How quickly your kids grow! They were just starting to crawl, and now they’re all grown up and ready for school. What will students be taught in class, though? What type of lessons do kindergarteners receive?
In the American Kindergarten schools in UAE, the kindergarten curriculum includes reading, writing, and arithmetic; however, specifics may vary. Moreover, many kindergartens include science and social studies in their curriculum. A kindergarten curriculum that fails to include extracurricular activities is incomplete.
Have a peek at what is generally covered in preschool!
What Topics Do Kindergarteners Learn?
Although reading and writing are important skills for children to acquire, much more should be included in a quality preschool program. The foundation that is laid in kindergarten may have a profound effect on a child’s academic trajectory throughout their academic career. So, what exactly ought young children learn in preschool?
The Importance of Reading in Preschool and Playgroup
Learning to read is one of the primary goals of kindergarten. They will need to know this for the rest of their life; therefore, it’s important. Phonics-based reading instruction is widely used in preschools nowadays. Kids need to learn how to break down words into their component sounds, called phonemes. They may then begin to put the sounds together to make words.
Reading lessons often focus on a variety of important areas, including:
- Educating oneself on the alphabet by learning its individual letters.
- An in-depth primer on the most often encountered phonemes.
- Combining phonemes to create new ones.
- Commonly used sight word recognition.
- Easy-to-read novels and tales.
- Games and activities for reading are used by certain educators as part of their lesson plans. They might be useful for giving kids a chance to hone their reading abilities once they’ve learned the basics.
The Beginnings of Writing in Grade School
Kindergarteners also have a solid grounding in the essential skill of writing. Learning to write builds on the foundations of reading; both are established in Pre-KG.
The writing curriculum in most playgroup classes follows a progressive curriculum. We don’t correct the children’s spelling or grammar when writing. As an alternative, they put all of their energy into putting pen to paper.
As kids are comfortable putting pen to paper, they may start learning the fundamentals of correct spelling and grammar. Nonetheless, the focus is on sharing ideas rather than honing skills.
What we consider to be the most crucial aspects of kindergarten writing training are as follows:
- Figuring out the best way to hold a pencil.
- Rehearsing the alphabet’s letter formation.
- Using easy-to-understand language.
- Sharing tales and writing pithy words.
Introducing Arithmetic to Preschoolers
Despite popular belief, mathematics is not limited to the realm of numbers. In preschool, children often develop an interest in and comprehension of mathematics via activities like counting, sorting, and pattern recognition.
Hands-on activities are often used in kindergarten mathematics lessons. Kids are encouraged to strike out on their own and make mathematical discoveries. Youngsters may utilize blocks or beads as manipulatives to comprehend the material better.
In pre-school mathematics classes, students may learn about any or all of the following:
- Being able to read, write, and count to twenty.
- Recognizing common geometric forms, including circles, squares, and triangles.
- Up to ten-digit addition and subtraction.
- Quantifying size, mass, and storage potential.
- Fourth, including social studies and science in the early elementary curriculum
- Children’s first formal introduction to the outside world is in preschool playgroup. Science and history are included in this category. In science class, students study the world’s fundamentals, from atoms and molecules to plants and animals. Kids also acquire knowledge of Earth’s resources and the need to preserve them. Students understand the interconnectedness of human society via the study of social studies.
Both the social subjects and the sciences are taught fairly hands-on in kindergarten. As kids go out and about, they find things out for themselves. They may start a garden, construct a fort, or design and build a working machine.
Science and social studies in preschool playgroup often include the following well-known topics:
- Our five senses.
- Living things, both plant, and animal.
- The cycle of four distinct seasons.
- The climate and the weather.
- Solar system.
- Many customs are from throughout the world.
Kindergarten Enrichment Programs
Beyond their core academic pursuits, kindergarteners indulge in many extracurricular activities, enriching their social and emotional development. They immerse themselves in playful endeavors such as games, singing, and crafts.
A vast array of after-school activities awaits eager kindergarteners. Some popular options include:
- Delving into creative arts with activities like drawing, painting, and sculpting.
- Discovering the joys of music by learning to play the recorder or xylophone, singing, and exploring diverse musical genres.
- Having kindergarteners put on plays and skits is a great method to let them express themselves and build confidence in front of an audience.
- Several preschool playgroups provide teams that kids may join. They’ll get some physical activity and learn to work together effectively.
- Kindergartners have the opportunity to learn new things and discover new passions. They may get exposure to new things and build intellectual and social abilities by participating in various extracurricular activities.
It’s time to start preparing the kids for first grade!
So, what exactly does teaching children in kindergarten entail? Most of these programs aim to prepare students for their first year of formal education. Concerned parents should not fret if their kindergartner has not mastered reading and writing by the end of the school year. Pre-KG aims to provide a solid academic foundation for young children, not to cover every subject under the sun. So, going to preschool improves a kid’s chances of doing well in elementary school and beyond.
Rawafed Private School UAE aims to ensure each student can develop into a well-rounded adult who will play an active role in their community.