Learning tools are important for establishing the foundation of a child's education. Children are most enthusiastic about learning at the preschool age. If they have the proper tools to access and use knowledge, they are more likely to retain the motivation to learn throughout school. For example, if children are taught to use computer games for practicing math and reading skills, they establish a familiarity with technology that is essential for today's students.
Music, physical activity, small-group discussion and center activities with manipulatives are tools that preschool children use to learn. For example, they can learn most beginning literacy skills, such as letter naming and recognition, through songs, dances and in learning centers in which they paint the alphabet, make letters out of play dough and write letters in sand. Children need frequent exposure to a variety of these instructional methods every day so skills are practiced and applied often.
Learning tools such as manipulatives, toys and computer games add an element of fun that cannot be found in completing worksheets while sitting at tables. Although pencil and paper activities are not obsolete, they should not be used as primary instruction tools. Hands-on activities that involve children working together have the benefit of improving several skills at once, such as problem solving, cooperative learning and peer interaction. It is through these methods that preschool students learn the most.
Preschool teachers should not think that games and learning centers will replace them as instructors. The teacher will remain an integral part of the process. They have to design and plan the learning centers and be sure that students have the materials they need. Children of this age also need to be carefully monitored so teachers can informally observe if students understand the skills being practiced. Quality instruction can take place during these activities if the teacher involves himself in the learning centers and games. This provides an excellent opportunity for teachers to reinforce concepts and help struggling students.
Because of the Internet, the potential for preschool learning tools is great. There is now a wealth of online interactive games and resources that students can access and play by themselves or with a friend or parent. Hands-on learning will continue to be an important method as will informal play and conversation. The computer will not replace these traditional techniques but has added a dimension to education that has the capacity to accelerate advanced students and remediate struggling students to levels never dreamed of before.