What should be the recommendations for choosing an early development school? After all, this question is relevant for many parents seeking to give their child additional benefits in the inexorably accelerating rhythm of modern life. To choose the right early learning centre in Singapore, you should follow up on some of these tips.
1. Appreciate the variety of courses and methodologies
A good development center offers a wide variety of different courses and techniques for children of all ages. However, be vigilant and pay attention to the fact that courses of different profiles are taught by different teachers – early development of children is not an area where one specialist is sufficient “all over”. At the age of 6, every year of life is a huge step in development. And only practicing teachers know at what level children of the appropriate age are optimally assimilating the material, what they are capable of and how to interest them better.
2. Have an idea of the specifics of classes
It should be understood that early childhood development centers do not usually follow strictly one system or another. First of all, because many of them simply do not have any system – no curriculum, no clear structure for presenting the material.
Check if the school has any system of classes, a curriculum for the year. After all, what will happen to the educational process if, for some reason, the teacher changes in the middle of the school year? And in general, who wants to pay for boring monotonous activities.
3.Take your teacher seriously
In good centers, there is always the opportunity to pre-attend a trial lesson in order to understand how it goes, how the teacher communicates with the children and how bright and interesting the material is. A real teacher should not only possess the necessary information, but also be able to find a common language with children, interest them and present the material intelligibly.
4. Evaluate the adequacy of information presentation
You must understand the difference between development and learning. Development takes place in a playful way, but learning is still more like a school with its discipline and strict routine. And, you must agree that if a two-three-year-old child is still too early to get acquainted with school habits, then at the age of 4-5 it is high time to start becoming more independent and adults, in order to subsequently minimize the stress from starting school.
Be sure to pay attention to the form in which the classes are held. How dynamically the tasks change, whether the educational material is interesting and suitable for your child’s age.
5. Find out about the possibility of your presence in the classroom
Early learning centre in Singapore, which have nothing to hide from their clients, always allow parents to attend classes with their children. This is very convenient, since you can observe your child and see how the teacher communicates with him, what other children of the same age are capable of, how the educational material is presented, and so on. Not to mention the fact that children under three years old without the presence of adults cannot effectively engage in a group.
6. Don’t forget about comfort
Of course, for many parents, the location of the school plays a decisive role. It is very convenient when you can run in 5 minutes from a neighboring house. But think, maybe the extra 15 minutes of walking two or three times a week is still worth it not to compromise and give yourself and your child a truly comfortable learning environment. Indeed, often, early development schools are of a very modest scale (an ordinary apartment or a small office on the 1st floor). Having studied the issue in more detail, you will find schools with more spacious, bright classrooms, a play area, comfortable changing rooms, wifi, magazines and other useful and pleasant little things.
The psychological comfort of your child depends on the correct choice of an early learning centre. Therefore, you should not take this issue lightly.