Back to School

It's that time of year when kids go back to school. Many, if not all, of Jack's friends are going to preschool this year. He'll be four in a couple of months, and we've decided to take his education on ourselves. David is the little guy. So far he's getting very good at doing the three things he does, and is adding new tricks like smiling and grabbing his toes. For now, this blog is going to seem to be all about Jack; or at least that's the plan.

I'm starting this blog to keep an informal record of our journey. Over the next few days I will try to take stock of where we're starting. For convenience, I'll base my assessment on the NJ Dept of Education Preschool Learning Expectations.


Social/Emotional Development:

EXPECTATION 1: Children demonstrate self-confidence.

This is an easy one. Jack has his own ideas about what he wants and how things should be, and he is never shy about expressing them. He's Batman.

EXPECTATION 2: Children demonstrate self-direction.

He often plays independently for 30 minutes to an hour. He chooses what he'll eat for most meals, and enjoys helping to prepare it. He can go to the bathroom completely independently, unless he's trying to get my attention for other reasons.

EXPECTATION 3: Children identify and express feelings.

Jack often identifies his feelings by name. In the past couple of months, we have discussed very specifically how to handle angry feelings, and he has successfully made the conscious choice to use words instead of screaming/hitting at least twice that I know of. He is still not always clear about others' feelings. Most of the time he can identify the feelings of characters in books, but not always his friends.

EXPECTATION 4: Children exhibit positive interactions with other children and adults.

Well, yeah. This is his strong suit. He's a charmer, a politician and a salesman wrapped in a little blonde package.

EXPECTATION 5: Children exhibit pro-social behaviors.

I wasn't too sure what this one was about, so I referred to the specific outcomes mentioned by the D of E: Plays independently, in pairs and small groups. Knows how to pretend play. Knows how to enter into play when a group of children are already involved in play. Takes turns. Understands the concept of sharing, and at times, is able to share.

Jack can do all of the above, except entering into a group already at play. He can do that if he already knows all the children quite well. If he sees a group of unfamiliar children, he gives them space.

EXPECTATION 6: Children exhibit attending and focusing skills.

The document specifically mentions a 15 minute attention span, and Jack can easily manage that in a group setting. In a TV setting, he can go much longer. One area for possible improvement: learning to wait for an appropriate moment to speak during a conversation. (This is a problem area for me, too. Coincidence?)

EXPECTATION 7: Children participate in group routines.

On occasions when we have been in a group setting, Jack follows group routines well. He sits on the rug during storytime; takes his instruments out and puts them away at music; walks in line and sits in a circle at gymnastics.

So that's it for the social skills expected of a preschooler. Next time... creative arts. That should be interesting. I wonder if there's an expectation that he will write a song about cheerios with guitar accompaniment.