Children's School Readiness Research Articles

The effects of Covid-19 pandemic on Turkish children’s school readiness

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to examine the primary school readiness of preschool children receiving hybrid education in Turkıye during the Covid-19 pandemic. In order to make a comprehensive evaluation parent and teacher opinions were reviewed in addition to the school readiness assessment. A triangulation design and convenience sampling method were used for the present study which has a mixed methods model. The results revealed that most of the participating children were ready for the primary school and that school readiness scores differed by child technology use, child attendance to distant education and child duration of preschool attendance.

Supporting Young Children’s Self-Regulation Through Nature-Based Practices in Preschool

Self-regulation is a crucial skill in early childhood, due to its influence on school readiness and success, as well as its foundational role in promoting wellbeing across the lifespan. Additionally, self-regulation is malleable, particularly during early childhood. This study investigated the impact of nature-based practices on preschoolers’ self-regulation. The Preschool Self-Regulation Assessment (PSRA) and PSRA Assessor Report were administered to 115 children from nine preschool programs at the beginning and end of the school year. While further research is needed, results suggest the potential for nature-based practices to support SR, in particular hot executive function, and particularly in children from lower socio-economic backgrounds in public preschool. This study contributes to the literature regarding effective practices for supporting self-regulation development in young children and adds to the growing body of research surrounding the impact of nature play on child development and school readiness.

Participation in the Missouri Parents as Teachers Parent Education Program and third grade math and English language arts proficiency

The Missouri Parents as Teachers (PAT) Parent Education Program is a voluntary and universal home visiting program available to all Missouri families who are expecting a child or who have a child ages birth to kindergarten entry. Families participating in the Missouri PAT Parent Education Program receive a variety of family support services, including family personal visits with trained parent educators to develop parent practices and child school readiness. Research indicates that home visiting components of parent education programs support child academic outcomes. However, studies have not extensively examined how variation in participation, including the developmental period of exposure—the child's age upon entry and duration of participation—and number and frequency of home/family visits, is associated with child outcomes. In this study, we used linear probability regression to examine associations between variation in participation in the Missouri PAT Parent Education Program and child third grade proficiency in math and English language arts (ELA) (n = 9777), while controlling for relevant child, parent, family, and school-level factors. We also tested the potential moderating role of family low-income status at enrollment into the program. We found that the number of family personal visits was positively associated with third-grade math and ELA proficiency, whereas no significant findings emerged for developmental period of program exposure. Our findings indicate that increased exposure to the Missouri PAT Parent Education Program was positively associated with third-grade academic achievement for all children, including those from low-income families.

Young children's perceptions and experiences of school readiness during the transition from preschool to primary school in China

AbstractSchool readiness has a profound educational value for children's positive adjustment to primary school and holistic development. However, little research sufficiently addresses how young children view multifaceted components of learning, such as cognitive, affective and behavioural experiences on school readiness. A timely understanding of children's perceptions and experiences is crucial to shed light on how to promote transition and improve children's school readiness. This study investigated the perceptions and experiences of 41 children in China (5–6 years of age, 23 girls) regarding their school readiness based on Mosaic approach methods. The results indicated that young children have their own unique perceptions, emotional and behavioural experiences of school readiness. The perceptions of school readiness include four aspects of material supplies, subjects knowledge, interests and specialties and behavioural habits, which has similarities to that of adults in aspects of academic knowledge and social rules. Nevertheless, findings revealed young children view interests and strengths as important part of school readiness, reflecting their personal preferences and abilities. The emotional experiences could be considered positive or negative, with positive emotional experiences expressing children's curiosity and expectation, fulfilment and pleasure, and negative emotional experiences expressing academic burden, rules pressure and social worries, which need to be addressed. Young children's behavioural experiences with school readiness present two patterns of passive acceptance and active participation, they are eager to participate in activities and have a strong desire to explore and learn. Our findings extend beyond existing conception of school readiness, and give greater weight to children's interests and strengths, positive experiences and active participation. It is important to focus on children's intrinsic interests and strengths, accept children's ideas and choices, care for their emotional state and provide positive support.

