Readiness for school is a concept that goes beyond the ability to know and write letters and numbers, as well as read in syllables. Much more important is the physical and psychological readiness of a child for school workload. The head of the psychological center of the private school “European Collegium” Yulia Tolochko suggests that we jointly assess the level of readiness of a future first-grader for a new period in his life.
Psychological readiness for school is a complex indicator that includes several components.
1. Intellectual readiness of a child for school
Usually, parents care about the child’s academic skills: writing, arithmetic, reading, general development.
But in fact, something else is important for learning – the maturation of certain parts of the brain that are responsible for the formation of these skills.
The skill may not yet be formed, but everything is ready for formation. In other words, for example, a child may not be able to solve examples, but have an idea of numbers, compare, be able to draw conclusions and be interested. Such a child will quickly learn to solve examples.
You need to look at the development of his memory, attention, the child’s ability to draw conclusions, listen carefully and hear, ask questions if everything is not clear.
2. Volitional readiness of the child for school
Volitional readiness for school is the child’s ability, relatively speaking, to “force” himself to do something that does not cause much interest or immediate pleasure. Will is also responsible for the child’s ability to sit at a desk during the lesson. For example, if a child is able to watch and listen to a performance or story with enthusiasm for at least 20 minutes, he is ready to perceive information in the lessons. If not, then he will simply get bored at school.
3. Motivational readiness of the child for school
It is manifested in the child’s attitude towards school, towards learning, towards the teacher and towards himself. Children should have a positive motivation to study at school.
Motivational readiness is the child’s desire to accept a new social role for him.
And the best motivation for a first-grader: school is interesting, and what you learn there is useful.
4. Social readiness of a child for school
This means that the child knows how to communicate with adults and children according to the situation, knows how to ask for help, explain his needs, knows how to listen and not interrupt.
Important criteria for a child’s readiness for school are his readiness to follow certain rules and restrictions, and the development of self-service skills.
With compliance with the rules, responsibility for his actions and words is formed.
If a child strives for independence, this indicates that he is ready for autonomy, ready to be without parental care for a certain time. Such a child will not feel helpless in the classroom.
5. Physical readiness for school
When assessing it, first of all we look at the formation of the skeleton. At about 7 years old, a transition to a “new level” occurs in the child’s physical development. We can observe that his arms become proportionally longer in relation to the body, a waist appears, knee joints become more noticeable, and teeth are actively being replaced.
The Philippine test is one of the main criteria for “school maturity”. You need to ask your son or daughter to touch his left ear with his right hand, passing his hand over his head. The result shows the degree of maturity of the body quite accurately – the hand should easily touch the ear.
Let’s not forget about the coordination of movements.
After all, physiological maturity is important, and this indicator cannot be fooled. The body must be ready to withstand certain mental and physical loads. And if this is not yet the case, the child will have to work at school on the verge of overwork.
In conclusion, I would like to add that a child’s readiness for school takes into account many factors and is a very individual component.
Therefore, parents of future first-graders can conduct a diagnosis of psychological readiness for school, which allows you to assess the level of readiness of the child for entering the first grade and helps determine the optimal learning strategy for the child.
