October is National Bullying Prevention Month. In preschool, prevention is the name of the game. At this age, children aren’t really capable of intentionally bullying another quite yet, and they’re too young for cyber bullying. But, they will have disagreements with peers and act out of frustration. How can you help your child succeed from her very first school day? Help her build self-confidence when it comes to learning; by being her biggest cheerleader you’ll instill a love of learning that will last throughout her life and will help her meet specific goals each year.

There will be focus throughout this year on mastering letters, sounds, and words. You’ll watch with delight as she takes her first steps toward reading and writing correctly, especially when those activities are linked, both at school and at home. Help your kindergartner have fun with language in everyday life this year and watch as her vocabulary explodes.

She will learn key fundamentals of math this year, too, and there will be countless ways (no pun intended) to encourage this. Educational standards vary across states, districts, and schools, and no two children learn at exactly the same rate, so don’t panic if your little one doesn’t start to read at the same time as the neighbor’s kid.