The primary indicator of school readiness is considered to be chronological age, but this is not always a guarantee that a child is truly ready to start school. The main reason for this is that each child differs individually in terms of their intellectual abilities, interests, and emotional and social maturity.
To achieve the basic school curriculum, it is necessary to have direct preparation for starting school. A child goes through a preschool preparatory program in a preschool institution, whose goal is the child’s direct inclusion and preparation for school, as well as getting used to school responsibilities that will help and ease their school start. By starting school, a child changes their habits and lifestyle, becomes part of a new environment governed by specific rules and discipline, and their main activity is no longer play, but planned acquisition of knowledge, habits, and skills. That’s why preparing a child for school is a long-term process (a child cannot be prepared for school in just a few days) and requires a lot of planned activities, knowledge, understanding, patience, trust, and commitment from both educators and parents.
Indicators of a Child’s Readiness for Starting School:
- Physical and motor maturity – physical development appropriate to age, weight and height ratio, body mass, growth of permanent teeth.
The child should be ready to handle daily school challenges (carrying a school bag, sitting for long periods, etc.). - Speech maturity – in preschool age, the child primarily develops oral language, and written language only to the extent of their interest in letters and written words.
For speech maturity and communication skills, it’s important that the child:-
masters sounds and sound combinations (it is normal at this age for some children to still struggle with pronouncing Š, Ž, Đ, Dž, R, Lj, Nj),
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is interested in the meanings of words,
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asks questions,
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is able to communicate well with others,
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knows how to listen to others,
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has a rich vocabulary.
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- Social and emotional maturity – social development progresses from egocentric to social behavior.
It is considered that a child has adopted basic moral norms, a value system, and the behavioral standards of their environment, and that they respect authority and group behavior norms.
A child who is accepted in their social environment more easily builds self-confidence and self-respect. Emotional maturity means the child:-
can control their emotions,
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has a degree of emotional stability,
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develops trust and confidence, and has a certain level of self-assurance,
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understands their own and others’ emotions,
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better controls impulses, has developed willpower and emotional independence,
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is capable of delaying the satisfaction of basic needs.
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- Motivation for learning is a key indicator of readiness for starting school.
A child who has a desire for knowledge will be excited by new things, unlike children who lack motivation, and therefore may struggle more with school obligations.
Without the desire to learn, interest and engagement are often lacking.