Are you worried how your little whirlwind of a toddler will learn the skills necessary to be kindergarten ready? Getting admission in a school in India is no cake walk and gives most parent sleepless nights. The competition is just as cut throat as getting into university. But you need not worry. And neither do you need to send your child for tuitions at this young age. Fun learning and interactive games will help child learn the basic skills needed for school admission.
Get the Food Back on the Plate
Even if your toddler throws away the food, screams at the top of his voice and brings down the house, you can make him kindergarten ready without too much work. Exploring the same everyday activities with a different perspective can help your child achieve the set of skills needed for school. Here are some qualities you must look into. You can also try and develop new skills and hone the ones that your child already has.
Writing
Help your child learn the alphabet. You can start with basic shapes that make up the alphabets and later on make him try writing the alphabet. For instance, your child could first learn to make a mountain to write the letter “A” and then cross it at the stomach. You can also use the game of dots to help them identify the shape of letters and then write them by connecting the dots. But before you start doing this, you must work on the letter recognition abilities of your child.
Letter Sounds
Make your child aware of the sound of each letter and how to pronounce it. You can do this with the help of videos or apps. Make your child repeat after the voice for memory retention.
Number Recognition and Counting
Get your child to recognize numbers and help them learn counting. Count throughout the day. For example, the numbers of toffees s/he ate. You can also point the number you see in the environment, like two dogs and so on.
Shapes and Colors
Anything to do with shapes and colors might become one of the most loved activities for your toddler. Introduce him to basic shapes first and move on to complex ones gradually. Point out shapes in your surrounding, such as a round plate and so on. Give them colors to paint with. Let them play and learn. There are some great apps for this too.
Fine Motor Skills
Work on minute details such as holding a pencil, picking a ball, etc. You can try to make your toddler hold and write with pencils and pens of different thickness or work on building blocks or Lego sets to strengthen their motor skills.
Social Skills
Social skills are necessary for your child to feel comfortable in a classroom. Take them out to gatherings and birthday parties and outdoor games so that they get the opportunity to mingle with other children their age.
Attention and Following Directions
Let your child learn to follow directions. Apps on a kid’s tab that let the child take control and follow directions in order to achieve a desired result can help to master the art of following directions. Interactive games also increase attention span. You may also read stories to your child through one of the apps to evolve their literary interests.
