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Are you looking forward to giving your toddlers a good start in life? Choosing the right kindergarten school for your child is the first step. Here’s all you need to know if you’re seeking the best kindergarten schools in Bangalore.
Why Kindergarten School?
Brain development research claims that the first few years of a child’s life (early childhood) are crucial for building a strong foundation for learning, mental well-being, socio-emotional abilities, and good health. Early learning experiences at preschools play a vital role in child development and higher education. A kindergarten is where toddlers get introduced to education and develop an understanding of the world. Happy and healthy learning experiences could shape your little one’s life positively.
The Significance of Kindergarten Years
1) Future Readiness:
Kindergarten smoothens the transition for your tiny tots from homes to formal school and prepares them for learning complex concepts, essential during their learning at higher grades.
2) Pursuit Of Curiosity:
Children are born inquisitive, with an adventurous streak to explore everything around them. However, the fire of curiosity extinguishes when their actions, questions, or ideas aren’t acknowledged, and when they’re discouraged from new ways of experimenting, acquiring new knowledge, or learning beyond classrooms. Early childhood educators use engaging tools and methods for teaching kindergarten students, which keep them curious and desirous of finding answers.
3) Awareness Through Observation:
Infants are unaware of themselves, others, and the world around them. A preschool creates opportunities for them to be self-aware (or understand their thoughts, sentiments, and actions). It also helps them recognise the diversity around them. Building sharp observational skills and empathy from very early on is crucial.
4) Social Interaction:
Children interact with a limited number of people at home, mainly their immediate family members who pamper them. When they go to school, their social circle expands to accommodate unfamiliar adults (teachers & the school staff) and peers of similar age groups. This gives them a chance to open up, get along with others, and try understanding the perspectives of people from different backgrounds. It’s crucial for understanding various emotions and developing significant values like respect, empathy, gratitude, sharing, kindness, etc. In Kindergarten, children develop emotional intelligence and hone social skills like collaboration, active listening, coordination, patience, communication, empathy etc., habits that prepare them to face the real world with curiosity and courage. In kindergarten, children develop emotional intelligence and hone social skills like collaboration, active listening, coordination, patience, communication, empathy etc., and habits that prepare them to face the real world with curiosity and courage.
5) Development Of Self-esteem:
Giving answers, working independently, getting along with others, completing a task, and receiving constructive feedback are all things that help children develop self-esteem. Consequently, they easily overcome learning challenges and are intrinsically motivated to grow better.
6) Creative Thinking & Expression:
Every child has an unparalleled imagination, which, if given the right opportunity, develops into creativity—one of the crucial 21st-century skills. It allows children to think, innovate, find multiple solutions to problems, and express themselves uniquely.
7) Critical Life Skill Development:
Kindergarten education introduces structures and routines that enable young ones to manage themselves and consequently, their lifestyles. E.g., discipline, organisation, decision-making, healthy eating, etc.
8) Academic Prowess:
Early phonemic awareness, literacy, and language development are crucial for better cognition. The best primary schools in Bangalore use a diverse range of exciting activities to teach speaking, listening, reading, writing, counting, recognising, sorting, sifting, etc. With age, these abilities lead to the development of proper grammar, excellent vocabulary, and sharp mathematical skills, which are necessary for academic excellence.
9) Lifelong Interest In Learning:
When preschoolers feel welcomed, loved, acknowledged, and remain engaged in their initial years, they enjoy learning and start taking ownership of their studies.
Kindergarten Learning At Preschools In Bangalore
It is a global early educational approach based on social interactions and practical activities (like drawing, playing, singing, dancing, etc.) for tiny tots between 2 and 5 years of age. Kindergarten education, the brainchild of German educator Friedrich Fröbel, follows a supportive and nurturing approach rather than a competitive one for the initial conditioning of students.
The Structure
Most preschools in Bangalore offer Montessori and Kindergarten programmes for 2–5-year-olds.
- The Montessori Programme:
It’s a primitive 3-year learning programme aiming to develop genuine interests using informal or partially-formal pedagogies. The focus is on hands-on learning to develop autonomy and innate eagerness. Based on scientific experimentation and extensive research by Maria Montessori (an Italian physician), the Montessori programme covers general knowledge, performing arts (music, movement & arts), language, literacy, and basic maths. Storytelling, colouring, rhymes, puppetry, etc., build active listening, imagination, creativity, thinking, reading, and verbal skills. Preschoolers learn basic letters, numbers, and names of objects around them. E.g., fruits, vegetables, animals, etc. Socio-emotional skills and creativity are developed through free play, visual arts, etc.
- The Kindergarten Programme:
It’s a more structured extension of the Montessori programme (usually offered to age groups of 3.5–5.5 years). It emphasises free play, loud reading, phonics, and knowledge of numbers & alphabets. Preschoolers learn to recognise, read, and write letters & numbers. They sort shapes and objects based on different criteria. Guided inquiry, comprehension activities for kindergarten, art & craft, collaborative music and dance, introductory sports, puzzles, festive celebrations, open discussions, poetry recitation, story narration, etc., are some of the activities used to develop a vast range of skills. E.g., comparison, sequencing, gross and fine motor skills, creative thinking, problem-solving, etc. Teachers may use personalised or differentiated teaching approaches to prepare little ones for formal education offered in Grade I.Teachers may use personalised or differentiated teaching approaches to prepare little ones for formal education offered in Grade I.
