The importance of early childhood education

Preschool children at play
(Orange Walk)

ORANGE WALK BUREAU Reporting:  The activities for Child Stimulation Month continue around the country.

The month of activities is designed to highlight the importance of early childhood education.

Preschools have been in operation for many years in Belize, but many don’t fully understand the purpose of this facility in a child’s education.

Many see it as just a daycare centre for busy parents, while others do not fully embrace what the Preschool stands for.

But in an effort to help, let’s take a closer look at the benefits of early childhood education by talking with some teachers in the Orange Walk district.

First off, we must emphasize that the first five years of life are full of discovery.

And though some days may feel repetitive for you, for a child there’s always something new to explore. Maria Thompson who is the owner/teacher at Santa Theresa Preschool believes that the benefits of a Preschool experience for children cannot be overstated.

Thompson says that Preschool age children “they come to preschool for little basic things; manners, sharing, taking turns, making a line, etc. Those are the little things that a child needs at the age they are ready.”

When challenged on the belief by some people who say that Preschool is a waste of time and money, teacher Thompson said that “children learn through play.”

She explains that in conversation with parents, she would tell them that “if you bring your child clean in the morning and you expect him to go back like that, it means they didn’t do anything at school, they did not learn.”

Another aspect of early childhood education is borne out through science, which tells us that, based on years of studies, that the brain develops quickly during those formative years and that the more the brain is kept busy the better it will develop and be ready for the elementary school phase of learning.

Simply put, busy babies make for better students later.

Whether it’s coloring, drawing, building or even talking, it’s all play to the Preschooler; but the bottom line is that these activities are actually stimulating brain development.

That quest to develop the brains of the next generation of learners is not lost on the teachers over at the Louisiana Government School who are now in the process of implementing a Preschool facility at the institution.

Yishan Lu is a Preschool teacher at Louisiana Preschool is upbeat about the early childhood education project saying that “from here we can know that this is an environment for them to learn and they can also practice their language part as well, developing their English.”

Lu explains that at the new Preschool “we teach them six disciplines which are things they should develop at this age.

Lu says that one good thing in the children’s favor at the Louisiana Preschool s that “majority of the parents participate in their child’s activities;” and that the school has periods allotted for the parents to spend time with the children at school.

In the end then, no matter which path you choose for your child, it’s important to know you have options and that by enrolling your child into a right early education program, they will graduate into kindergarten ready to learn.

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