Three years old and already evaluated on their sharing a crayon skills. Welcome to preschool life. Majority of the parents are obsessed with academics. Letters, numbers, and colors. However, to any early childhood teacher, what really counts at this point, they will tell you the same thing, can your kid say I am upset, rather than bite someone? That is the real curriculum. 
This is all about emotional vocabulary at this age. Kids who can name their emotions can handle them more effectively. A broken pretzel is a much greater cause to have a full meltdown than to complain and say I am frustrated. Preschool gives children daily practice in building this emotional strength. The physical environment is important than parents can imagine. Low shelves. Child-height sinks. Things they can get without permission of an adult. These small details quietly build independence. When a child is able to pick his/her own paintbrush, then they will no longer wait to be given the go ahead. That shift is bigger than it looks. One of the love languages of preschoolers is routine. Uncertainty calms down nervous systems. Kids can relax and learn better when they know a snack comes after circle time. On the contrary, chaos keeps them recommended site on survival mode. The best preschools have structure kids can sense, even if they can’t put it into words. Parents even fear that their child is lagging behind since he/she is unable to write his/her name or count up to twenty. Here’s the truth, a four-year-old who can share, cope with disappointment, and play well with others is ahead in ways that matter more long-term than knowing the alphabet. These friendships may seem fragile but are actually constructive. You are not my friend anymore is a sentence that is uttered with all the intensity at 10am and forgotten at 10:15. Children are engaged in social repair. That is important. That ability to argue, forgive, and move on stays with them for life. Struggles during drop-off are nothing to hide. There are some mornings that are like peeling an octopus a small, stubborn creature off your leg. It’s tough. But it won’t last forever. Crying children tend to calm down in a few minutes. Educators have experienced this many times and they don’t judge parents. Preschool is where children realize they are not the center of the universe. That realization is deep, a bit scary, and very significant.
This is all about emotional vocabulary at this age. Kids who can name their emotions can handle them more effectively. A broken pretzel is a much greater cause to have a full meltdown than to complain and say I am frustrated. Preschool gives children daily practice in building this emotional strength. The physical environment is important than parents can imagine. Low shelves. Child-height sinks. Things they can get without permission of an adult. These small details quietly build independence. When a child is able to pick his/her own paintbrush, then they will no longer wait to be given the go ahead. That shift is bigger than it looks. One of the love languages of preschoolers is routine. Uncertainty calms down nervous systems. Kids can relax and learn better when they know a snack comes after circle time. On the contrary, chaos keeps them recommended site on survival mode. The best preschools have structure kids can sense, even if they can’t put it into words. Parents even fear that their child is lagging behind since he/she is unable to write his/her name or count up to twenty. Here’s the truth, a four-year-old who can share, cope with disappointment, and play well with others is ahead in ways that matter more long-term than knowing the alphabet. These friendships may seem fragile but are actually constructive. You are not my friend anymore is a sentence that is uttered with all the intensity at 10am and forgotten at 10:15. Children are engaged in social repair. That is important. That ability to argue, forgive, and move on stays with them for life. Struggles during drop-off are nothing to hide. There are some mornings that are like peeling an octopus a small, stubborn creature off your leg. It’s tough. But it won’t last forever. Crying children tend to calm down in a few minutes. Educators have experienced this many times and they don’t judge parents. Preschool is where children realize they are not the center of the universe. That realization is deep, a bit scary, and very significant.