What will your preschooler learn at educational childcare? Along with the usual subjects, such as early literacy and math skills, take a look at the lesser-known subjects that early childhood education programs tackle.
Physics
Forget about those college-level science courses you're imagining. Preschool physics is perfectly suited to the three- to five-year-old. Physics at the early childhood level may include:
- Dropping two items at once. This comparison helps the child to better understand the effects of gravity on objects.
- Racing cars down a ramp. Children can learn about friction, gravity, and the effects of angles in this easy (and fun) activity.
- Sink or float. Preschoolers can predict and compare how to objects act in a tub of water. The young student can also dig deeper by trying to figure out why some items sink, and others float.
If you're looking for a physics activity to try at home, ask your child's daycare teacher. The educator can point you to ideas that are age and developmentally appropriate for your child.
Diversity
The preschool years are often the first opportunity for exposure to other people, cultures, and places. Your child can learn about similarities and differences by:
- Meeting new friends. The other children in the educational childcare class bring their own backgrounds with them. Your child will get to meet new friends and learn about their differences.
- Reading books. The early childhood educator can help your child to learn about other cultures and places through the world of literature.
- Creating art. Art activities are an easy way to expose the young child to diverse cultures and groups of people. From viewing art to making their own projects, your child will have plenty of opportunities to learn about diversity.
- Social studies. The preschool social studies curriculum is likely to cover topics such as cultures from around the world and similar themes.
Understanding the concept of diversity can help your child right now and for a lifetime. The earlier your child starts thinking about this idea, the more accepting they may become later on.
Time
The concept of time may not seem like a major study topic to you. But to a preschool-aged child, time is a new idea. If you've ever told your child to get ready in five minutes, only to find them still playing five minutes later, you've seen their immature sense of time.
During the preschool day, your child will learn how to follow a schedule, get a better understanding of before/middle/after or next and last, and even start developing the ability to read a clock.
A day in an educational childcare service is much more than learning about the three R's (reading, writing, and arithmetic). Even though literacy and math are cornerstones of your child's education, science concepts, diversity, and time are also important ideas that they'll get exposure to during the preschool years.
To find out more about what a preschool might teach, contact one near you, like Kid Academy.
