Lourdes De La Mora

Gango - 4
October 3, 2015
A Head Start
Becoming educated is a lifelong process. It is never too early to encourage children to go
to school and get prepared. Adapting children to an educational environment at a young age can
help them want to learn. Programs such as Preschool/Transitional Kinder can help children from
the ages of four to five become prepared and help them learn the material before entering
Kindergarten. This is why children should be required to enter programs such as
Preschool/Transitional Kinder, so it can give them prior knowledge of what school really is and
can prepare them for it.
Many parents believe that preschool and daycare centers are almost the same thing but
they are unaware that they differ in many ways. Preschool is aimed for children roughly around
the ages of three to five that aren't yet ready for kindergarten. It is a program that teaches social
skills, counting, reading, and helps children learn how to express what they are feeling and how
to control it. On the other hand, Daycare Centers provide supervision and care from infants to
young children. They provide services to parents that cannot supervise their children because
either theyre working or have errands to run. These centers do not actually focus on teaching
children the material needed for a school setting. They focus more on playing and keeping the
kids occupied other than teaching children the proper material used in school ("Montessori
Preschool.)
Preschool began in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Preschool was half a day
program that allowed parents to enroll their children to help them get expose to skills at a

younger age rather than waiting till kindergarten or first grade. This program was a success; by
1980 there was a lack of funding due a large amount of people interested. States began to create
their own versions of the program. State leaders began to fund these programs since there was
many interested in early education. Since 1965, 32 million children have enrolled in Preschool
programs. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is currently administration Head
Start in the Department of Health and Human Services ("History of Head Start.")
Many parents disagree that children should attend school before its mandatory. They
believe that programs like transitional kinder or preschool is a waste of time for young children.
To them children are taught two set of rules, one at home and the other at school. Some parents
may not agree to this because they may not want their children to abide by those rules, so they
rather keep them at home to teach their children themselves and the way they want. Some people
believe that while they send their child to preschool, they can develop depression due to not
seeing their caregiver for a long period of time. Parents are afraid that since their children are
very young and theyll be away from them for a long period of time, their children will develop
Separation Anxiety. Four-five percent of children develop Separation Anxiety and it may affect
the childs education ("Kids & Separation Anxiety.") Also parents are scared to send their
children to school at a young age because their child might be exposed to bad behavior from
their peers and bring it home, or start to act like them. Another major reason why people believe
that preschool is not necessary is because they say that the children are too young to grasp any of
the skills that are taught to them ("Exploring Homeschooling).
About five percent of children in Kindergarten get held back due to not mastering the
standards that are required to go into first grade. If children cannot write simple sentences,
pronounce words correctly, count, tell apart colors, etc., the child may not continue on to the next

grade level. This is why programs like these prepare children before kindergarten so when they
do continue on to kindergarten they can have prior knowledge and experience needed to be on
top of the class. The Annie E. Casey Foundation's annual Kids Count announced that nearly 53
percent of the U.S children who were roughly around the ages of three through five did not
engage in a preschool program in the years 2008-2010. Throughout those years, many of the
students in kindergarten were getting held back due to not being able to master the skills needed
for first grade. ("Facts about Children's Literacy.")
Evidence has shown that children who attend these programs benefit from social skills
due to working with other classmates. About 81 percent of the children entering kindergarten
showed to have positive social skills and 19 percent showed to have poor social skills.
Researchers have found that the majority of the children with positive social skills attended
programs such as preschool or transitional kinder. Children who do not attend programs like
these tend to not know how to work well with others which can lead to them not making many
friends and not having good social skills needed for school. ("Facts about Children's Literacy.")
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, children who are read to
frequently are more likely to show comprehension and understanding of the material. To those
kids that are read to more frequently, 60% were able to count up to 20 or higher, 54% were able
to write their own name, and 77% read or attempted to read. This shows that the children who
are read to from an early age are more likely to perform better. Evidence has shown that if
children that are exposed to material at a young age, it is beneficial although the children may
not show it right away ("Facts about Children's Literacy.")
Children are filled with curiosity at this age and programs like these can help children
want to learn and make it a fun experience for them to do so. This is why programs like

