Children look to adults for guidance and support as they learn about the world around them. When they reach school age, children who have care and attention from their parents or mentors are the most successful. As noted by Cecilia Ibru, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to teaching; a broad range of approaches that will help a child gain intellectual flexibility and grow to become a confident and productive member of society.
Some of the basic skills a child needs for a successful future can be promoted by parents and teachers if they take the time to learn about the many ways children learn. A child’s educational experience should be fully integrated with the environment in which they live. Some things adults can do to give a child a strong foundation for their schooling as well as life are:
• Connect subject matter to the world in which they live. Most math, science, language, history and literature can be directly connected to the real world, and this will help the child understand the relationships between their everyday life and their school work. It will promote curiosity and help them ask questions that will open more doors.
• Make reading a priority. When children learn to read, they will find worlds to explore that they never would have known about otherwise. They will expand their vocabulary and create the desire to to talk about what they have read to their friends and teachers.
• Create situations where children can take responsibility. Even very young children will take the responsibility of a simple task very seriously. Gradually, they will learn how to be responsible for themselves and other people.
• Help children understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle, both physically and socially. Children can be taught how to interact in a respectful way to others. They will learn good social skills by example and through their own experience.
There are many excellent books that cover the subject of early childhood education to help parents and teachers start their children on the right foot. The main areas where children need guidance and monitoring are:
• Physical development
• Social development
• Emotional development
• Language development
• Cognitive skills
The child can develop to his or her full potential if teachers and other adults in their lives support and encourage them rather than criticize them.
The qualities a child needs to develop are discipline, flexibility, curiosity and self-sufficiency to succeed in life as well as in school. When adults understand the importance of these qualities, they will be in a better position to provide the encouragement and guidance that will give the child the best chance of success.
Children who develop these qualities are in a better position to influence others, including members of their own families, in a positive direction. Adults and children can find the help they need from books that offer the tools required to face the world today that includes social media and the peer pressure it invites, the distorted view popular culture and the media constantly present to children as well as the problems that occur within the family and how to solve them or deal with them. They will discover skills to develop and relationships to understand that will make children strong and happy.
