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Since President Obama’s February State of the Union address, everyone’s talking about preschool for 4 year olds. This terrifies me.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m a big believer in preschool. My mother has taught preschool since Nixon was president. I’m the mother of two young children and the author of a parenting book. What I’m worried about is this: We’ll get preschool wrong.
This weekend the president admitted “quality” might be a stumbling block. Quality worries me, too. He’s concerned about quality control. I’m concerned about the meaning of quality.
I grow troubled when I hear words like “rigorous curriculum” and “investing in a work force that can compete” bandied about in the same breath as “high-quality universal preschool.” If the new vision for preschool looks anything like current kindergarten standards, it’s a dangerous case of misaligning adult goals with kids’ needs.
My youngest turned 5 last month. He listens to endless stories but can’t yet tell B from E. He can zip his coat, pour his own milk, act out a dramatic story (complete with sword, cape and sea dragon) and climb a tree. What’s most important is that when he’s mad, he’s learned to hit the sofa or express his feelings with words, instead of trying to hit me.
High-quality preschool programs understand that preschool is a time for practicing early social skills and emotional control. Parents send their kids to preschool to learn how to get along with others and try new things. The best way to learn those complex skills is through play — not teacher-directed play (“stack these blocks into the shape of the letter ‘T’ ”), but open-ended, child-directed play.
At this early stage in Obama’s call for universal preschool, there are few details. New programs may be suitable for young kids. But I’m dubious.
The kindergarten curriculum has been accelerated so much, it’s now officially the new first grade. National standards expect kindergartners to read and write basic sentences. They must count to 100, add and subtract, do word problems and study economics. Tests and homework are in; dress-ups are out.
Play-based preschool programs are already getting the squeeze. Kids don’t learn how to get along with others by being in structured programs and being told what to do. They learn by playing, encountering other kids and having problems.
When we talk about preschool, it’s vital we don’t overlook the prefix. The “pre” in preschool truly means “before” school. What children need in this before-school time is messier, wilder and less straight-forward than it is later on. What they learn doesn’t track well on tests.
For example, roughhousing games — “goofing off” that’s strictly frowned upon in most classrooms — strengthen the frontal cortex, an area that builds impulse control and boosts cognitive thinking.
Preparation for school is not miniaturization of school. Preschool must be different because young children’s needs are different. Yes, 90% of the brain architecture is developed from birth to 5, but that does not mean this window of time is best used for academics. Young kids already have a full agenda: social-emotional competency plus creative problem solving through play.
What does quality preschool look like? It’s a place where dramatic play is welcome. Where dressing up and playing house or playing pirate is OK. Ideally, chairs are scarce. Active young bodies need access to a “big muscle” room where they can run, jump, climb and try rough-and-tumble play. It’s a day filled with songs and stories, not calendar instruction and writing practice.
Like preschool, preliteracy must not be confused with literacy. Preliteracy is its own stage. It’s about falling in love with stories and learning that words have power. Quality preliteracy means reading stories aloud, singing songs, telling nursery rhymes and writing down children’s own dictated stories. Especially for low-income kids, who may not have many books at home or parents with free time to read aloud, preschool needs to be a time of being soaked with stories. There’s no need to fixate on the alphabet. What’s most important is that preschoolers love school, love books and are motivated to learn more later.
Four-year-olds do not need to learn to read or write. They do need to learn how to cope with their intense emotions, take social risks and practice what to do when another child takes their toy. This process is often loud, messy and boisterous. It’s best learned through open-ended play, guided by trained adults.
I agree with President Obama that preschool staff needs to be trained and valued, with pay equal to elementary-school teacher pay. Currently day-care and preschool staff have high turnover and little training. Quality training includes skills in conflict mediation and social/ emotional learning. It includes knowledge of emerging neuroscience research, which tells us that kids need unstructured play for optimal brain development.
So, I’m scared. Politicians aren’t used to dealing with 4 year olds. Universal preschool could be a blessing, but only if it’s allowed to be the messy, non-linear process that growing up is all about.
Heather Shumaker is the author of “It’s OK Not to Share … And Other Renegade Rules for Raising Competent and Compassionate Kids” (Tarcher/Penguin); heathershumaker.com.