Playgroups have now become an integral part of every child’s development. They are structured in such a way that they are able to enhance the skill levels of the children in a play way for the overall mental, physical and social development of the child. They help the child prepare for the next level and also lay the ground work for future achievements.
The programs are developed in such a way that children discover and learn something new each day. The program has extensive extra-curricular activities for their physical, mental and social development. This keeps them excited and perks up their interest levels towards various subjects.
The most important part that a playgroup plays in the life of the child is that it increases the confidence level of the child. Only after a few months in a playgroup will you see a marked difference in the way your child is confidently interacting with others.
Benefits of Sending Your Child to a Playgroup:
Most good playgroup programmes Singapore are focussed towards the overall development of the child. If your children are attending a playgroup then they are sure to have learnt the following skills:
- They will develop the habit of sharing their things with others and the habit of waiting for their turn.
- They would learn to understand and follow instructions.
- They would develop social skills of interacting with people of all age groups from different walks of life.
- They would learn how they have to complete a work cycle.
- Their fine and gross motor skills will develop with refinement of hand-eye coordination.
- They will learn how to express their emotions. This will help in the overall character building of the children.
- They will get an exposure to phonics and the ground work will be laid for future reading classes.
- They will also get a foundation of maths and numbers.
- The children will get an exposure to basic art and also get to know about the culture of the country.
How to Choose the Best Playgroup:
It is not advisable to rush into the process of getting your child enrolled into a playgroup without doing some research into the different playgroups around. As there would be many options around, it at times becomes confusing to choose the right one. Here is a checklist that you can follow:
- Check if the playschool is focussed towards a holistic development of the child. Their program should include a perfect balance of activities for the physical, social, emotional and cognitive development of the child.
- Check if the activities that they plan to do are meaningful while at the same time fun. This is important to keep the child interested in the playgroup.
- Check if they have teachers who are trained or qualified for early child development.
- Observe how the teachers interact with children and see how comfortable other children feel around their teacher.
- Visit the premises to check the cleanliness, hygiene, safety and overall feel of the place. The atmosphere should be stimulating for the child.
The playgroups really develop the overall personality of the child in addition to preparing them for admission into a primary school. The chances of a child getting admission in a good primary school are higher if the child has attended a good playgroup program.