Neighborhood-level sociodemographics and kindergarten children’s developmental vulnerability, pre- and post-COVID-19 in Canada

A child’s environment and early life experiences play an important role in shaping their development. The COVID-19 pandemic altered many aspects of everyday life for young children in Canada, and it has been argued that these changes did not impact all children equally. The current study explored the association between early child development and neighborhood sociodemographic indices (e.g., income, deprivation) before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Early Development Instrument (EDI) data, measuring child development and school readiness in kindergarten, were collected in 7 Canadian provinces and 1 territory from 2017-2020 (pre-COVID) and 2020-2023 (post-COVID) and were linked with neighborhood-level socioeconomic indices from 2016. We compared the gradients in development in a pre- (n=293,700) and a post-COVID (n=246,305) cohort of Canadian children. Rates of developmental vulnerability, as measured by the EDI, were examined for the sociodemographic variables in both the pre- and post-COVID cohorts. The overall vulnerability increased nationally from 27.3% in the pre- to 28.0% in the post-COVID cohort. A gradient in vulnerability rates for all the socioeconomic indices was found, with children in the highest quintiles, representing greater deprivation, having greater odds of being vulnerable than their peers in the lowest, least deprived quintile. Contrary to expectation, the magnitude of the gradient was very similar in both cohorts, with some jurisdictional differences. The largest gradient was found for average neighborhood income. These findings add the context of social determinants of health to the understanding of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young children.

Using Integrated Administrative Data for Promoting Access to Early Childhood Education Programs

Early childhood education (ECE) can significantly mitigate the detrimental effects of poverty. Head Start (HS) is a federally funded program in U.S. designed to promote school readiness for children from low-income families. Nationwide estimates suggest that HS only reaches 41% of eligible children and programs are facing under-enrollment, which highlights the importance of addressing the evolving needs. This is a secondary analysis study that utilizes real-world data to explore (a) child, family, neighborhood, and program characteristics that predict HS non/enrollment and (b) HS eligible children’s use of other public ECE programs. It employs an individual child-level integrated dataset from Iowa’s Integrated Data System for Decision-making (I2D2), including data from the State Departments of Public Health and Human Services, Education, and HS recipients. Our data is unique as one of the first systems in the U.S. that includes child-level data from HS recipients statewide. We also integrated aggregated county- and program-level datasets to include multidimensional neighborhood conditions (i.e., poverty, employment) and comprehensive information about HS programs (i.e., staffing, transportation, partnerships). Our analytic sample is 30,048 potential HS eligible children who were born in Iowa and attended kindergarten in 2016-17 or 17-18. Preliminary results showed that only 12% of eligible children were enrolled in HS the year before kindergarten. We are testing logistic and multinomial logistic regression models, and the results will be ready by the presentation. Findings will inform HS programs on improving equitable access and recruiting strategies to meet the needs of children who are most in need.

Language and communication development and school readiness of children raised by grandparents or in multi-generational homes.

One in ten U.S. children lives with a grandparent, and more foster children are being placed in kinship care. Our objective was to compare early language and communication development and school readiness among children raised by grandparents (alone or in multigenerational households) to children raised by parents. We included in this cross-sectional study children ages 1-5 years from the 2016-2020 National Survey of Children's Health to examine healthy and ready to learn school readiness outcomes and binary language and communication development (2018-2020 data only) by caregiver type (parent, multigenerational, and grandparent-only) with survey-weighted log-binomial regression adjusted for confounders. We stratified by survey years pre-COVID-19 pandemic versus during. Among 33,342 children, 86.0% (SE = 0.51) of children were 'On-Track' for language and communication development; only 37.2% (SE = 0.68) were 'On-Track' overall for school readiness. Children raised by grandparents or in multigenerational households were more often 'On-Track' for school readiness than children raised by parents, but only upon adjustment for covariates (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) for grandparent-only 1.13, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.11, 1.15; aPR for multigenerational 1.13, CI 1.12, 1.15). Smaller and less consistent differences in prevalence were observed for the other outcomes (language and communication development, school readiness domains of early learning skills, social-emotional development, self-regulation development and physical well-being and motor development). A disparity in school readiness may have emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic; children in grandparent-only households had a lower prevalence of being 'On-Track' for school readiness (aPR 0.71, 95% CI 0.69, 0.73) compared to children in parent households, whereas children in multigenerational households continued to be more often school-ready than children in parent households. Large proportions of children across caregiver types were not fully prepared for school. Consideration of key covariates is important because socio-economic disadvantage may mask other advantages grandparent-led and multigenerational households offer children's early development.

