Preschool Teaching Strategies & Early Childhood Education | XY Preschool Teacher

Xy Preschool Teacher is a blog for fellow preschool teachers or parents of preschool children. These are articles I have written to inspire and encourage fellow kindergarten teachers. Whether you need some kindergarten resources or guides to parenting, I wrote this blog through my personal experience or research. I also sell preschool printables on Etsy for parents and educators that include special needs resources or classroom management tools. Let's get your child ready for back to school!

Thursday, January 15, 2026

How to Create A Children's Picturebook: Checklist for Preschool Teachers

I have some experience in creating children's picturebooks over the years as a preschool teacher. Here is a handy checklist if you want to create one yourself. It is an extremely rewarding process, and the true joys come from seeing the children feeling proud of their own work in printed format.

Cover Page

Cover page.

This is what folks will see when they contemplate buying the book or picking it up from the library, so it has to stand out and be striking; people judge books by the covers literally. The cover page has to include the title of the book, author, and illustrator. Some books have the awards printed to further entice the reader. Book spines also include the book title.

Endpapers (2)

Endpaper 1.

Endpaper 2.

These are for pasting the pages to the hardcover on hardcover books, but do get creative for this. You can use patterns related to the illustrations in your book, and I have seen picturebooks where they show 1 or 2 different objects, unlike mine, which shows the same objects. I use these for paperback books too.

Copyright Page

The copyright page is essential in any book. I also use it for dedication whenever I plan a class project.

Cover Page

Second Cover Page.

This is the second cover page with the title and illustration. It has a different title from the main cover page because my book has 2 stories, and this is the first story.

Pages

Page 1.

Page 2.

Page 3.

Now we move on to the meat and potatoes of the book. These contain words and illustrations to tell the story page by page. Do ensure that your words do not cover the images, and they work together to tell the story. You can do it in multiple ways, but I know of 4 ways to do so.

Use text to elaborate more on the images
Use images to elaborate more on the text
Both text and images tell the same story
Text and images tell opposite stories

This is quite self-explanatory, but for point 4, I have seen a book where the text says nothing is going on, but the illustration shows magical beings under the bed. I should mention that I take pride in the work of children; never will I put my words or drawings above their work. I can draw and write better because I am an adult, but what will that do? I am a teacher, and I am here to support their growth and development, not to show off my skills. I play the role of a facilitator in this project.

Endpapers (2)

Endpaper 3.

Endpaper 4.

Back Page

Back Page.

The back page typically includes the ISBN number and barcode. In Singapore, if you are self-publishing your own book, you can get a free ISBN number from the National Library Board (NLB)! If your book has size variations, then you need different numbers.

Apply a new ISBN number

So all in all, make sure you have the following:

Cover Page
Endpapers
Copyright Page
Pages
Endpapers
Back Page

The last point to note is that the total number of pages should be a multiple of 8, so it can be printed without any issues. I have managed to create 56 pages for this book, and if you find yourself missing a few pages, you should brainstorm for ideas and add filler pages. I have tried putting a Word Search with the names of the children in my class. Think of it as bonus content.

It took me many years to learn about book formatting, so if you feel overwhelmed, it is perfectly normal. Your first book with your class, or your own, will be very difficult to make. But as you move on to your next couple, you will find the process much easier. I leave you one of my favourite quotes that relates to me as a creator.

For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good.

- Ira Glass

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Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Why Do I Love Writing?

This is a personal story post about how I came to love writing. I grew up enjoying Archie Comics, and I still love reading comics and novels. When I consume online media, I tend to prefer reading words to watching videos, because it is faster. I have always enjoyed using words to tell stories.

My schooling days

I recall in Primary School when my teacher read out my composition to the class, and I scored the highest. It was a fun and rewarding experience, but I give thanks to Archie Comics for helping me to write more creatively.

And in my Polytechnic days, my lecturer said I am the most prolific in my Diploma in Child Psychology & Early Education, with a specialisation track in Writing & Publishing for Young Children, which I graduated in 2013.

My self-publishing journey

Then, in 2019 and 2021, I took steps of faith to self-publish my graphic novels. And even though they didn't do as well as I had hoped, they were such valuable and enriching learning experiences. Truly, the real joy from art comes from the process of making it. Once you have created it, you should learn to let go and let it do its thing. It may bring success back to you, but even if it doesn't, you should still be proud of your achievement.

