Why do students need an early start ?

Believe it or not but early childhood is when you can realistically start prepping for college. By this I don't mean you need to pick a major or start touring campuses :) Cognitive development begins at the age of 5 or 6 and changes through adolescence when your child can pick up more complex skills. Elementary and middle school aged children who thrive in a stimulating educational ecosystem are already picking up essential skills which can help them survive in college. When we talk about college preparedness, we often think about the high school years but in reality you should be taking proactive steps in the early years.

As early as the pre-school years, you should be exposing your children to community sports or summer activities held within the city. Often this can be a very inexpensive and a great way to build confident children who are already learning how to handle different situations, their peers and instructors. At this age, your child is like a sponge and you can get them involved in as many or as little activities as you can manage as a parent. If they do not show interest, you can trust them to self advocate and make their own choices. Exposure by way of sports, activities or travel opens a whole new world to students and builds a plethora of skills that are required to be college ready. By the time they are about 6 to 10 years, you can expose them to career choices in an age appropriate manner. For example, if they like talking about the planetary system, talk to them about career options in that field and the recent test flights to even send civilians to space. You may have a budding astronaut, a researcher or even a data scientist in the house :) Too often, the kids who end up choosing Computer Science as a major started their journey as gamers and through "Scratch" and "Minecraft found their passion in math and coding. Deep passion for sports and athletics also takes seed in the early years. If you follow the NBA or NFL players they have often played various sports until high school when they begin to narrow down and focus on the one sport that they are most passionate about.

Having a college going mindset early in life helps to find out things that they are most excited about. Having older siblings can also be an advantage for some children. They often look upto them as role models and take interest in their journey as a high school student. So many times I come across younger siblings on campus tours getting excited about the possibility of attending college one day. Sometimes the world that we live in and the current state of affairs can have a huge impact on our childrens' lives. When the George Floyd protests happened, many students found a new found passion in public service and debating. We live in times when children are far more exposed to the burning issues around us. Conversations at dinner tables can have a lasting impact on a student's future trajectory. As big tech wakes up to multiple round of layoffs, parents and their students should be looking at ways to make career choices that are more bulletproof. From starting their own businesses to picking up skills in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, there are so many ways you can have a better game plan to prepare for the future of work and have more work life balance.

Time management, communication, writing, reading, community service, empathy are some of the essentials skills that can all be developed and honed in the early years. The question I often get asked is how much is too much. When they are young, having exposure to a lot of activities can build life skills and confidence. As you get older, doing less and digging deep is what I advocate. If you want to share your student’s academic background, goals, and interests, feel free to email me and book a free session at earlybirdprep1@gmail.com.