I had the opportunity to attend a presentation by Dr. Shayne Piasta, an Assistant Professor and Researcher of the Ohio State University, about Early Learning Education and how to teach and prepare our toddler for preschool and kindergarten. Dr. Shayne Piasta currently holds federal funding from National Institute of Health concerning preschool instruction.
According to Ohio Department of Education, children who are exposed to different words, actively engaged in conversation with other children and adults are better prepared to learn to read and write. The following are the common myth about children’s learning:
- Children are passive receptacles for knowledge
- Knowledge and skills unfold with age, in order words, children learn as they grow
In reality:
- Children are active agents in their own learning
- Learning is a continuous process that involves interactions with others and environment
What parents can do to help children learning development:
- Flash card is actually a passive learning. Instead, read books everyday and encourage your child to tell you what might happen next
- Let your child hold the book and turn the pages
- Move your fingers along under the words. It helps your child understanding that these words actually have meaning
- Read rhymes to your child. All these times I thought rhymes are stupid, but it’s actully a very useful method of teaching children how to read. Nursery rhymes and Dr. Seuss are highly recommended
Interesting fact: In general girls are more interested in listening to stories which means they are better in art and literature. Boys are more interested in learning vocabulary such as names of different dinosaurs, which means they are usually better in math and science. Of course there are always some exceptions. I completely believe in this generalization considering that boys normally have shorter attention span. Sometimes my son won’t let me finish the story and he always point out pictures and ask what they are.
I have to credit my moms meetup group for organizing this presentation. My son loves loves and loves books. I’ve been reading bedtime stories to him since he was a tiny baby. I’m glad that I think my husband and I are in the right path in introducing the world to our son and this presentation definitely gave me a better guidance. For more information, please visit PreK Standard Guide in pdf. All information in this post are taken from Dr. Piasta’s handout.
Tags: children's learning, early education