COVID-19 school closures and Chinese children's school readiness: Results from the natural experimental data.

To determine the associations between COVID-19 school closures and school readiness skills for Chinese kindergarteners. We utilized the natural experimental condition created by local COVID-19 outbreaks in 2022 (Study 1) to compare school readiness skills of children whose kindergartens were closed for 5 months (Group 1) with children whose kindergartens stayed open (Group 2). We further compared the school readiness skills of one pre-COVID-19 cohort (Cohort 2019) with one COVID-19 cohort (Cohort 2021) from a fifth kindergarten (Study 2). For Study 1, Group 1 included 445 children and Group 2 included 584 children aged 4-6 years. For Study 2, Cohort 2019 included 156 children and Cohort 2021 included 228 children aged 3-6 years. For both studies, survey data on four school readiness skills were collected from parents. Additionally, Study 1 collected parental locus of control data from parents. Controlling for covariates, Study 1 revealed that Group 1 and Group 2 did not differ in terms of language and emergent literacy or approaches to learning. However, Group 1 scored lower than Group 2 on health and well-being and arts and imagination. Study 2 revealed that Cohort 2021 scored higher than Cohort 2019 on language and emergent literacy but lower on the other three skills. The associations of COVID-19 school closures with Chinese children's school readiness skills were not uniform, with a positive relation with language and emergent literacy and negative associations with health and well-being, approaches to learning, as well as arts and imagination.

Every Newborn-Reach Up Early Education Intervention for All Children (EN-REACH)- a parent group intervention for school readiness in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Tanzania: study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial

BackgroundVulnerable children, including those with neuro-developmental delays and disabilities, often face barriers in accessing early primary education, thus hindering progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 4.2. Evidence-based interventions are essential to enhancing inclusivity and establishing sustainable implementation strategies to address this challenge. This study, Every Newborn—Reach up Early Education Intervention for All Children (EN-REACH), builds on the previous Every Newborn- Simplified Measurement Integrating Longitudinal Neurodevelopmental and Growth (EN-SMILING) observational cohort study. This paper provides the protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial (cRCT) to evaluate the effectiveness of a parenting group intervention program for enhancing school readiness in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Tanzania, and an embedded process evaluation to inform scalability and feasibility.MethodsEN-REACH is a cRCT with at least 150 clusters to evaluate the impact of a parent training program led by trained parent-teacher facilitator pairs, focusing on children aged 4 ~ 6 years preparing for preschool. Approximately 500 participants from the EN-SMILING cohort at each site have been identified. A geographic information system will define ~ 50 clusters in each of the three countries, each with approximately ten parent–child dyads. Half the clusters will be randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. The primary outcome is “school readiness”, assessed using the Measuring Early Learning Quality and Outcomes tool. Secondary outcomes include Intelligence Quotient, child functioning, growth, visual, and hearing assessments. Data will be collected at baseline, and post-intervention data following implementation of the parent group intervention sessions over approximately 5 months. Quantitative data on coverage and quality care, combined with qualitative insights from children, caregivers, facilitators, and stakeholders’ perspectives, will be used to conduct a process evaluation applying the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework. DiscussionThis protocol details a trial focused on enhancing school readiness and cognitive abilities in young children, inclusive of those with disabilities, aiming to bridge gap from home to early primary education. EN-REACH aims to provide insights into the effectiveness and acceptability of a co-designed disability-inclusive school readiness program in three countries, potentially impacting national and global policies for all children, including those with disabilities.Trial registrationThe trial was retrospectively registered on clinicaltrials.gov on 29 February 2024 (NCT06334627).

