ECD TIPS FROM SPARK SCHOOLS

The Department of Basic Education announced that Grade R will soon be compulsory for all children.

Ensure your little one is ready by focusing on early childhood development (ECD).

Nkazimulo Moyo-Zitha, head of school achievement at SPARK Schools, shares the following seven positive tips to promote your child’s ECD.

1 Children 3-5 years old should move for 180 minutes of the day. An hour or more of this time should be spent playing vigorously. Sitting time should not exceed 1 hour.

2 Active play should hone fine and gross motor skills, everything from building puzzles to jumping. These skills promote problem solving, early maths and literacy ability and emotional functioning.

3 Read to your child. It will develop their language, vocabulary, problem-solving skills, imagination and emotional intelligence. Reading also provides an opportunity for asking your children questions and developing their thinking skills.

4 Art is a great place to start when stimulating creativity. All children are drawn toward creating their own artwork. Art activities include drawing, painting, cutting, tearing and pasting pictures.

5 Limit TV or tablet screen time. An hour a day is more than enough; make sure it’s appropriate content, and content they can engage with. Children’s television programmes are designed to engage with children; soapies aren’t.

6 Let your child resolve conflict independently. We are often guilty of taking decision-making abilities away from our kids.

7 Let your child play. It is the single most important learning tool for young children. If they play outside, they engage with nature, they touch and experience textures, they engage their creativity, and they learn to solve problems.