Preparing your Child for Preschool – Are They Ready?

photo credit: anissat

You may be wondering if your preschool aged child is actually ready for preschool.  Chances are they are ready but if you have any doubts then you should ask yourself the following questions:

1. Can you understand them when they speak?  If you, as their parent, have a hard time understanding your child when they talk then the teacher and other students may also struggle.  You may want to consider having your child evaluated to make sure that there is nothing wrong with their speech or hearing.
2. Is your child potty trained?  Many preschools will not take children who are still in diapers.  This is because it is more time consuming for the teacher and is less sanitary than caring for those that are potty trained.  If your child is almost there you might consider talking to the teacher and seeing if they have ideas to help you get them trained before school starts.
3. Does your child sit still and listen?  While most preschoolers like to run and play it is also important that they be able to sit still and listen to instructions from their teacher.  This helps not only themselves but also the other students learn better.  If your child struggles with this you can work with them daily to see if you can get them to have a longer attention span.  Do not try to do this too fast or both you and your preschooler may become frustrated.
4. Has your child been away from you for more than an hour or two at a time?  If you child has never played at a friend’s house without your or gone to daycare you could find your child suffering from separation anxiety.  You can try to combat this by starting to leave your child with someone you trust for small periods of time and lengthening the time slowly until both your and your preschooler feel comfortable apart for the amount of time they would be in school.
5. Has your child spent time with other children?  If the answer to this question is no you might want to consider starting play dates for your child, sending them to daycare once a week, or enrolling them in a class with other children.  Learning how to get along with others is an important part of preschool but you can help make the transition easier by getting them used to other children before preschool starts.

You know your child best and if you feel they are ready for preschool you should enroll them.  Likewise if you feel that they may not quite be ready yet you can either wait a year or have them evaluated to determine if they are ready.

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