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New on the Back-to-School Supply List? Face Coverings

kid face mask

Face masks are no longer an option for most kids. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that children aged 2 and older wear face coverings when they are unable to remain six feet away from others. If your child is struggling to adapt to face coverings – or you are worried about the impact these masks may have on them – you are not alone.

How Will Mask-Wearing Affect My Toddler’s Development? I Asked Two Child Psychologists

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/mask-wearing-affect-toddler-development-100000199.html

If you are worried that your child’s emotional intelligence will suffer as a result of masks, you are not alone. 

 

From Toddlers to Teens: How to Talk to Kids About Wearing Masks

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/from-toddlers-to-teens-how-to-talk-to-kids-about-wearing-masks#Early-education:-Kindergarten-to-second-grade

Getting children to comprehend the importance of wearing masks can come with its own set of unique challenges depending on a child’s age.

 

12 Fun Kids’ Face Masks for the COVID-19 Pandemic

https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/story/2020-08-14/fun-kids-face-masks-covid-19-pandemic

Some kids will adjust better than others to wearing face masks. Providing fun options for toddlers, children and teens can help with the transition.

Premier Academy offers affordable childcare in the Omaha/Elkhorn area. To learn more, visit us at premieracademyinc.com.

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Easing the Transition Back to School, Daycare and Work

back-to-school

If you are like most families, the past few months have been spent together. From early in the morning until bedtime, most children have become accustomed to being with their parents all day, every day. Whether those parents were working from home, helping siblings with homework or doing the laundry, they were hardly ever more than down the hall or up the stairs from their children.

Now that many parents are going back to work, children who have become accustomed to having their parents with them 24/7 now will have to become re-accustomed to going back to school or daycare. For some children, this will be a welcome change and an opportunity to reconnect with playmates. Others may have a more difficult time adjusting.

The adjustment will likely be more challenging for children between the ages of 18 months and 3 years old. This age group is more prone to separation anxiety and may struggle with the idea of leaving their parent’s side.

There are things you can do to make this transition easier on everyone. Child development experts suggest the following tips to reestablish what was once a seamless routine (and will be again):

  1. Be upfront. If your child is old enough to understand that they will be going back to school or daycare, let them know ahead of time. This is not something you want to spring on a child the night before.
  2. Get into a routine. As soon as possible, settle into a consistent bedtime routine, get up at a normal time, get dressed, eat breakfast and so on.
  3. Do some trial runs. If you can get someone to watch your child for an hour or so a few days now, do it. This will help children to remember that just because you are apart for a bit, you always come back together!
  4. Talk things out. Depending on the age of your children, ask them how they feel about going back to school or daycare. Don’t dismiss their worries but rather reassure them that everyone is feeling a bit unsettled but that it will get better.
  5. Expect a period of transition. Everyone (including you!) may be tired and stressed the first few weeks. As much as possible, try to cut everyone some slack as they adjust.
  6. Set apart some special time. Once you are back to work and your children are back in school or daycare, try to make some special one-on-one time with them in the evening or on weekends to let them know that while schedules change, your relationship will always remain strong.

Getting back into a regular routine of work, school, daycare and other activities is something we all will have to deal with at some point. However, it isn’t going to be like turning on a light switch. Be patient with your kids and be sure and cut yourself some slack, as well!

Premier Academy offers affordable childcare in the Omaha/Elkhorn area. To learn more, visit us at premieracademyinc.com.

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Importance of School Readiness

Importance of School ReadinessWe here at Premier Academy know the importance of school readiness. The first five years are critical to a child’s lifelong development. Early experiences influence brain development, establishing the neural connections that provide the foundation for language, reasoning, problem solving, social skills, behavior, and emotional intelligence – characteristics that often determine how well a child will do in school and in life.

Because early childhood is an important stage of any kid’s life, today’s parents share high expectations for early achievement, including school readiness. 90% of parents surveyed cited academic preparedness as the most important factor in their child’s preschool experience. They want to ensure that their children enter school ready to meet or exceed academic expectations and with a demonstrable ability to apply their newly developing skills in reading, writing and math.

Teacher Perspectives on School Readiness

In a recent study, elementary school teachers shared their views on what they believe to be the most important school readiness factors for any child to succeed in a public or private school setting.

Teachers were unified in their feeling that children should enter their first years of school with an ability to comprehend broader language and math concepts, as well as to be prepared for the social and emotional demands of school. In fact, 96% of teachers surveyed indicated they believe that social and emotional preparedness are the most important outcomes of a child’s preschool experience in order for them to be poised for academic success in the elementary years.

  • Teachers agree that key indicators of the children’s social and emotional readiness for kindergarten and first grade are readiness to accept new responsibilities and greater independence; a strong enthusiasm for learning; an ability to make new friends; and the ability to respect others. At Premier Academy, we focus on making sure your child has the emotional and social maturity required to succeed in Kindergarten and beyond.
  • 96% believe the child’s pre-K experience played a critical role in the child’s preparedness for school.

Common Myths about What School Readiness Means for Your Child

There’s no reason for most parents to be anxious about school readiness. Children who come from homes where adults read, spend engaged time with their children, value literacy, and/or have some social interactions with other children in child care, playdates or groups, or preschool are usually well prepared for kindergarten.
But there are some common myths of which to be aware.

  • Myth #1 – Learning the ABCs is crucial to school readiness.
    The Truth: While important, learning the ABCs is a memorization skill. It’s more important that children recognize letters and identify their sounds to prepare for school.
  • Myth #2 – Children need to count to 50 before going to grade school.
    The Truth: Again while it is important that children understand the order of numbers, when it comes to school readiness, it is far more important to understand the idea of 1-to-1 correspondence (each number counted corresponds to an object, person, etc.) and understanding quantity.
  • Myth #3 – The more teacher-directed the learning, the better.
    The Truth: Children internalize concepts more fully when they are actively engaged in exploration and learning versus being told by someone else. Teachers should be there to guide learning.
  • Myth #4 – The more a program looks like the school we remember as a child the more children will learn.
    The Truth: Young child learn best in an environment that allows them to make choices; to select their own materials for at least part of the day; and empowers them to try new things with a teacher who guides the learning.
  • Myth #5 – Children need quiet to learn.
    The Truth: Children need a language-rich environment where adults provide responsive language interactions and where vocabulary is regularly introduced.
  • Myth #6 – Learning to write is all about letter formation.
    The Truth: While letter formation is one part, even more important is understanding the idea of recording one’s ideas on paper. When a child makes some scribbles and says “This is my daddy,” write your child’s words on the picture and she will begin to make connections between spoken and written words.

Learning some “school skills” like lining up and raising hands before transitioning to school will certainly help make the transition to formal schooling easier; however, the best way to prepare your kids to enter school is giving them the chance to fully explore and experiment in an environment with caring adults who guide, support, and extend their learning. We can offer you all of that and more at Premier Academy.

Enroll Today! Click Here

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