Do I need to send my child to daycare?

Most children benefit greatly from daycare. But not every child needs it. Daycare is especially valuable for an only child who does not have much opportunity to interact with other children.

Every child needs the company of children his age not only for games and entertainment, but also to learn how to live in a group, which is generally the main goal of every person's life. In addition, the child needs space where he could run, jump and make noise as much as he wants, without looking back at the neighbors living below. He needs equipment for physical exercises, cubes, blocks, boards, etc., to develop physical skills. He also needs communication with adults other than parents. Very few children have all these advantages at home.

And, of course, kindergartens are needed for children whose parents are unable to leave work.

Some parents believe that the main benefit of kindergarten is the skills that are taught there: drawing, reading poetry, etc. They try to send their child to kindergarten at the age of four or five, so that during this time the teachers have time to prepare them for school. Of course, they are wrong. Such skills are an insignificant part of the benefit that a good kindergarten gives. In kindergarten, a child learns much more - communication. He learns to work in a team, find a common language with peers, and if necessary - and give in to them in something. Agree that these educational moments are much more important than learning to draw or sing.

Sometimes parents do not want to take their child to kindergarten because the baby often catches colds. But you need to understand that the advantages of kindergarten more than compensate for this disadvantage. And, in the end, you need to try to toughen up your child. After all, you cannot create hothouse conditions for him endlessly. And what if he goes to school unhardened and often misses classes due to illness? So it is better to make him healthy before that time.

Here's what I can recommend to parents: if your child has difficulty adapting to kindergarten or gets too tired there, then in the first 2-3 months he should be taken to kindergarten for a part-time day. That is, pick him up earlier (say, before nap time). Such gradual accustoming to kindergarten will help the child to adapt more easily to the children's group. By the way, children have different attitudes to kindergarten. For example, my eldest daughter had a very hard time getting used to it, but the youngest was eager to go there with all her heart and in the morning she even hurried her grandfather, who, on his way to work, took her there: "Grandpa! Why are you hanging around?! Come on, get ready quickly, or we'll be late for kindergarten!"