TIPS KG Campus Erode has recently extended its early-years program to include playgroup school. Playgroup is for children between the ages of 1 ½ to 2 ½ years, calculated at the start of the academic year.
Playgroup marks a child’s first independent time away from their familiar environment centered around the primary caregiver, usually mom. This naturally needs to be a short duration of the day, preparatory to subsequently longer scholastic schedules. Three hours can be considered an ideal duration for playgroup school. More than this time period a day is not recommended as it interferes with the normal physiological rhythm for this age group, with the children becoming physically and mentally fatigued.
The semi-structured, ‘creative learning through play’ environment that a good playgroup school provides, immensely contributes to a young child’s exploration and understanding of themselves as individual beings and who or what they see in the world around them. This means they are better equipped to understand their own bodily needs and the timely actions needed to address those. At the same time, they become more attuned to those around them, understanding and learning how to communicate a need or response to another individual being. Children learn to wait their turn and how to verbally establish boundaries.
Playgroup actively supports every domain of child development, i.e., physical, social, emotional, language, communication and cognitive development, which is their ability to perceive and reason out things.
Playgroup ensures that children:
• Creatively learn through play; have ample opportunities to observe, explore, invent, reason and solve problems.
• Develop language, communication and social skills through interactions with peers and adults, learn to take turns, share and how to make friends.
• Undergo, in a controlled environment, experiences that help them learn how to cope with new stimuli, manage stress therefrom and adapt to change, with a positive outcome.
• Have a safe and happy space outside the home environment with access to various open-ended materials, toys and equipment that promote learning and new skill development.
• Pace themselves to gradually become ready for the formal school environment, which allows for a more smooth transition from home to classroom.
• Strengthen both gross and fine motor movements.
