Practical Pre-school:
Help your children to learn
Leamington Spa (UK): Step Forward Publishing Ltd (2005)
Reviewer: Belle Wallace, Director TASC International
The collection of exciting activities derives from a series of practical articles originally published in Practical Pre-school, a monthly magazine for early years’ education practitioners. The repertoire of activities is aimed at parents as the child’s first and best teachers: and through playing, talking, reading, and sharing experiences, parents are urged to spend quality time with their children particularly (but not solely!) during their most formative years. The theme is: ‘Have fun with your children and learn together’. An additional emphasis is that when children have freedom to explore and discover, they are learning most effectively. ’Playing to learn’ is far more effective and creative than ‘Working to learn’.
The text provides activities which focus on the goals of early learning: personal, social and emotional development, communication, language and literacy, mathematical development, knowledge and understanding of the world, physical development and creative development. All the activities require inexpensive, everyday apparatus that children have at home, and the deeply profound message is: money and expensive toys don’t buy learning, but time, sharing and playing together creates an environment in which learning happens naturally and dynamically.
In many countries, there is a sad emphasis on acquiring more and more material things, and so many parents are busy chasing the clock as they balance work inside and outside the home. This balance may be a necessary one, but it is not always necessary; and in too many cases the potential for rich experiential learning during early formative years is lost to many children.
Hence this book is a wonderful, friendly and helpful guide for parents, showing them how they can use their time with their children effectively and creatively; while enjoying the experience and having enormously satisfying fun. Parents need this text, and early years practitioners will find it invaluable when they are working with parents in early years’ parenting classes.
Gifted Education International Vol 21 No 1
