Growing up as an only child can feel isolating and alone when there are not other playmates to spend the day with. As a child passes the age of three, you have the option of sending them to a preschool. Especially if your child is the only child in the family, then there are many advantages to enrolling them in a preschool program. Even if it's only a few days a week, your child's exposure to the preschool world can be filled with many advantages that help them grow and develop in society. Browse through the following four advantages and see how preschool can really help your only child in multiple areas of their life.

1. Interaction

One of the biggest benefits of sending an only child to preschool is the interaction they will experience with other children. As an only child, most of their time at home is likely limited to being with adults. By allowing your child to play and interact with other kids, they can expand socially. One of the main factors in this is the ability to make friendships. Your child will quickly pick up on social cues, forming bonds and learning what it takes to be a good friend. Preschool activities like group projects and games help make the socializing organized and happy. A preschool teacher can guide your child to build positive relationships and understand how to confront different social situations.

The daily interaction with other children can also help your child improve on speech. Through daily conversations and play, your child can expand their vocabulary, learn phrases, and find ways to express themselves verbally.

2. Attachment Issues

When an only child gets all the attention, it can create a secure attachment bond. While these bonds are great for development of the child, it may make it a little harder for them to transition into activities where the parent is not involved. Starting independent activities like a preschool is a great way to transition your child and still keep your bond intact. Many preschools operate on half-day schedules. This means that the child is only gone for a few hours. The short time in preschool can help relax their anxiety and allow them to enjoy school days more. After a couple weeks of attending preschool, the child will likely be used to the classroom and experiencing independent activities. From there, you can further your child's growth by signing them up for things like sports or paid hobbies.

3. Toys & Sharing

A home with an only child means that all of the toys and activities exclusively belong to them. A preschool provides a shared environment that can encourage open play, patience, and giving to other children. Not only will your child learn to share naturally, but teachers and classroom assistants can guide your child through proper sharing techniques. This includes using classroom timers, assigning different play sections, and ensuring that everyone gets equal playtime. The learning in the classroom can transition to the home if your child ever has preschool friends over to play.

4. Healthy Competition

The preschool environment is a great way to introduce your child to healthy competition. Playing games and doing organized physical activities with other children is a great way to to teach the spirit of competition and give them some motivation to win and succeed. Activities that your child may be included in include full group games, one-on-one games, or games in which teamwork is involved.

Learning about teamwork is an important part of the learning environment, not just for sports, but for educational activities and getting along with peers. Your child can learn to work with others, compromise, and use critical thinking to solve problems with other teammates. Along with games, teamwork may be involved in cleaning the classroom, completing worksheets, or doing other tasks assigned by the teacher.

Once you decide to enroll your child in preschool, you can take a tour of the school and show them all the wonderful things that it has to offer.