preschool/transitional kinder are beneficial to children from the ages of three through five. They
better their chances in grasping the material faster and earlier than waiting until they are five or
six to do so in kindergarten. It enhances their chances of being on top of their class when
entering kindergarten. Research has proven that these programs are indeed beneficial to young
children. Researches have conducted mental and motor test on random Kindergarten classrooms
to show if preschool is affective or not. After seeing the results, they saw that over two-thirds of
the children who scored higher on the rest attended preschool the year before. This shows that
children who do attend preschool can do better in school than those who do not ("The National
Preschool Debate Intensifies.")
Programs such Preschool and transitional kinder can also help children take self-initiative
and help them take learning home. One example of this can be in the dramatic play area.
Children have the opportunity to dress up and act as teachers, students, policemen, fire fighters,
etc. This can help them with making decisions of what role they want to play and what actions
they take, while making learning fun and enjoyable. This helps them in their personal life
because it helps them take on leadership roles in and out of school (Child Development Division
volume 2.)
Another way that these programs can benefit children is by bringing families
together. When the teachers inform parents what their children are doing in class, many parents
want to get involve and help their child to progress. For example, parents may get involve by
helping them in dramatic play, they may act out scenes with them where the children take
leadership and make decisions on their own. This helps children in their social life and can help
parents get involve in their childs life. Children perform better when they are encouraged and
supported not only by their teachers but by their own parents/guardians and can lead to more

involvement in school. James Catterall from University of California, Los Angeles surveyed
Preschool programs and results showed that children that do well, had their parents be involved
in their education either at home or at school (Child Development Division volume 2.)
Preschool/Transitional Kinder can help children interact with their teachers and peers and
develop social and language skills. While interacting and socializing, they might get asked
questions to challenge and expand the childs thinking. When they interact with their classmates
or teachers they learn how to listen to other, take turns speaking, and respect different views.
This helps them develop social skills because they are able to keep a conversation going while
listening what they are being told (Child Development Division volume 3.)
Starting school early can help the child learn about him/herself in a human and social
situation. In preschool they learn how to react and behave in an appropriate manner for a
school/public setting. According to a publication by the California Department of Education,
Encourage the child to reflect on episodes of dramatic play. This will help the child develop
self-awareness and thoughtfully consider his actions and choices, if children are to engage and
practice dramatic play the children will be aware of his or her actions and will help children have
the ability of taking on leadership roles and have better social interactions. They are taught what
behaviors are acceptable and which arent. (Child Development Division volume3.)
This is why parents should enroll their children at a young age in programs such
as Preschool/Transitional Kinder. Parents need to be informed of the benefits that these programs
offer to children from the ages of three to five and how it can help them succeed in school.
Research has found that students that attend these programs and get exposed to the material
needed before Kindergarten do better than those who do not attend. Preschools/Transitional

Kinder can teach many things to children that parents may not be able to teach them due to the
lack of involvement or knowledge.

Works Cited
Child Development Division, California Department of Education. California Preschool
Curriculum Framework volume 2. Sacramento: Department of Education, 2011. Print.
Child Development Division, California Department of Education. California Preschool
Curriculum Framework volume 3. Sacramento: Department of Education, 2013. Print.
"Exploring Homeschooling, Reasons Why NOT to Put Your Child in Preschool."
Exploring Homeschooling, Reasons Why NOT to Put Your Child in Preschool. Web. 13
Dec. 2015.
"Facts about Children's Literacy." N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2015.
"History of Head Start." N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2015.
"Kids & Separation Anxiety." Parents Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2015.
"Montessori Preschool vs. Traditional Day Care | Montessori Private Academy." Montessori
Private Academy. N.p., 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2015.
"The National Preschool Debate Intensifies." Edutopia. Web. 13 Dec. 2015.