Kindergarten is the first official introduction to school. They are mostly smooth and good experiences for your child, setting the stage for the rest of their educational years.
While every school is unique, its programs and activities conducted are also different. Being a parent, it is your responsibility to figure out what suits your child’s learning, what meets their needs and which Kindergarten sets all other schools apart.
Let’s understand how Tokyo International School can be the best possible start for your child?
But before that let’s clarify the basics.
Why Kindergarten?
A good Kindergarten provides children with essential skills such as social, emotional, and problem-solving skills that can be helpful for them throughout their life.
Another goal of KG is to develop the self-esteem of a child so that they feel confident about themselves and their abilities. The crucial year of kindergarten is about a lot of opportunities for children where they learn and practice patience, learn to share with others, cooperate, get along with others, work and learn together.
KinderGarten is essential as it guides children’s natural curiosity and develops a natural love of learning.
International Kindergarten Tokyo accepts kindergarteners between 3.5 and 5 (for Junior KG (K1) or Senior KG (K2) levels) where teachers introduce them to lessons, ideas, concepts, and activities in a fun learning environment.
What Does an Ideal Kindergarten Look Like?
As we said already, every Kindergarten is unique with different curriculum and activities but the ideal Kindergarten is the one that meets the following criteria.
- Expand Children’s Knowledge
- Help Children Organize Information, and Solve problems.
- Increases their Feeling of Self-worth and Confidence,
- Improves their interest in Challenging Tasks.
- Provide a combination of teacher-guided and child-initiated activities.
- Where they can work both Individually on their own and in small groups.
- Where most of the activities are play-based, providing hands-on learning experiences to children
These are some elements of Good Kindergarten but make sure to give your child’s specific needs the first preference as it will help to finalise the best fit for them.
Visit a few finalised schools, Talk to teachers and counsellors for more information, take reviews from parents of other children from the same school and then make your final decisions.
What makes International Kindergarten Tokyo Special?
- GIIS focuses on the students’ formative years to provide them with opportunities to excel in their areas of interest.
- Global Montessori Plus (GMP) is the cutting-edge teaching method designed for nursery curriculum.
- The school not only focuses on basic literacy but enhances students’ abilities, and develops skills and personalities
- Being known as the most trusted Japanese kindergarten, students are nurtured in a happy and safe environment.
- In Kindergarten, children learn how to respect family, members, teachers and much more such as good ethics and values.
- Kindergartners are taught to develop healthy minds and bodies through play and other interesting activities.
- GMP’s Plus programme is a unique combination of traditional and modern Montessori teaching and learning methods used to promote children’s holistic growth and development, preparing them for the challenges of the future.
- International Kindergarten Tokyo’s 9 GEMS is designed to meet the needs of today’s fast-paced world as it focuses on the overall development of students in 9 areas of excellence including academics, sports, the arts, skills, and values.
- The good thing is that there is a proper balance between academics and extracurricular activities.
Tips to help your child get a good experience in Tokyo International School
- Inform your child about kindergarten a few months before the big day so that they could grasp the concept as the time passes.
- Prepare them for the big day and for the crucial year in advance.
- Answer their various questions regarding kindergarten and help them understand what it is and how it can be a fun experience for them
- Give them an idea about what they will be doing and what their day will be like.
- You can take them to Kindergarten before the d day so that they become aware of teachers, students, places, classroom, playground, etc., as it will ease their apprehension on their actual day.
- It is natural they will get anxious, give them assurance that everybody feels the same for a few days and that they will eventually get used to it. Give them examples of older brothers and sisters so that they can feel related to them.
- Make sure they have a good night’s sleep and are well fed on their first day of school in order to make their experience smooth and easy.
- Put them into the habit of taking the responsibility of packing the bag, dressing up, taking care of their belongings, doing homework etc. In short, let them do their things themselves.
- Once they start their school, be involved, enquire and get to know information such as who they played with, what they did throughout the day, what activities they did in the class, etc.
- Make sure you enquire every day about the homework or important notes they have received from the teacher.
- Do not miss parent-teacher meetings and other school events
- Do not judge the school or their program too quickly, focus on the quality as most Kindergarten schools focus initially on helping children separate from their families and feel confident and then add learning elements slowly.
- After enrolling and noticing for a few months if you still have concerns, talk to the teacher and share your expectations as it will help you to understand their approach.
ConclusionMake Kindergarten an exciting experience for your child. Hope the above tips and details help you to find a school that is the best fit for your child. Showing interest in your child’s International Kindergarten Tokyo experience will help them to get excited about it and enjoy it. It also sends the message that school is important and they consider it valuable.
