The Importance of Group Care for Young Children

While one-on-one care and instruction is an important part of children’s early development, making sure they have the opportunity to participate in group care and learning has proven to be even more important, particularly in children preparing to enter their school careers. When children have the chance to learn in a group setting alongside their peers, they are able to develop in necessary areas like social skill and communication development, behavioral development, and communication development.

Group environments not only help with skill development, but also help children remain more engaged in learning and can help to boost their confidence.

Social Skills and Interactions

Social interaction is one of the most critical factors for children during their early years of development. Participating in various forms of social engagement can help children increase

their cognitive abilities, develop strong communication and listening skills, learn appropriate social skills and social cues, help them develop independence, and improve their overall confidence as they prepare to enter their school years.

As the beginning of 2020 saw schools and day cares needing to temporarily close their doors in the interest of keeping our children’s health and safety a top priority, many children, particularly those without siblings at home, lost most of, if not all of, their opportunities to have in-person social interactions with their peers.

Without the daily engagement they were growing accustomed to, many children have experienced a halt or delay in the continued development of some of these critical skillsets. When children interact with one another on a daily basis, they are able to develop so many of these skills naturally just through their shared experiences. Children learn about social conduct, sharing, and effective communication just through their normal engagements with one another throughout the day and while at play.

At the Simon Center, we’ve seen firsthand how some of our school age children are returning to class needing to relearn some of the social conduct they had developed with us during earlier years. Several children struggled with basic social skills like negotiating rules and taking turns when engaging in play. In all of these scenarios, the same children had not struggled with these behaviors during their earlier years at the center when they were attending group care regularly.

Being socially connected to a group can also help children in their cognitive development as well, as they are always feeding off one another and learning from one another. Seeing their friends and peers tackle and master tasks like potty training, writing, and other critical developmental skills keeps children motivated to continue growing and developing.

Behavioral Development

As children progress through their early years and prepare for school, one of the biggest benefits they receive from attending daycare or preschool prior to starting their school careers is that they learn to listen effectively and communicate well with teachers and authority figures within a classroom setting. When that daily reinforcement was removed, children found themselves in environments where their parents became the only adults or “authority figures” they were interacting with on a daily basis.

Regardless of parents providing the best guidance and parenting possible, children who were used to interacting with other adults daily suddenly found themselves with only one source of authority or guidance throughout their days. This means that as they begin to return to in-person daycare or school, children have found themselves sometimes struggling to re-establish attentive relationships with their teachers.

As our children at the Simon Center have been returning to in-center care, our teachers have noticed that their relationships with students have lost a great deal of the trust that had existed prior to quarantine. Previously, our students had always viewed their teachers as the “go-to” source for information and clarification.

Recently, however, children have displayed less trust in their teachers and will often retaliate towards instruction with comments similar to, “I’m going to go home and ask my parents.” One of our teachers shared a specific story where a student proclaimed that “did not” was one word. When he was corrected, he responded to say that he would let us know that he was right and we were wrong after he asked his parents.

Teachers know that trust is the foundation of positive teacher-student relationships, and unfortunately they are struggling with that trust being damaged following quarantine. Thankfully, our Simon Center teachers know that with consistency and diligence they will be able to rebuild trust with their students one day at a time.

For younger children who still have several years of daycare or preschool before beginning their academic careers, it will be easy to regain those listening skills and redevelop positive adult relationship as their daily interactions return to normal. For older children who are preparing to enter Kindergarten or first grade in the immediate future, it is more of a crucial concern. Finding ways to help our children get these interactions that they need is critical for making sure they are well prepared for their school careers.

Academic Development

Outside of the social and emotional skills that children develop during their preschool years, it is also the time where they begin to build the foundation to be academically successful when school does begin. Though academics are not a direct focus in preschool or daycare where children are following a play-based curriculum, they are still developing cognitive capabilities that are imperative for academic success.

The typical activities that children engage in everyday like crawling, or playing with Play-Doh, using building blocks and engaging in arts & crafts all contribute to helping children develop the muscle memory and motor skills to write effectively. Being in an environment where these activities are part of their daily routine, often several times per day, can ensure that children are staying on the right track as they prepare for school.

In the academic area of development, one of the biggest benefits that children receive from group interactions with their peers is confidence. Learning alongside other children that are in their age group and at their academic level allows them to develop confidence in their abilities together. While learning alongside siblings is certainly effective and in no way detracts from what a child is absorbing, if their siblings are older and further along academically it can lead to children feeling behind and ultimately harm their self-confidence and self-esteem.

Many children entering their first year of Kindergarten or first grade are finding themselves engaging in their first academic experience in a virtual setting, whereas they may have previously grown accustomed to attending daycare or preschool in-person. While virtual learning is an incredibly effective way that children can develop academically, it can be a struggle to make sure they are still developing all of the “big picture” skills as well, like social and emotional development and behavioral development.

Moving Forward

As we move forward into a new school year and a new calendar year, it is important for daycares, schools, and all learning institutions to work together with parents to make sure children continue to move forward and develop all of the necessary skills that they need to be successful in their school careers.

At the Simon Center, we encourage all our parents to reach out to us with any questions or concerns they may have surrounding their child’s development as we slowly return to normal. We are all in this together and share your concerns. We are, as always, grateful that above all else, our children are resilient and extraordinary individuals who will undoubtedly continue to march forward in their development with devoted guidance and assistance from their parents and teachers.