OTTAWA — Preschool is better preparation for kindergarten than the attention of a stay-at-home mom, new research shows.
The national study in the United States found children who attend preschool — centre-based care — enter public schools with higher levels of academic skills than their peers who experienced other types of child care, including stay-at-home parent, relative care and babysitters.
And the preschool advantage in reading and math persists through Grade 3 unless children are placed in small classes with high levels of reading instruction.
“The key is, you really have to look at what happens at home versus what happens at preschool or centre-based care,” lead author Katherine Magnuson of the University of Wisconsin at Madison, said in an interview.