- Blog By
Ms. Shreya Gopal
Content Writer
The Indian Public School
January 20, 2021 | In Blog 
Preschoolers might be kids, but they are never too young to avoid schooling. Kids, in fact, are great learners because they see everything with a tinge of wonder and curiosity. Though 2020 has shut all educational institutions, the process of education doesn’t seem to be on hold. So, why pause your kid’s education process? Schools have been adapting to an e-learning platform with little criticism and many benefits for resuming the process of education. Currently, virtual learning for students is the new normal.
WHAT IS VIRTUAL LEARNING
Traditionally, teachers used to teach students in the same physical environment. But now, with the help of advanced technology, the physical learning environment has changed to a digital and virtual learning environment (VLE). Though students and teachers stay separated geographically, they stay connected through the internet.
Virtual learning is a blend of web-based, online, distance, blended and E-learning platforms. This is why this new method of education seems to be successful, even among children. Parents who were worried about increased screen time for their kids are now actively encouraging their children to learn online.
WHY NEED VIRTUAL LEARNING FOR PRESCHOOLERS
Benefits of virtual learning in preschoolers mainly relate to how parents feel safe about their kids learning from home, especially during this pandemic. With different co-curricular and extracurricular activities posted online on a digital screen, kids feel engaged with their virtual classes. Kindergarten children, with their sense of hearing and sight, tend to learn effectively through regular audio and video elements in their online classes. Even their motor, social and emotional skills shall be enhanced and their hand-eye coordination would be developed. By all these benefits, kids tend to make better decisions when they have to.
Virtual classrooms are a great place for teachers to pay individual attention to kids. It also supports teachers to share the devised curriculum with parents. Preschoolers get the liberty to learn at their own pace and teachers need not necessarily waste others’ time for one kid. With virtual learning, each day becomes a jolly learning day for the kids and a satisfying one for both parents and teachers.
HOW’S VIRTUAL LEARNING CARRIED OUT AT TIPS KG
Virtual classrooms at TIPS Kindergarten embrace a fun-filled learning experience for all PreKG, KG 1 and KG 2 kids. Classes happen five days a week, Monday to Friday. As the youngest Tipsians, PreKG kids enjoy online classes for 40 minutes every day, while it’s an hour for their seniors.
An additional and optional half an hour has been added as Activity Time. During this period, kids shall recite or listen to rhymes, narrate or enact stories and get engaged in several other extracurricular activities.
“As kindergarten children are all small babies, they really have fun doing several activities and as facilitators, we enjoy watching them enact, recite, sing, play, etc.,” said Namita Agarwal, HOC, Erode Montessori, TIPS KG.
TIPS encourages preschoolers to actively engage in LMS (Learning Management System) for receiving regular learning materials. Dance teachers put up dance videos and PE teachers post daily exercises and simple game videos. Facilitators of other core subjects post relevant audio and video materials on LMS. Parents enjoy video shooting their kids as they sing, recite, dance, play and learn, as part of their daily homework.
On the whole, TIPS virtual classroom for preschoolers has not only excited the kids but has also got their parents and facilitators to be creative and innovative.
“If virtual learning is the new normal, then why restrict it?”
Also read https://theindianpublicschool.org/early-childhood-education-ece/ to know the importance of early childhood education.
