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10 Signs of
a Great Preschool
If your child is between the ages of 3 and 6 and
attends a child care center, preschool, or kindergarten program, the National
Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) suggests you look for
these 10 signs to make sure your child is in a good classroom.
- Children spend most of
their playing and working with materials or other children. They do not
wander aimlessly, and they are not expected to sit quietly for long periods
of time.
- Children have access to
various activities throughout the day. Look for assorted building blocks and
other construction materials, props for pretend play, picture books, paints
and other art materials, and table toys such as matching games, pegboards,
and puzzles. Children should not all be doing the same thing at the same
time.
- Teachers work with
individual children, small groups, and the whole group at different times
during the day. They do not spend all their time with the whole group.
- The classroom is decorated
with children’s original artwork, their own writing with invented spelling,
and stories dictated by children to teachers.
- Children learn numbers and
the alphabet in the context of their everyday experiences. The natural world
of plants and animals and meaningful activities like cooking, taking
attendance, or serving snack provide the basis for learning activities.
- Children work on projects
and have long periods of time (at least one hour) to play and explore.
Worksheets are used little if at all.
- Children have an
opportunity to play outside every day. Outdoor play is never sacrificed for
more instructional time.
- Teachers read books to
children individually or in small groups throughout the day, not just at
group story time.
- Curriculum is adapted for
those who are ahead as well as those who need additional help. Teachers
recognize that children’s different background and experiences mean that
they do not learn the same things at the same time in the same way.
- Children and their parents
look forward to school. Parents feel secure about sending their child to the
program. Children are happy to attend; they do not cry regularly or complain
of feeling sick.
copied with permission from
NAEYC (National
Association for the Education of Young Children)
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Additional Resources:
- Good teaching practices for older preschoolers and kindergarteners.
1990. Washington, DC: NAEYC #522. 50¢ each/100 for $10. Spanish edition,
Prácticas de enseñanza apropriados para niños mayores en preescolar y
kinder, #523.
- Peck, J., G. McCaig & M.E. Sapp, Kindergarten policies: What is best for
children? Washington, DC: NAEYC. #141/$6.
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