The role of cumulative family risks in the relationship between executive functioning and school readiness

This study investigated the roles of cumulative family risks and executive functioning (EF) in explaining preschool children’s school readiness. The cumulative family risks comprised family socioeconomic status (SES), home literacy environment (HLE), and familial risk of dyslexia (FRD). The participants were 955 first-year kindergarten children (Mage = 3.53 years, SD=0.41, 46.60 % girls) and their parents (Mage = 35.56 years, SD=6.31, 82.7 % mothers) from Hong Kong, China. The parents completed a survey package measuring their children’s school readiness, EF skills, and the three above-mentioned cumulative family risks. Hierarchical regression analysis, controlling for children’s age and gender, was performed to test the unique contributions of EF and the profiles of cumulative family risks to school readiness. The results showed that in addition to the significant role of EF, HLE risk was significantly associated with school readiness. The association between EF and school readiness was significantly weaker in children with three or more family risks than in their peers. The findings highlight the necessity of developing family education and school–family–community collaboration programs to enhance the school readiness of children, especially those with multiple family risks.

Impact of Intensive Upper Limb Therapy on School Readiness Skills in Preschool Children With Unilateral Cerebral Palsy

Abstract Date Presented 03/23/24 Engagement in high-intensity, motor-based therapeutic activity is associated with improvements in school readiness for preschool-age children with unilateral cerebral palsy with or without the inclusion of cognitive development skill training. Primary Author and Speaker: Angela Shierk Additional Authors and Speakers: Heather Roberts Contributing Authors: Fabiola Reyes, Nancy Clegg, Mauricio R. Delgado, Emily Kirby, Lindsay Miles, Rebecca Dharamraj, Ariel Alexander, Joe De La Torre

Reading for life-long health.

There is a strong, positive relationship between childhood literacy and physical and mental health outcomes in adulthood. Through primary care-based literacy interventions, pediatricians reach children and their families long before they enter traditional education venues. In so doing, pediatricians play a key role in children's school readiness and in turn health outcomes. The current state of childhood literacy in United States defines an increasingly urgent platform for the healthcare profession generally, and pediatricians specifically, to embrace. Through reviewing the existing literature on the impact of childhood literacy on physical, mental, and social-emotional health outcomes, we hope to highlight the need for increased collaboration between the education and medical fields to further promote the literacy interventions in pediatric healthcare settings.

Systematic review of culturally adapted SEL interventions for racially and ethnically minoritized preschool children

Social-emotional skills are a growing area of focus for early childhood educators due to their contributions to young children's school readiness and long-term positive outcomes. Current research also highlights the need to confront biases leading to the overestimation of challenging behaviors in racially and ethnically minoritized children. When enacted into policy and practices, biases and overestimation of challenging behaviors result in disproportional, exclusionary disciplinary practices towards children from racially minoritized and economically marginalized backgrounds in early childhood educational settings. Thus, it is necessary to select and implement social-emotional learning interventions that have been designed for or culturally adapted to meet specific needs of children from these backgrounds. In the present study, we uncovered the characteristics of social-emotional learning (SEL) interventions that have been designed or culturally adapted for racially and ethnically minoritized preschool-aged children (ages 3–5 years). Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines with no restrictions on study dates, we conducted a systematic review of the literature. Our results indicate the implementation of culturally adapted SEL programs among preschool-age children from racially and ethnically minoritized backgrounds is in the preliminary stages with only six studies meeting inclusionary criteria. Overall, children demonstrated improved outcomes after participation in SEL programs. There were significant variations in the SEL curricula used. Frequent types of adaptions included reviewing the program from the original intervention, ensuring that the intervention is delivered in children's home language, and selecting or training qualified implementers.

Effects of Two Early Parenting Programmes on Child Aggression and Risk for Violence in Brazil: a Randomised Controlled Trial

