book giveaway | VIVIAN KIRKFIELD – Writer for Children

I speak with parents of preschoolers all the time.

One of the questions that I hear very frequently is, “I want to send my child to preschool. How do I know if he (or she) is ready?”

There are several key indicators we can look at that will help us answer that question. You need to observe your child to see:

1. How well does he/she interact with others?

If you feel your child has not had enough opportunities to interact with others then START SMALL: arrange play-dates with neighbor children of a similar age and attend library story programs. The summer before our youngest son was going to start kindergarten, we enrolled him in a three week nature class that was held every morning at a local nature center. He had not attended preschool or daycare and we wanted to give him a chance to be in a “classroom” setting. This worked out very well and he adjusted to kindergarten very well.

2. Has he/she been away from you?

If your child has not been away from you at all then

START SMALL: arrange to leave your child with a trusted friend or relative for an hour or so (take a walk around the block or a bubble bath) and enroll her in a library story hour or other local program.

3. How well does he/she transition from snack to play to story to craft to quiet time?

If your child has not had any experience with this or does not transition well then

START SMALL: during the day, let your child know you will be turning off the TV at the next commercial…tell him it will be naptime after the last page of the book is finished…find opportunities during the day to have your child transition from one activity to another.

4. Can your child’s speech be understood?

Your child should be able to speak in simple sentences of three to five words and be able to describe an activity or event that recently happened. If you think there is a problem, then speak with your pediatrician.

5. Does your child follow directions?

If your child does not seem able to follow directions then

START SMALL: give your preschooler easy tasks to do…put the plates on the

dinner table, help fold the clean towels…when cleaning up the toys, ask your child to put the blue blocks away first or tell her to pick up the book and put it on the couch.

There are two other factors that may have an impact on whether your child is ready for preschool: potty training and age.

Many preschools require students to be potty-trained or almost there. Your preschooler should also be able to put on and take off her shoes and coat, zip up her pants and wash her hands.

Regarding age, educators define preschool as the two years before kindergarten. The age minimum differs in preschools…some want the child to be three by December of that academic year, while others will accept two year olds.

Whatever your decision is about sending your child to preschool, spending time with your child will result in life-long benefits…building self-esteem, developing pre-literacy skills and strengthening the parent-child bond. Visit my website or Amazon to buy a copy of Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking. This unique activity book/parenting resource/memory book will provide you with picture book summaries, easy crafts and healthful recipes…even an hour-by-hour schedule that will simplify your day. Using Show Me How will definitely help you achieve your child’s school readiness goals.

In my next post, I’ll give some simple steps parents can take to get ready for the new school year…whether their children are toddlers or teenagers.

The Show Me How! School Initiative

Please don’t forget to leave a comment, nominating a school or other childcare facility you would like to receive a free copy of Show Me How! We’ll be collecting nominations through the end of September…and will award a dozen books to schools across the country. If you can spread the word via Twitter, Facebook or Pinterist, I would appreciate it.

Do you know a teacher who would benefit from having this award-winning book?

Just leave a comment with the name of the school!

I’d also like to recommend another great resource for parents AND teachers…Kindergarten: Tattle-Tales, Tools, Tactics, Triumphs and Tasty Treats for Teachers and Parents by Susan Case…I’ll be reviewing this book in the next couple of weeks.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0937660965?ie=UTF8&tag=awoccomthewriter&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0937660965

Getting Kids Ready for Kindergarten (pragmaticmom.com)
Choosing a Preschool? 6 Questions to Ask (mommyfactor.net)
Preschool 1 (sweatsox.wordpress.com)
preschool graduate (joyloveandlife.typepad.com)
http://kindergartenbasics.blogspot.com/2012/08/kindergarten-readiness-enroll-or-wait.html

We all need a break now and then. I just got back from an amazing week in Chicago…total rest and relaxation provided by my son and daughter-in-law.

Many bloggers I know are stepping back a little from their posting schedule…renewing and refreshing themselves with family time and/or vacations near and far.

I, too, have been less active with the business of blogging…but today I wanted to catch up on several awards that have been passed along to me over the last few months. I also want to announce the winner of the Lap-Time Song and Play Book by Jane Yolen that I am giving away in honor of my 300^th blog post.

Let me first thank:

1. Future Flying Saucers for the Mrs. Sparkly’s Ten Commandments Award

The “Mrs. Sparkly’s Ten Commandments Award” has to do with a woman of the same name, known for being very elegant and having high expectations, and who is committed to maintaining integrity, good manners and behavior, as well as a rich sense of humor.

Future Flying Saucers is a homeschooling SAHM now…but she had a career in education before…her story is inspiring…I hope you will pay her a visit. I’m honored with this award…not sure about the elegant part…but I do have high expectations and I am definitely committed to maintaining integrity, good manners and behavior…and I can laugh at myself and try to see the lighter, humorous side of life, especially when things aren’t going well.

2. Dawn at Tales of the Motherhood for the Good Apple Award.

Dawn has an amazing blog…her home is a veritable United Nations…take a look-see…I know you will enjoy it. As with most blogging awards, there are all kinds of rules…answer a bunch of questions and then nominate others and provide them with questions they need to answer…but it’s summer…and I don’t want to give anyone more work and stress.

3. Milka at Perfecting Motherhood for the ABC Award.

If you love reading and think it is an important activity for children, please stop over at Perfecting Motherhood! Milka is an amazing mother who encourages reading by reading to her children every day, by having books available all the time (her children probably think the library is just an extension of their home because they are there so often) and by being seen reading (she is always recommending books that she has read). The requirement of the ABC Award (Awesome Blog Content) is to describe yourself using every letter of the alphabet…I seriously doubt anyone wants to know that much about me, but in my post on Sunday, I will recommend twenty-six picture books (from A to Z) for great summer reading.

4. Marcy at Orples for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award.

Marcy is a talented children’s picture book author and illustrator. Her Orples picture book series is charming and each book presents a lesson to be learned. Please pay a call to her website and check out her lovely books. I hope I can live up to this award…perhaps my passion for reading picture books with children will inspire other parents…and my love of writing picture books will encourage others who dream of publishing their work.

One of the rules of all of these awards is to nominate others to receive them. There are dozens and dozens of bloggers whose posts I love reading who deserve all of these awards. Many of them probably have some of them already. Because it is summer…and I don’t want to put pressure on anyone…I’m going to list a baker’s dozen (13) of blogs that I encourage everyone to visit…and pass along the honor of all four awards to them…but I hope none of the thirteen will feel compelled to post about it now. This list of bloggers is an international one…enjoy!