Determine the readiness of children for school: is it worth waiting for up to 7 years?

Disputes between those who believe that it is better to give a child to school at 6 years old, and those who hold the opinion that it is better to wait until 7, are eternal. That is why it is important for parents to intuitively feel that it is time for their beloved child to discover the wonderful school world with all its joys and difficulties. Maybe it's better to wait a little longer? There are many factors affecting the readiness of children for school.

Psychological, emotional and social readiness for school

In the first place, of course, there are factors of so-called "social development". What does it mean? The school is really ready for that kid, who has a certain horizon, knowledge about the world around him, knows how to remember, give definitions and compare. It is important that the child already spoke well and could formulate his thoughts. Especially important is the ability to control one's behavior.

Emotional readiness of children for school is largely determined by the ability to assiduously deal with some things that can be to the child is not too interesting. In a word, we mean the ability to understand the meaning of the word "must".

Socio-communicative readiness of children for school depends both on the ability to communicate with their peers, to establish contact and build relationships, and on his ability to communicate with adults (not to do without courtesy, understanding the authority of elders).

And, finally, one of the most important factors that determine the readiness of children for school is ... the desire of the child to go there.

Mini test by J.Chapi

To determine if your baby is ready for school, you can use a mini-test developed by the American children's psychologist J. Chapey. Here are the main questions from it.

Basic experience of the child

• The baby should have some interests;
• You must read at least a few books;
• At least once a child should visit a museum, a zoo or a library;
• You should regularly visit with your child public places: mail, shops, banks, etc.

Physical development

• The child should not have any hearing problems;
• It is important that before the school all possible problems with vision are identified (if necessary, glasses are written out);
• The kid should be able to go down and climb the stairs himself, play with the ball;
• It is desirable that the baby can sit quietly for a while in one place.

The development of speech

• The child confidently calls the objects surrounding him;
• He is able to define the objects of reality and explain their purpose;
• It is very good if the child can determine the state of things in space (above the bed, under the tree, etc.);
• The child should have a good diction;
• He must be able to build at least a primitive story.

Emotional development

• The child should treat the idea of going to school positively (as, indeed, the whole world);
• Easily changes the nature of its activities;
• The psychological readiness of children to school also depends on whether the child is playing calmly (and perceives lesions) in games where there is an element of competition;
• The kid is confident in his abilities.

Cognitive development

• The child finds differences and similarities between objects;
• Is able to distinguish letters of the alphabet;
• Easily remembers new numbers and words, pictures shown;
• Can build a storyline from the pictures;
• It's good when the kid can retell the story in his own words, preserving the plot line.

Communication

• A child can join the already started game;
• He knows how to listen carefully without interrupting his interlocutor;
• Can wait his turn if necessary.

If you have doubts about more than 20% of the items - most likely, at the moment there is no complete readiness of the children to study at school, and it is better to wait with that moment. Alternatively, start intensively to catch up.