Why Should Parents Decide If Retention Is Right For Your Child?

The article by Erika Christakis, informs future teachers and parents how preschool today may not be benefiting their children as much as they thought. She talks about how preschool has changed drastically over the years as well as kindergarten. She states that “kindergarten may be the new first grade”. Her statement shows how children today are expected more then they were years ago in all grades, especially preschool and at such a young age. Many think this is helping our children or will benefit them in the future if they know more as a child but this may not be the case. The article talks about multiple studies done throughout America to children are learning and how school curriculum changing affects children. A studied showed that children

If a practitioner see that the child is struggling with certain things, there could be an influence on other areas of development, because as we know each area of development are connected, and practitioner can use special screening programmes what can help the to pick up any areas of difficulty that child maybe suffering.

If for example a child has not attended a nursery or play group in their early years this can often set them back from what development stage they should be at when attending school. This could be the lack of nursery places, not good enough teachers to the child having a learning disability that has not been identified yet.

| Good way of seeing where the child is with their development – do they need encouragement in a certain area?

The Child Study data I have gathered comes from the observation I have completed at Mission Bell Elementary School. Mission Bell Elementary School is a local school in Riverside. In the P.M preschool class there are 24 students, one teacher, and one assistant. The child I decided to observe is names Zoe. Zoe is 4 years and 10 months old. I immediately was drawn to Zoe because she had such a big personality, was very social, and smart. I am glad that I choose to observe Zoe because she was able to make my observation process smooth and easy. While observing her I had to pay close attention to her biosocial development, motor skills, cognitive skills, communication skills,

Gesell Institute states, “With playtime and recess being eliminated from schools in exchange for more test and desk work, children are being denied the ability to engage and expand their social skills and relationships, which not all educators realize” (Gesell Institute). Schools are rushing children’s development by making them do skills that they are not ready to do. A child will learn how to do simple tasks like draw a triangle, but forcing them to do it at a younger age and not letting them experience childhood by putting pressure on the child to learn faster is not inspiring them to learn and be creative (Gesell Institute).

School readiness is defined by Petersen (2014) as, “children possessing the skills, knowledge, and attitudes necessary for success in school and later learning in life” (p. 175). When referring to infants and toddlers she defines it as, “supporting and protecting the developing brain in such a way that the brain creates a strong physical foundation for learning” (p. 175). Just as the definitions for school readiness for school age children and for infants and toddlers are not the same, the way we teach the skills for school readiness is different. Infants and toddlers learn differently than school aged children, so simply extending the core standards and teaching strategies used with school aged children down to

The benefit to the child is that they can partake in activities with their peers rather than be left out. This ensures the child has maximum opportunities in school and doesn’t have to miss any lessons.

It is important that a child get stimulation so they have more opportunities to learn and thrive in social setting and intellect. Interest and

Children are all different and may learn and develop at different rates. Some children may not develop as fast as others and these children need to

Children’s development may not follow the expected pattern due to a range of personal and external factors. This could be due to disability, long-term illness, life-threatening illness, environment, friends, family, etc.

Children will come from a diverse range of backgrounds including family environments cultures and circumstances. A child is at school from a very young age to late teens and during this time many families will go through significant changes. Sometimes however schools may not always be aware of these changes. Any one of these happenings may affect their emotional and or intellectual development, this in turn can affect their behaviour in school and therefore their ability to learn. Sometimes it can also affect their physical development, for example some children may development a speech impediment such as a stutter.

When children transition from preschool to primary one there is a change in the learning environment, quality of interaction and mode of instruction. The primary school is a much larger environment than a preschool. The classroom enrolment is also bigger and there is a larger teacher-pupil ratio. Hence, children in primary school receive less one-to-one attention from the teacher than children in preschool. In primary school, children are expected to spend more time seated at their desks. Children also spend a longer duration in primary school than in preschool and carry heavy schoolbags. There is a change in curriculum and behaviour expectations. Children are expected to buy their own food at the canteen and finish it within 20 minutes. Naptimes are not included. In primary school, children are expected to tie their own shoelaces, use the toilet the right way on their own and at specified times. In preschool, children may have 1 teacher to teach them Mother Tongue and another to teach them the other academic skills. However, in primary school children may have more than 2 teachers teaching them academic and non-academic subjects. Hence, children will have to adapt to different teaching styles and teacher

I have drawn my empirical data from the observations carried out in a Kindergarten I have been observing since March.

Every builder knows "A house is only as strong as its foundation". They also know that they have to evaluate and become familiar the land before beginning to work. This rationale can be used as a guideline for teachers across the world, especially with the children in the early childhood stage, ages 2-6, because how teachers assist children in this stage will serve as the foundation for the life ahead of them. A child develops physically, cognitively and socially. It is important for the teachers to know how the child is developing in order for them to effectively teach the students because they lack of understanding can lead problems for the child. Additionally, if the teacher is aware of how the