The first 5 years of a child’s life are critical to their lifelong development. Giving your child the opportunity to form vital skills prior to starting school is crucial to their education. When a child does not have access to preschool it can be detrimental to their success at school. Preschool can facilitate growth in a child’s:
- Physical, motor development and health
- Social and emotional development
- Cognitive development
- Language development
Not only does preschool assist children with learning fundamental skills, preschool can also help to identify any delays with developmental milestones, recognise any learning difficulties and connect children with the appropriate services, making sure that they are not on the back foot when they begin school.
Parents can sometimes be unaware of the important role that preschool or early childhood centres play in a child’s development. This term, Carolyn & Amy from our early childhood team, ran an 8-week Aboriginal School Readiness Program at our Koolyangarra Aboriginal Child & Family Centre, aimed at introducing children and parents to school readiness in a culturally safe setting.
During the school readiness program, they focused on growing children’s basic skills such as; listening & language with stories, cognitive & fine motor skills, healthy eating with healthy lunch boxes, making healthy pizza, unwrapping cling wrap, opening packets by themselves, turn taking and sharing with other children.
At the end of the 8 weeks, the children graduated with hats, robes and certificates. Aren’t they totally adorable?
With this program we aim to help close the gap in Aboriginal children accessing preschool or early learning centres and ensuring they have the best chance to excel when they finally begin school.
To speak with our Early Childhood team, contact 02 4729 0442 or info@nepeancommunity.org.au