YOU spent months searching for the best preschool, shopping for school supplies, reworking your morning routine, and re-charting your morning commute to get your child to school on time. Still, you cannot help wondering whether you may have forgotten anything. After all, you want to give your child a great start to his big day.
Time To Talk
According to Dr Azhar Md Adnan, President of the Early Childhood Care and Education Council Malaysia, attending preschool is a major milestone event.
He says, “Preschool is a vital stepping stone to acquire basic reading, writing and arithmetic skills, in preparation for formal education in coming years. It is also a learning ground to shape your children’s self-confidence, social abilities, communication, creativity, sporting and other skills that will put him in good stead for life.”
He adds, “Good preschools would be equipped to address all these areas. However, you can significantly enhance your children’s development by taking an active interest and getting involved in your children’s development.”
Dr Azhar explains that parents should help make preschool an even happier experience for their children (please see related tips). He advices, “Make time at home to talk with your children about preschool. This practice is beneficial at so many levels.
Preschool is a vital stepping stone to acquire basic reading, writing and arithmetic skills, in preparation for formal education in coming years
The lack of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals in daily diet can adversely affect children’s potential to learn and develop in preschool
Parents should be concerned if being smaller or weaker affects their children’s ability to attend pre-school, concentrate in class, limits their participation in physical activities and play, causes them to be alienated by their friends, or undermines their self-confidence in any way
“Your children will learn to organise their thoughts and hone their speech each time they share what they learned, how they played, and everything else they did through the day.”
“This will give you an opportunity to reinforce certain things they learned. More important, your delight in their experiences will spur and sustain their interest in kindergarten.”
Dr Azhar also stresses that parents should make time to talk with the preschool teachers. He says, “This would give you a clear idea of how well your children are progressing. Those little chats would also alert you to the possible presence of any problems, including some that may be subtle and require professional intervention.”
Too Small & Falls Sick Easily
One such problem is incomplete nutrient intake as a result of feeding difficulties. The lack of carbohyd-rates, protein, fats, vitamins and minerals in daily diet can adversely affect children’s potential to learn and develop in preschool.
Paediatrician, Dr Goh Beng Lai, emphasises that children come in different shapes and sizes. What’s important is that they exhibit nor-mal growth and have the appropriate weight and height for their ages. However, he cautions that children who are picky eaters may be at risk of growth problems.
“Children who don’t eat well are just not getting enough energy and nutrients from their diet to grow well,” he says. “If this situation persists, they will not be able to achieve their optimal weight and height. Even their brain development can be adversely affected.”
Being selective over the food they eat, these picky eaters are also more likely to suffer the effects of nutrient deficiencies. “This may rob them of the normal vigour and vitality that we normally expect in children,” Dr Goh remarked.
He also points out that pre-school children interact a lot with each other. This increases their exposure to common school-borne infections, such as coughs, colds, sore throat, diarrhoea, and certain skin infections. Trouble is, picky eaters tend to catch these bugs more easily and take longer to shake off the infections.
For instance, picky eaters who do not consume a variety of food will lack certain micronutrient such as iron, zinc and selenium that will make them more susceptible to infection. Dr Goh stresses that parents should be concerned if being smaller or weaker affects their children’s ability to attend concentrate in class, limits their participation in physical activities and play(eg sports), causes them to be alienated by their friends, or undermines their self-confidence in any way.
Dr Azhar Md Adnan, President of Early Childhood Care and Education Council Malaysia
Dr Goh Beng Lai, Paediatrician
“You would do well to discuss your children’s picky eating tendencies with your doctor. Over the last few years, Malaysian paediatricians and selected General Practitioners have been trained in the Identification and Management of Feeding Difficulties (IMFeD) system” he says. IMFeD is supported by Abbott Nutrition Malaysia.
“Parents will be counselled on how to feed their children and navigate the behavioural challenges of managing picky eaters. If necessary, the doctors may prescribe a complete and balanced nutritional supplement to help make up for the energy and nutrients that the children are not consuming from their diet,” he adds.
Unlike conventional milk products, complete and balanced nutritional supplements are scientifically formulated to meet the needs of children whose diets are compromised. A study published in the International Journal of Paediatrics found that the number of sick days in a month decreased to almost 30 per cent over four months when underweight children were administered a complete and balanced nutritional supplement with FOS (a non-digestible dietary fiber that is the preferred food of good bacteria) and live culture.
Another study in the Clinical Paediatric Journal supported these findings, demonstrating about 55 per cent significant growth improvement in children who were not eating well with a complete and balanced nutritional supplement plus nutritional counselling.
Watching your children grow, flourish and attain their full potential in preschool would fill you with pride. So, be a part of their journey and nourish their progress into a brighter future. – Photos & article courtesy of Abbott Nutrition International.
4 Tips for a happier preschool experience
1) Be the person you want your children to be. As parents, be aware of the behaviour you model. Speak kindly to teach your children how to be kind. Encourage positive behaviours by teaching specific skills. For instance, not hurting others or saying, “Stop, you’re hurting me!” when they are being bullied.
2) Explore together. Motivate your children to do better by getting involved in their discov-ery of the world. Take them on educational excursions and explain how things work or change over time. Make the time to sing, read and play together.
3) Share feelings. Sharing helps children express their emotions better, establish trust and help prevent behavioural problems later on. Try using reflective questions or prompts, e.g. “You look upset, is that what you are feeling right now?” or “Mommy is proud that you are able to tidy up your toys.”
4) Love and respect. Hugging your children tells them they are important in your life. Asking their opinions and wishes makes them feel wanted and respected. Teach them to be responsible for the decisions they make. – Dr Azhar Md Adnan, President of Early Childhood Care and Education Council Malaysia.
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