Three-year-olds are already judged by how well they can share a crayon. Welcome to preschool. Most parents tend to focus heavily on academics. Letters, numbers, and colors. However, early childhood teachers will tell you the same thing, what matters is whether your child can say “I am upset” instead of reacting physically. That is the actual curriculum.
This stage is all about building emotional vocabulary. My Spanish Village Children that are able to identify their feelings are in a better position to manage them. Something as small as a broken pretzel can trigger a meltdown rather than a simple complaint. The preschool provides children with a daily exercise in just this type of emotional muscle-building.
The setup of the environment is more important than many parents think. Low shelves. Child-height sinks. Items they can access without adult permission. Such minor things silently accumulate independence. When a child is able to pick his/her own paintbrush, then they will no longer wait to be given the go ahead. That is a change that is even larger than it appears.
Routine is one of the love languages of preschoolers. Consistency soothes their nervous systems. Children feel calmer and can absorb more when they know what comes next, like snack after circle time. On the contrary, chaos keeps them on survival mode. A quality preschool runs on structure children can feel, even if they can’t explain it.
Many parents fear their child is falling behind for not being able to write their name or count to twenty. This is a reality check, a four year old who can take turns, deal with disappointment, cooperate with others to play is developmentally ahead in ways that will have a much longer lasting effect than reciting the alphabet.
These friendships may seem fragile but are actually constructive. “You’re not my friend anymore” is said with full intensity at 10am and forgotten by 10:15. Children are engaged in social repair. That's meaningful. This skill of conflict, forgiveness, and moving forward lasts a lifetime.
Struggles during drop-off are nothing to hide. There are some mornings that are like peeling an octopus a small, stubborn creature off your leg. It’s tough. It's temporary. Most crying children settle down after a few minutes. They have read it a thousand times and teachers are not judging you.
It is in preschool where children learn to realize that they are not the only one in the family. It’s a profound, slightly intimidating, and very serious realization.