Starting Preschool or Kindergarten Preparing preschool and Kindergarten students for the first day of school through play, consistency, and honest conversations. BY RHEMA ZLATEN for Raised in the Rockies
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reparing to start school is a big step. Whether it’s preschool or kindergarten, all future students need a bit of guidance to begin their school career successfully, and that’s before considering the implications of learning during a pandemic like COVID-19. Establishing expectations and rhythms will help new students succeed, even if the format and location of that learning shifts a few times over the next year. Kimberly Bloemen is the executive director of early childhood education for the Boulder Valley School District, and she is focused now more than ever on integrating play and fun into
education for this age range. Her goal is to support the five big areas of preschool and Kindergarten development: socialemotional, cognitive, physical, literacy and math. “By age five, 85 percent of the brain is developed,” Bloemen said. “[So] we see Pre-K and K as a partnership with the family." No matter what school format a family chooses for their preschool or Kindergarten future scholars this year, there are several ways families can help nourish these rapidly changing and expanding brains. SET A SCHEDULE Early on during BVSD’s pandemic response of switching to distance learning in the Spring of 2020, Bloemen recognized the challenges students faced when this change happened. Mimicking at least some of a school day flow helped kids stay on track and more comfortable with the shift to at-home learning. Creating a similar flow for the fall of 2020 will help in both distance and hybrid scenarios.
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Diane Lauer is the St. Vrain Valley Schools District assistant superintendent of priority programs and academic support, and she also advocates for setting up schedules for preschool and kindergarten-aged students. “It can be helpful for them to think about their schedule for the next day the night before, maybe at bedtime,” she said. “Going over what the day might look like at breakfast can help reinforce the schedule … [this] helps them understand the connection between what they are doing and what they are learning." Jessica Scott is the senior program director of early learning for the YMCA Inspire Preschool in Longmont, and she recommends continually forecasting the schedule of the day. “One of the things that I think is really beneficial for especially these little [kids] is something visual that they can see,” Scott said. “In my mind that looks like a tangible schedule for the day, that they can see and keep track of. Sometimes it is hard to know what is coming next, especially when you are a little kid who can’t think in [an] abstract manner.”
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