The Curriculum
The kindergarten curriculum may be aligned to either of the boards (ICSE, CBSE, IGCSE, or Karnataka board). The basic features remain the same, which are as follows:
- The chief objective is to involve teachers and parents in a child’s mainstream education.
- The syllabus is child-centric, aiming at students’ holistic (physical, mental, emotional, social & ethical) development.
- Learning goals are designed to achieve the major developmental milestones of childhood.
- ICT (information and communication technologies) balances offline and online learning.
- A diverse range of pedagogical approaches is used to complement different learning styles (physical, audio-visual, verbal, logical, social, and solitary).
- The assessment of curriculum implementation and learning is essential to evaluate the performance of teachers and students.
Developmental Milestones Targeted By The Best Primary Schools In Bangalore
- Fine & Gross Motor Skills:
- Throwing, catching, and bouncing objects
- Walking at different paces
- Climbing stairs
- Hopping, skipping, holding hands, holding objects
- Mimicking actions
- Cutting & folding paper
- Tracing figures
- Language & Literacy:
- Listen and follow multi-step instructions
- Recognise the sounds of different letters
- Make comparisons
- Spell out basic words
- Use words for expressing needs and wants
- Speak in complete sentences
- Narrate stories & personal instances
- Differentiate the past from the future
- Describe relationships between objects
- Cognition:
- Learn to use your name
- Memorise basic information (phone number, address, etc.)
- Understand structures and patterns
- Flip pages and read without pauses
- Recall incidents
- Share ideas and plans through narration and drawings
- Recognise familiar symbols, signs, logos, actions, etc.
- Link sounds to letters
- Recognise rhyming words
- Count without skipping numbers
- Match similar groups
- Arrange objects in sequence
- Finish a time-bound project
- Socio-Emotional Intelligence
- Become aware of the rules
- Enjoy public attention
- Participate in social activities and talks
- Seek elders’ approvals
- Forge friendships
- Learn to get along
- Increase interaction
- Practise sharing
- Overcome separation anxiety
- Pay attention to a task
- Self-management:
- Be toilet trained
- Use fork and spoon to finish meals
- Use a toothbrush and toiletries for washing
- Learn to dress
- Develop good manners
- Make choices
Primary Considerations When Choosing The Best Kindergarten Schools In Bangalore
While the basic structure and curriculum of most preschools in Bangalore are more-or-less similar, the school policies, pedagogies, and implementation differentiate one educational institution from another.
- Safety
The safety measures practised in kindergarten should follow the NCPCR standards. E.g., the school should be enclosed by a secured boundary wall and manned entry/exit gates. The public areas on the campus should be CCTV-monitored 24×7. All dangerous items (like cleaning supplies, tools, electrical outlets, etc.) should be kept away from children’s reach. Toys, furniture, and stationery should comply with safety standards. Educators should accompany children using lifts, staircases, swimming pools, playgrounds, etc. Educators should accompany children using lifts, staircases, swimming pools, playgrounds, etc. The school should have adequate equipment for first aid, fire safety, medical emergencies, and disaster management. The classrooms and toilets should be cleaned and sanitised regularly.
- Infrastructure & Facilities
The school must have distinct, engaging, safe, and stimulating learning spaces for different activities. E.g., music and dance rooms, theatre, well-ventilated & spacious classrooms, labs, canteens, playgrounds, libraries, prayer halls, etc. Resources like age-appropriate books, educational toys, puzzles, building blocks, Lego pieces, musical instruments, roleplay outfits, sandboxes, water bodies, garden, etc., should be present to engage students creatively.
- Educators
Teachers have a significant impact on a kindergartener’s learning. Therefore, make sure you choose a school that invests in teacher development and where educators are skilled, qualified, and passionate about education. They should be warm, patient, kind, and proficiently use different pedagogies to engage many students in the classroom. They should also be trained to deal with emergencies.
- Learning Interventions
While seeking the best preschools in Bangalore, make sure you go with an institution that offers an appropriate student-teacher ratio and gives students individual attention and feedback. Assessments should be both formative and summative. The school’s policies, syllabus, and classroom interventions should be child-centric, and parents should be involved in progress discussions.
Other factors include the location of the school and its distance from your home, fee, past academic records, current reputation, and availability of essential facilities (like transport).
Why Choose A K12 School?
Choosing a formal K12 school (having a separate pre-primary wing) over a playschool is recommended for safety and convenience. This way, parents won’t have to switch schools, and they’ll get a glimpse of higher education in the primitive years. The child will learn in the same environment as peers from pre-school until grade XII. Students don’t need to adjust to changing environments and maintain their routines.Is ‘find a kindergarten near me‘ one of your recent browser searches? If you’re searching for the best preschool in Bangalore, you must visit CMR National Public School, which takes learning beyond the classrooms and creates an equal opportunity for every child to be the best! Discover why their pre-primary programme is the best!
