Why Community is the Real School Supply

September 12, 2025

As the back-to-school season begins, we are all familiar with the push to stock up on pencils and glue sticks. These items are certainly helpful, but at Children’s Day Preschool & Family Center, our experience tells us they are not the most essential tool for success. What truly equips children and sustains their early learning journey is community.

Community is what transforms learning spaces into places of belonging. It means safe environments where kids can ask questions, nurturing adults who encourage risk-taking, and opportunities for students to find their voice. In early childhood education, this sense of belonging is foundational: a nurturing, connected classroom is a rich environment for social-emotional development, confidence, and resilience.

Research affirms this idea. According to the New South Wales Department of Education, students with a strong sense of belonging display higher motivation, greater engagement, and improved academic outcomes, even in the early years of learning. Community is not simply an added benefit. It is a powerful predictor of children’s success both academically and emotionally.

At Children’s Day, community is not supplemental. It is central to how we teach and care. This summer, our recent preschool graduates participated in weekly art therapy groups. These sessions were not just art projects. They became safe spaces for children to identify their emotions, explore mindfulness, and practice coping skills through creative expression as they prepared to move on to Kindergarten.

One student, for example, began the program quietly and somewhat apprehensively. By the end of the summer, he was confidently leading his peers through a breathing exercise he had learned in group. That transformation did not come from crayons or worksheets. It came from stepping into a classroom that had grown into a community of confidence, support, and shared discovery.

This is how children thrive. Not only through academics, but through genuine connection. At Children’s Day, our strength lies in investing in community. Every child is seen. Every family is supported. Every day, children are given the belief that they belong.

In early childhood education, if we want children to succeed, we must provide more than supplies. We must provide community.