The Benefits of Routines for Young Children

Inner Force Tots, an early learning center located in Brooklyn, New York, offers specialized programs for children 5 and under. The fully licensed infant, toddler, and preschool programs at Inner Force Tots each offer an age-appropriate curriculum that follows a routine schedule.

Many early education classrooms start their morning with a set of rituals that help children focus and enable them to look forward to the day’s activities. Cognitive and educational benefits to giving young children a predictable routine include the following.

1) Language development. Classroom routines often center around predictable phrases. In the morning, children may sing the same good morning song to start the day. Since young children learn best through repetition, routines in language can help very young children acquire new vocabulary and make connections between words and actions.

2) Emotional security. Routines help young children feel secure. Though routines should be flexible enough to accommodate interruptions, children cope better with change if their environment and schedule are normally predictable. 

3) Engagement. Routines help children more confidently engage in their environment. Children are also more likely to be inquisitive and exhibit behaviors that support learning.

The EarlyLearn NYC Initiative Helps Low-Income Families

In 1996, long-time educator Dr. Garey V. Ellis founded Inner Force Tots with the intention of bringing high-quality education programs to children in the inner city. Today, hundreds of students are enrolled in Inner Force Tots' comprehensive childcare, early education, and afterschool programs. The organization also hosts a registered EarlyLearn NYC center-based program. 

Launched by Mayor Bloomberg in 2014, the EarlyLearn Initiative was started as an anti-poverty measure. The program made childcare and early education more accessible to lower-income families by extending free or low-cost programs to all eligible children who are too young for kindergarten. In 2014, nearly 40,000 children were enrolled in an EarlyLearn education center.

The initiative tackles poverty in the long and short-term. Also, the program's reliable and affordable childcare helps parents find and remain in work. Furthermore, there is mounting evidence that enrolling children from low-income families into high-quality early education programs can improve long-term educational attainment and reduce dropout rates, both of which are tied to economic prosperity.