Violence is a major public health problem globally, with the highest rates in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in the Americas and southern Africa. Parenting programmes in high-income countries can diminish risk for violence, by reducing risk factors such as child aggression and harsh parenting, and increasing protective factors such as child cognitive development and school readiness. However, there is critical need to identify low-cost programmes with replicable benefits that work in real-world LMICs contexts. A three-arm, randomised, single-blind trial evaluated effects of two low-cost, group-based parenting programmes recommended for LMICs (ACT: Raising Safe Kids; DBS: dialogic book-sharing) on child aggression (primary outcome), child development, parenting, maltreatment, and stress. Participants were 369 children with medium–high levels of aggression (mean age 3.1 years at baseline) in poor households. Interventions were implemented in city health and education services in southern Brazil. Maternal reports, filmed observations, child tasks, and hair cortisol were assessed at baseline, 1-month post-intervention, and 8-month follow-up. Intention-to-treat analyses compared each of ACT and DBS with a control group. Three hundred sixty-eight (99.7%) participants completed follow-up assessments 8 months after the interventions. There was no effect of ACT (standardised mean difference, SMD 0.11, 95% CI − 0.05, 0.27) or DBS (SMD 0.05, 95% CI − 0.11, 0.21) on the primary outcome of child aggression. ACT reduced harsh parenting behaviour post-intervention (SMD − 0.23; 95% CI − 0.46, − 0.01), but not at follow-up. DBS improved book-sharing practices at both time points (e.g., maternal sensitivity at follow-up SMD 0.33; 95% CI 0.08, 0.57). There were no benefits of either programme for other parenting, child development, or stress outcomes. Two parenting programmes in Brazil had small effects on parenting practices but did not reduce child aggression or several other important risk/protective factors for violence. Effective early interventions that reduce violence in real-world LMIC settings are highly desirable but may be challenging to achieve.

Strategies of Kindergarten Teachers and Parents in Preparing Children's School Readiness: Academic, Social, and Emotional Perspectives

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the strategies employed by kindergarten teachers and parents in preparing children's school readiness in the Batang Angkola District, considering the local context and related social dynamics. Design/methods/approach – Utilizing a qualitative descriptive method, the research combines a descriptive approach to outline existing phenomena with a qualitative approach to explore the meanings and interpretations of the strategies used. Data were collected through direct interviews with several kindergarten teachers and parent representatives in kindergartens and surrounding areas in the Batang Angkola District. Additionally, secondary data related to supporting theories on children's school readiness were utilized. Findings – The findings reveal that both kindergarten teachers and parents are not fully prepared for children's school readiness. This is evidenced by the non-alignment of teachers' educational backgrounds with early childhood education and the parents' primary focus on academic readiness, often neglecting other critical aspects such as social and emotional development. Furthermore, the strategies implemented by kindergarten teachers and parents fail to holistically address the needs of children during the transition process. Research implications/limitations – The study is limited to the Batang Angkola District and may not be generalizable to other regions. These findings highlight areas in educational practices that require improvement and suggest the need for further research to develop more effective strategies for holistic school readiness preparation. Practical implications – The insights gained from this study provide guidance for the development of more holistic and integrated school readiness preparation programs that can better support children during their transition to school. These programs should aim to balance academic learning with social, emotional, and physical development to ensure well-rounded preparedness. Originality/value – This research sheds light on the specific challenges faced by kindergarten teachers and parents in the Batang Angkola District, emphasizing the importance of a holistic approach to school readiness that includes academic, social, and emotional aspects. By addressing these challenges, the study contributes to the broader understanding of effective strategies for early childhood education in similar contexts. Paper type Case study

유아의 학교준비도에 대한 유치원 교사와 초등학교 교사의 인식

This study investigates the perceptions and differences between kindergarten and elementary school teachers regarding the importance and performance of school readiness for young children. The subjects of the study are 114 kindergarten teachers who currently teach 5-year-olds or have taught them within the last 3 years and 106 elementary school teachers who currently teach first graders or have taught them within the last 5 years. The research tool was modified to fit the purpose of this study, drawing on Bang (2013) and Lee (2005). The collected data were analyzed using frequency and percentage, maximum and minimum values, mean and standard deviation, and t-tests. This study yielded the following results. First, significant differences were found in how kindergarten teachers and elementary school teachers perceived the importance of young children's school readiness in the overall and subdomains except academic skills, with elementary school teachers placing a higher value on it. Second, significant differences were found in how kindergarten and elementary school teachers perceived the performance of young children's school readiness, in general and subdomains, with kindergarten teachers believing that more young children could perform those than elementary school teachers. These results imply the need for a two-way connection between early childhood education and elementary education, thus redefining the role of early childhood education and strengthening cooperation with families.

School Readiness Predictors of Early Academic Achievement in Children Born Very Preterm.