Personally, I am an introverted person, and I prefer to use writing to express myself. I do go out and interact with others, but this method of self-expression can capture a deeper side within me. As such, I have created this blog to empower fellow educators and parents, hopefully you are one of them. If not, I thank you for reading my posts and hope you can continue to support me in my work.

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3 Ways to Teach Your Child Reading

3 Ways to Teach Your Child Reading.

I am sure, as a parent, you prioritise teaching your child concepts, and one such popular concept is reading. I have seen parents stress over their child being weak in their reading of sight words, and I have also seen how parents put in tremendous effort in teaching their child to read. Whether you are just starting out in your teaching journey or somewhere in the middle, I hope this short checklist can offer you some clarity.

1. Reading is not memorising

I have seen a video that a mother recorded of her daughter "reading". Immediately, I could tell she had memorised the words on the pages and was not actually reading. Children's books are easy to consume, and even for a small child, it is an easy task to memorise the whole book.

2. Focus on letter sounds

If memorising is not reading, then what is reading? It is about understanding the letter sounds. We are adults, so we know how to read, but when we started reading, we had to learn what sound each letter made. The letter "a" makes the short 'a' sound (like in apple, /æ/) and the long 'a' sound (like its name, ay, /eɪ/), but also sounds like in car (/ɑː/), call (/ɔː/), or even a short 'e' sound (/ɛ/).

3. Provide a print-rich environment

Lastly, you can label the things in your house, such as "Table", "Chair", "Drawer", etc. This creates an interest in your child in reading and also provides relevance. Your child can then understand that words make sense and are used in everyday life; they are not just to be memorised to score well in Spelling tests.

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Tuesday, January 13, 2026

Theories of Language Development

Language development.

How do we understand how a child learns language? Is it through the environment, the child himself, or a mix of both? In this article, language development is analysed through developmental theories.

There are three main theories in language development for young children: Behaviourist, Maturationist/Nativist, and Constructivist/Interactionist. In this article, these theories will be articulated and referenced with real-life examples.

Behaviourist

Firstly, the behaviourist understands that children learn language through the environment, be it through conditioning or reinforcements, and that children are mere learners of knowledge (Chen, 2020). John Watson and B. F. Skinner were two such proponents for this school of thought. A child learns language as he or she receives conditioning, reinforcement, and imitates others through the words and behaviours of adults in a repetitive manner (Lemetyinen, 2023). Rewards and punishments are often used in a behaviourist teacher’s classroom, so to teach writing or spelling, a teacher might give rewards such as stickers. This is a common occurrence in Singapore.

Maturationist or Nativist

Secondly, the maturationist or nativist believes that children are born with a Language Acquisition Device or LAD, that every child is capable of mastering any language and that certain milestones happen between 40 weeks and 5 years, so every child should be respected in terms of their individual growth and development (Chen, 2020). Arnold Gesell is one such psychologist who subscribed to the maturationist theory. A key difference between the maturationist and behaviourist educators is that the behaviourist puts more emphasis on the stimuli outside of the child. However, language could never be learned through external sources without internal elements, since the LAD predisposes children to learn language during a critical period, because even in poor learning environments, a child could still acquire languages (Lemetyinen, 2023). In a maturationist classroom, the teacher does not in any way force a child to do writing until the child is developmentally ready. Rarely does this happen in Singapore.

Interactionist or Constructivist

Lastly, the interactionist or constructivist theory believes that a child learns through his or her exploration and discovery within the learning environment, and as such, they are not mere passive learners but active discoverers of knowledge (Chen, 2020). Two of such well-known theorists are Vygotsky and Piaget. Constructivists understand that children create their own knowledge as they interact and experience the world around them, so the curriculum has to be more learner-centred with teachers acting as facilitators rather than givers of knowledge, while providing a rich learning environment with social interactions (McLeod, 2025). A constructivist classroom has the teacher not giving the answers but allowing children to explore and learn. Learning centres will be print-rich with writing tools, so children will explore writing on their own terms.

References

Chen, D. (2020). ECE108 Supporting communication and emergent literacy through play. Singapore: Singapore University of Social Sciences.

