Signs that your child is struggling at school.
Delays in Pre-K and Kindergarten
After years of raising a baby, parents finally get the opportunity to send their little ones to school. Experienced preschool teachers are able to identify children that may have learning differences. At 3 and 4 years old it’s possible to see how speech, motor skills, memory, and social intelligence are tracking. Most children grow steadily and happily. Of course, there are the occasional bumps in the road, mistakes and tears are a part of the growing process. But for other kids, it’s more than that.
Your Pre-K or Kindergarten child may be struggling and needing further assistance if:
After learning her letters and numbers she quickly forgets them.
He can’t recall the name of objects like “coat hanger” or “hand soap”.
They have trouble sitting on the carpet or chair for even a minute.
She can only follow 1-step directions, 2-3 steps trip her up.
He requires an adult to interpret what he’s saying or to speak for him.
They can’t grip a crayon or use scissors.
The beautiful thing about developing learners is just that. She has the ability to develop! If you and your pre-K or Kindergarten teacher are seeing these things in your child it’s a good idea to bring in some backup. But first, take a deep breath and calm down. Your child is not in danger, take a minute to talk to yourself, remind yourself that your child will be fine, your child is loved, parenting is about meeting your child exactly where he is. (Parenting is also about, parenting yourself through tough moments).
Bring in the back-up:
Ask your child’s teacher what they think.
Ask for another teacher or administrator to observe your child and give you feedback.
Write down your observations and the school’s observations and set up an appointment with your child’s Pediatrician.
Take time to write out any family history of learning delays, speech delays, or motor delays.
Talk through all the observations and family history with your pediatrician and make a plan.
Sometimes it’s not that obvious. Let’s say your kiddo is now in 3rd grade. They’ve been scooting by each year with no serious problems but now the reading and writing are taken up a notch. Your child starts complaining, “I hate school”!
Upper Elementary Tips:
Incorporate an older family member/friend/adult that your child enjoys chatting with and let them talk about “how school is going”.
Find fun/relaxing moments with your child to hear about “what’s going well, what’s not going well with school”.
Consider getting a private educational psych. evaluation (this is worth EVERY penny)!
Allow your child to help formulate a plan with you and the teacher to make school more enjoyable.
WARNING: Take the time NOW! Going slow in elementary school and understanding your child’s learning profile will make an enormous difference in High School.
TIP: Keeping your child’s heart happy and engaged does NOT mean they won’t struggle. Struggle and hardship teach us endurance and resilience. There’s a fine line between facing developmentally appropriate struggles and being set up failure.
Advocacy and connection are hard work, but they certainly pay off!