How much academic content should my 3 year old's preschool have?

Question

My wife will start working again next year, and we plan to have our boy start in pre-school. Some of the places we have talked to don't do any instructioin at all - and I was hoping they would at least cover numbers and letters. Should I just let the boy play, or should I keep looking to get a little more academically?

Answer 1

allow your child to play, this will increase the ability to be more creative later on.

Answer 2

I don't know what world these others are in but I am a Preschool Teacher and we have a threes program that is excellent and the children learn a lot!  They learn their colors, numbers, shapes, etc.  It is not necessary for a 3 year old to be in an academic setting, but it will definitely help them when they get to Preschool and Kindergarten.  Schools want Kindergarteners to know a lot more than when we were kids and they need the best start they can get.  Don't believe that 3 year olds can't learn yet anyway.  I am proof that they do everyday and are more advanced than kids who don't!!!

Answer 3

At three he's ready to learn numbers, counting, letters and sounds, colors, shapes, poems, songs and finger play.  These can be 15 minute segments throughout  the day of exposure to these subjects as well as social interaction rules, Proper etiquette,

Cleanliness and Manners. Learning addresses and phone numbers and learning to button, snap, zip and buckle!

Of course at three playing is learning. Taking into consideration of course what he's playing.  

It would be in his best interest to keep looking for something a little more well rounded!

Answer 4

Three is a good age to adjust to a program.  Social skills are very important.  I would look into a program that covers some academics, but mostly focuses of play.  They can be intertwinned.

Answer 5

i IS tHre yeers olDs and me likE tos plae alls the funs stuff games ands yous to Reades me gud stories and FuN eduxactional Gam3s

Answer 6

that sounds like a "day care" service. pre-school is just that-school. its supposed to give kids a jump on education. letters and numbers and even some colors are the least to expect from any decent school. but there's nothing wrong with day care either. social skills are just as important.

Answer 7

I think it is great you are thinking about this for your child. Children learn through play, but it does not hurt to start a structured learning program. My experience in Canada has been that daycare does not provide any academic learning, but learning through play, imitation, etc. If you want more than that you will probably have to pay and send your child to private school such as a Montessori school. These are well recognized schools for their approach to teaching children all the way from 2 years to highschool (check link). I believe in teaching children at home, at play and at school, they are sponges at this age and will absorb everything they see, smell, touch, hear and learn. Good luck!

Answer 8

At three, a child is not ready for academics. Learning socialization skills is his first order of business - learning how to share, how to play and use his imagination (using blocks to make "garages" for cars....), how to hand out napkins at snack time, etc. He also will learn how to properly hold a pencil or a crayon, how to put on his jacket or coat and zip/button, how to tie, how to work with the group to make simple snacks, how to do simple art projects, how to sit still and listen, how to follow directions, how to sing with others, how to safely play on a playground, perhaps learn basic colors and shapes, how to stand in front of the group without being silly and present something like "show and tell", and how to act when stories are told and books are read.

When I taught 4 y/os, we baked a pumpkin, then mashed it up, and made pumpkin bread. We roasted the seeds for another snacktime. We made simple cookie recipes. We made personal pizzas out of Pillsbury refrigerator dough. We watched a spider crawling up the wall and talked about where it lives and what it eats, and then we named it before we waved goodbye to it as it disappeared into a crack up near the ceiling. We made gingerbread houses out of graham cracker squares, spread white frosting on them for snow, and decorated our houses with M&Ms, starlite mints, candy canes, cinnamon candies, etc. My aides and I outlined each child on a big piece of paper and let each one color in clothes and his/her face. We marched to music and learned lots of songs. We read lots of storybooks.

Yes, let the boy "play".

Answer 9

As an early childhood preservice teacher - I can confidently tell you this.  At age three, a child is not developmentally ready for much academics.  Truth be told, at age 5 most children are not ready for much more.  Children need time to grow and experience social settings in preschool, not cram their brains.  Best of luck!

Answer 10

The most important thing is that the first learning input should create an interest in child, Definetly you can introduce  Alphabets and numbers plus general vocabulary like  animal  name , fruits, vegetables, body parts etc.It is advised to use some sort of multimedia educational  CDs so that interest is generated.

We are dealing with  kids education and know us at www.learnwareindia.com

Answer 11

IMO, it should be play with a purpose.  Look for a program that has some structure in terms of what happens throughout the day, but that gives him lots of opportunities to explore, play, and be creative.  Look at the art projects... do they actually look like the kids have been playing and creating or has the teacher cut out a bunch of pieces and then instructed each child precisely how to glue them together (we called them "pat-pat projects" because all the kids did was pat-pat the pieces to make them stick).  Do the kids get lots of sensory experience or do the teachers avoid things like playdough, finger painting, sand, and water because they are too messy?  

If they work on letters and number, do they do them in fun, creative ways or do they do tons of worksheets?  At this age, they should be playing more than doing seat work.  Honestly, learning the rules of getting along with other children, waiting for your turn, how to wait in line, how to wash hands and put away toys and trash, how to hang up coats and backpacks... those are the skills they need to be working on at 3.  A little academic instruction at 4 is great but even at 4 it should be done through play and exploration.

Answer 12

Play is a child's work!

A quality pre-school  should be play based with both child directed activities and teacher directed activities.

Each aspect of an early childhood classroom fosters learning, for example:

Circle time exposes the child to reading, counting, listening skills, social skills.

Manipulative's(small toys) is math

Sensory activities is science

Writing center offers reading

The center as a whole offers your child social skills, problem solving skills, and self help skills among others..

There is a standard of practice that is called DAP. Developmentally appropriate practices. Meaning lessons are geared for a child's age and ability, as well as what they can understand for their age. You can't expect a child of 3 to write sentences and correct spelling, they are not capable of that yet.

Before making your decision research early childhood practices and development on line. NACYE is a good place to start.

Answer 13

I agree. Academis for a three year old is not necessary. The vast majority of three year olds are not even ready to start learning their numbers and letters yet. At least not in any kind of formal fashion.

I would suggest this - find a preschool that is loving, nurturing and matches most closely to your parenting style. If a preschool is loving and nurturing, numbers, letters and all that will be around him all day, both at school, and at home.

Good luck!

Answer 14

This is a toughy.  My boy is in his second year of Preschool.  His first year, he went to a school that had a structured learning program.  Matthew just soaked up everything.  However, his social skills were lagging.  Then, we moved and found another program that has some academics but mostly focuses on play and social skills.  He is 4 now instead of 3, and I was very skeptical, but he has totally bloomed in this program.  He is one of the most mature kids in the class.  My feeling is I wouldn't put Matthew in day care, I do like what I saw with the academics because he learned quickly.  However, kids really need socialization skills to get their confidence to a level where it drives learning ethic.   You need to get your child into a successful program no matter what the emphasis.  Teachers and environment make the difference.  I am totally grateful for what Matthew's teachers have done for him.  Make sure you get strong feed back on your child's development.  Then you'll know if you made the right decision.  Try something different if it isn't working out.

Answer 15

Let him play!  Children learn SO much through play...they build their fine motor skills, gross motor skills, speech and language, socialization skills and so much more!  They need these skills to be READY for Kindergarten.  He's only 3, don't push him too fast :)