Lemetyinen, H. (2023, September 7). Language Acquisition Theory. Retrieved from Simply Psychology: https://www.simplypsychology.org/language.html

McLeod, S. (2025, March 31). Constructivism Learning Theory & Philosophy of Education. Retrieved from Simply Psychology: https://www.simplypsychology.org/constructivism.html

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My Blog stats

Finally, here is the data for this blog that you are reading now. I love writing, so hopefully this can pick up speed and get more regular readers. I am currently in the process of submitting my blog to Google Search Console, so hopefully, Google starts and finishes crawling my blog, and it can appear when people search, then I can use Google Analytics to understand how people are using the site. Yes, huge learning curve for me, but it has been fun.

Especially for Blogger, since I have been blogging for 15 years. There are many things I have only learned recently. So here is my data, and praying it becomes even better towards the end of the year.

Blogger views.

50 posts, 51 if you count this. In total, I have 3259 views. I created this blog back in 2018.

Blogger views chart.

It has been low views because I didn't care about it that much for many years, and only this year I decided to revive it again, since the name of my Etsy Shop comes from this blog! The recent spike is in December, when I started to post again and share the posts.

Blogger top referrers.

This data means which online platforms lead people to my site, and Facebook comes at the top because I share on my personal page. There are a few funny websites.

Blogger top locations.

Most of the visits come from Singapore, and Hong Kong ranks close. Followed by the US.

Overall, I would say I aim for Google to be my number 1 referrer because Facebook means I am the one sharing to get views. My audience is Asian countries, with no data on age or gender.

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My Facebook stats

So far, I have made 2 ads using my Facebook page, and it has got me some likes and views. Here is a more in-depth look at my Facebook Page data.

Facebook views breakdown

The dark blue line is from non-followers; it spikes up because I share my posts with Facebook groups. Apparently, my posts don't get seen by followers much.

Facebook views by content type.

Then, according to content type, the most popular type is when I share links. I share links to my blog, YouTube, and Etsy, so no surprise there. Multi-photo content is my listing posts.

Facebook views by followers vs non-followers.

As explained, I get most of my views from non-followers. I do invite these people who come from my ads to like my page, but not many people will like my page.

I will skip Earnings since it doesn't apply to me yet. Moving on to Engagement.

Facebook engagement overview.

So, the spike is from 31 Dec to 1 Jan. I have 216 reactions from my ads, 5 comments, and 29 shares (All from me, I think). The 2 bumps are probably from my ads.

Facebook engagement by content type.

The same data as the previous.

Facebook engagement by interaction type.

Most of my engagement comes from likes on the posts.

Engagement by followers vs non-followers.

Moving on to the audience.

Facebook audience overview.

As of now, I maintain 13 followers. 1 unfollow. Wow, I didn't know they kept track of this.

How people find your content on Facebook.

They find me on reels and feed. Feed I can understand, so reels is probably when they are watching reels, and my ad appears. Interesting.

To summarise, I lack the age and gender data as this page has very few views. My target audience is non-followers, but I should still aim for followers. I should post more types of content other than just links and invite comments. Perhaps I can try reels since most of the traffic that leads people to this page is through reels, although it was from ads. But I can try to make a viral reel. I should probably not reuse TikTok stuff but craft something different. Since folks like to do doom scrolling.

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My YouTube stats

I am not proud of this since I have just started the channel, but I just want to share and analyse this data. It might be useful, and it is. So here are my channel analytics in this order: Overview, Content, Audience, and Trends. There is an advanced mode, but since I am just starting so there is no point in showing it.

YouTube overview.

The first data. I posted 4 videos in total so far, the first on 1 Jan with 0 views, and the next day it got 4 views. That first video has the most views.

YouTube top content.

4 videos with very low views.

YouTube content.

Understanding how viewers find my videos and my top videos.

These 2 data are from the same page, but the first one includes everything, not just videos. I love the first data, it shows 262 impressions with 35.1% YouTube recommending my content. Click-through rate and video watch time will affect how YouTube recommends, and I think I am using good keywords in my titles, tags, and descriptions. Most viewers found my videos through the search and suggested videos. So there isn't much of an impact when I share videos on my platforms; I can allow YouTube to work its magic.

YouTube audience.

For this, I see very low views, and most of the audience watches on mobile devices.

YouTube trends.

Based on my niche, here are some search terms people are looking for on YouTube. It is a useful reference, I shall take note.

Alright, this was a trip to understand everything. I am just getting started, and it is nice to know YouTube will push my content so I don't have to keep sharing. I will still post on Facebook. There are a couple of trends I can look into. There is no useful data, like gender or age.

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