It's "Just" Preschool

 It's just preschool. If you want to see my blood boil, say this to me. I've made teaching our youngest people my life's work, It's not "just" preschool. Preschool is foundational for future educational success.

Research suggests that a strong preschool program leads to improved school readiness, higher graduation rates, and lower incarceration rates.  It is also a financial benefit to lower- and middle-class families because quality private preschool programs can cost as much as college tuition!

Preschool is foundational because it provides their first exposure to the school setting. This sets the tone for all future school successes. It is the perfect opportunity to get children started off on the right foot.  With adults that truly care about the children and nurture them, children develop positive feeling about school in general.

Good preschool programs, additionally, help build a child's self-regulation skills and social-emotional development skills such as taking turns, sharing, cooperation, working together, and problem-solving.

Effective preschool programs foster a child's creativity and curiosity. Open-ended questions like, "Tell me more about....", "Why do you think so?" "What do you think will happen next?" Questions such as these foster a child's imagination and lead to a greater sense of wonder in a child's developing brain.

Lots of people think that preschool is play. You bet it is!! Play is the way a child learns. It is the way that  a child experiences the world and play helps them engage on a deeper level. At a conference I attended awhile ago, our State Commissioner of Education said, "I believe that every child under the age of eight should have a play-based education." He received a standing ovation!

So, do not belittle the value and importance of my chosen career path. I don't put down your chosen career. All jobs are important. When I ask you to support your child, trust me that, after thirty-eight years and two degrees, I know what I'm talking about. All I want is for your child to be safe, happy, and to love learning. That's it!