Lübeck calls for preschool for everyone: This is how children start school better!

Lübeck calls for preschool for everyone: This is how children start school better!

More and more parents are wondering whether their children are starting school well prepared. Yade Lütz from German Children's Aid makes it clear that there is growing concern about children who are of school age but not able to attend school. A nationwide mandatory preschool could help. This has already served as a model at the Roter Hahn elementary school in Lübeck, where a preschool project has existed since the 24/25 school year and is supported by state funds.

In this project, social educators work intensively with the preschool children. To be more precise, a social worker spends 5.5 hours per week with around 30 preschool children from surrounding daycare centers. Important skills are developed through targeted activities. Phonological awareness is the focus—children learn through rhymes, initial sounds, and clapping syllables. These playful exercises are crucial for improving children's language skills and increasing their self-confidence and readiness for school.

The children's progress

Headmaster Mareile Buchholz emphasizes that the preschool work is already showing visible success. School entry studies show that many children have deficits in their language development, which underlines the need for such programs. Numerous examples from children from the project impressively show how support leads to noticeable progress.

The promotion of phonological awareness is expanded through special exercises. For example, children have the task of isolating the initial sounds of words, such as in the game “Does the word tree start with an O?” or they compare initial sounds of words to determine differences, which forms an important basis for later reading and writing. These methods are often used in preschool projects and are very effective.

Challenges and criticism

However, not everything that glitters is gold. Critics warn of organizational difficulties because not all children in a daycare center necessarily attend the same primary school. In addition, the Roter Hahn primary school rejects compulsory schooling from the age of four in order to give the children enough time in kindergarten and not to overwhelm them.

Education experts think that compulsory language tests are often too deficit-oriented and can stigmatize children. Mareile Buchholz appeals that both financial and human resources are needed to successfully implement compulsory preschool.

The discussion about preschool children and their optimal preparation for school is more current than ever. In many parts of the country, mandatory preschool is seen as a good step in the right direction. It turns out that targeted support and early support can set the course for a successful time at school.