Do Children Have To Go To Play School?

This is a very interesting question with equally important arguments; the concept of play school is more a modern concept that originated with each parent wanting to do the best for their children and one-child families.  

A few points worth pondering:

• Parents are the best teachers for their children up to a certain age, so it may not be advisable to entrust our tender children to the care of someone else. But the question arises how much time parents have to spend with the child; if you stay in a nuclear family and are working, you may not have enough spare time to give to the child. This would mean that your child may lag behind other children when they join regular school. Play school may be a good proposition considering that the sharp brains and grasping capacity of children at a tender age.  

• Gone are the days when most of us lived in joint family; grandparents played a great role in the learning and development of social skills of the children. Considering also that some children live in apartments where they have no children of their age to play with; these circumstances makes it sensible to send our children to play schools where they not only improve in their social skills, but also get used to the concept of classroom in an informal way.

• Play schools does develop social skills in children, however it is wrong to expect miracles from them; it could not make a shy child confident. A shy child would require other outlets like sports club and the like to complement the development of social skills in play schools.

• It is right to say that play schools develop a routine in children; they would be tutored of how to conduct themselves when they go to regular school. This argument also has a counter argument that routine in children can also be developed after they join regular school; in addition maintaining a regular routine is a matter of innate nature.

• Some believe that children become more mature and independent in going to play school; but this is not always true as some children desperately need their mother to be around most of the time. Then it would be best to opt for first for Mommy & Me or some gentle separation program.

• I have always felt that the tender innocent children should not be exploited in the name of social skills and education; it is best to opt for a play school that is not academically inclined. A play school should be a place where a child learns in the fun way; make sure your child’s play school has a playground and a garden and encourages outdoor activities.  

You are the best judge whether your child needs to go to play school.

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