The Process Not the Product

Many people associate preschool/ kindergarten with fun art projects, nap time, lots of coloring, and playing with toys. In my education classes, and from experience I learned that preschool is so much more then that. Many psychologists agree that the first 5-6 years of life are the most crucial times, and has the most impact on our core personality. I truly do believe this. During this time there are so many windows of opportunity for certain development such as speech & language, and the brain is growing nonstop. Having the experience of a quality preschool program (whether at home/ at an actual preschool) can make a huge impact on that child's life. It can give them the tools they need to be successful in school. Which can lead to college, and other awesome life choices.

I don't remember where I heard it, but someone taught me "It's the process- not the product that matters." This is so true for everything early childhood related. This blog may seem to some people that I just like to do crafts, and spend all day doing crafts with my kids. When in reality-- its more then the cute/ colorful rainbow we created. It's the process that we went through to create it.

For example, making a rainbow allows children to express themselves, it allows them to practice fine motor skills, we have conversations about it, I ask open ended questions such as, "where would you like to see a rainbow?," it allows for new words to be introduced (words that wouldn't be discussed while sitting in front of the TV), they are learning about colors and their scientific nature (what colors look like when combined), a project can stimulate all of the senses, they are learning math concepts such as proportions and quantity, they are learning social skills (sharing, taking turns, using words), and so much more!

So, when you take any ideas from this page please take this all along with it. It's not about how cute/ pretty the project turns out, but the process you go through to get there. These projects shouldn't be just handing materials to your kids, and saying "here make this," it should be quality time of sitting down and creating together!

These experiences are so much more meaningful, and they learn so much more then from sitting down and doing a worksheet, flashcards, or coloring in a book!