also Read-Why Parents Must Encourage Girls To Take Up Sports?

Do This Before Sending Your Kids To A Playschool

Establish a Healthy Bond with Your Child

Parents need to build an open bond with their children before sending them to the play school. The child should feel free to share their experiences with the parent. This makes the parents keep track of what is happening, or how the child feels about the environment of the playgroup.

Don’t Do It Because It's the Norm

The parent doesn't need to pressure their child to join playgroup because everyone else is doing so. As a parent, it's important to understand the needs of the child. If it's more overwhelming for the child rather than being beneficial their parents can wait till the child turns three. They can directly send them to kindergarten.

Also Read-Why ‘Play’ Is Important In Child Development

The decision to send your child to playschool is yours alone, and it should be based on your child's unique characteristics and needs. No one can push you to take this decision and nor must you push your child, allow them to understand, experiment and then accept the transition from home to school.