The term early childhood education is broadly used when we refer to young kids and education. What exactly does it mean? It is a kind of education program that serves children in the preschool years. It is designed to support a child’s growth- mentally, physically, emotionally and also to improve their performance later in school.
Now that we’ve got a brief understanding on what early childhood education means, let us understand why it is important. Children who are taught from an early age have improved social skills, less need for special education instruction during their later school years, enhanced attention span and better grades. Early education also results in better child behavior and discipline in life. A child’s emotional, physical and social development has a direct effect on their overall development and on the person they will become. Children’s grasping power and curiosity to learn is very high during the early years, which is a good chance to create a positive impact on their learning style and inculcate a love for learning within them.
Cognitive development is your child’s ability to think, communicate, understand, remember and imagine. At an early age, children are very curious and love to learn how things work. The best way they learn is through play, which is a major part of early years. When a child is playing, he is experimenting, trying to solve problems, learning and trying to use his imagination and creativity. In an early childhood program, there are modules and activities that make their play time fun and at the same time contribute towards their cognitive development.
Early childhood education also accounts for physical development in a child. Children throwing a ball, jumping, running around, hopping and rocking on riding toys are a few of the actions that contribute towards improving their gross motor skills. While their outdoor playtime takes care of their gross motor skills, their fine motor skills are catered to by a wide range of activities. A few examples are building a tower of blocks, molding clay into different shapes and scribbling with a pen or crayon.
We can conclude by saying that early childhood education addresses all the factors that contribute towards a child’s development. That is why it is very important for us to understand the need to invest time and money in early education. It maximizes their future well being and ensures all round growth.