This study examined associations of school readiness measures obtained before school entry with academic achievement at early school age in children born very preterm (VPT, gestational age ≤ 30 weeks) and children born full term (FT, GA ≥ 37 weeks). The sample included 38 children born VPT and 30 born FT recruited at age 4 years and followed to early school age. Measures of readiness included tests of global cognition, executive function, motor abilities, and preacademic skills, as well as caregiver behavior ratings. Tests of math, reading, and spelling were administered to assess school-age achievement. Analyses that controlled for socioeconomic status and accounted for inclusion of siblings compared the groups on the achievement tests and identified measures of readiness related to school-age achievement. Achievement difficulties were more pronounced in the VPT group and associated with problems in multiple readiness domains. Effect sizes for these associations were largest for measures of spatial ability, executive function, and preacademic skills. Some associations remained significant when controlling for global cognitive ability at age 4 years, and others were significant only for the VPT group. Findings suggest that deficits on tests in multiple readiness domains assessed before school entry in children born VPT or FT are associated with early school-age achievement. The most pronounced readiness deficits in the VPT group at age 4 years were also among those most closely associated with later difficulties in achievement. Further research is needed to refine assessment of school readiness in children born VPT.

Patterns of cognitive and social-emotional parental stimulation practices among Ghanaian kindergarteners

Across geographically diverse samples, engagement in stimulating activities with young children is considered an important element of parenting that promotes cognitive, behavioral, and social-emotional development. Indicators of stimulation activities are often summed, based on the assumption that more stimulation is better and that different stimulating activities are equivalent. Instead, this study takes a household-centered analytic approach, applying latent class analysis to detect patterns of parental stimulation practices across six activities. We then examine predictors of the resultant latent classes and their implications for children's school readiness among a sample of Ghanaian kindergarteners (N = 2,117; Mage = 5.2 years; 51% male). Results support a 4-class solution that represents (i) Highly Stimulating; (ii) Social-emotionally Stimulating; (iii) Playful; and (iv) Playful and Academically Stimulating households. Multiple child and family characteristics differentially predict latent class membership, although class membership did not differentially predict children's literacy, numeracy, executive function, or social-emotional skills. Findings suggest that all combinations of parental stimulation are equivalently promotive of children's school-related skills and help reify a strengths-based perspective. The results deepen our understanding of the different configurations of parental stimulation and suggest that a tailored approach to parenting programs may be beneficial. Programs can build on activities that parents already do (e.g., social-emotional) to encourage increased stimulation in other areas (e.g., academic).

Teachers’ Strategies in Supporting School Readiness and Transition to Primary School after Pandemic Era

According to some early childhood education experts, a child is ready for school if they have the specific information and abilities they need to do so. They define readiness in this sense as a state that must be achieved before studying at school. Previous research has linked sustained academic performance across life to preparation for school. In this study, the researchers examined the strategies used by kindergarten teachers to support children's school readiness and transition to elementary school after the pandemic. Specifically, this research aims to find out the learning strategies implemented by kindergarten teachers when children return to school. Focus Group Discussions (FGD) for nineteen kindergarten teachers were used by researchers to collect narrative data, which was then studied using thematic analysis. Based on the results of qualitative data, researchers obtained information about various strategies implemented by teachers and the challenges they faced when accompanying children to learn. It is expected that the results of this research will provide enlightenment for early childhood teachers in general about the various strategies that need to be implemented to motivate children to learn so that they are ready for school and have a successful transition to elementary school. Keywords: early childhood, kindergarten teachers‘ strategy, school readiness, transition to elementary school

유아 기질의 부정적 정서성과 수줍음이 취학 전 유아의 학습준비도에 미치는 종단적 영향

Objectives The purpose of this study is to examine whether the negative emotionality and shyness of 3-year-old children's temperament have a longitudinal effect on the school readiness of 5-year-old preschool children mediated by sleep problems one year later. Methods Data from 1,415 households in the 5th (2012), 6th (2013), and 7th (2014) years of the Panel Study on Korean Children(PSKC) conducted by the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education were used. Correlation coefficients were calculated to determine the descriptive statistics and relationships of the main research variables, and structural equation models were analyzed to determine the paths between the variables. Bootstrapping was also conducted to test the significance of the indirect effects. Results It has been found that the negative emotionality of 3-year-old children's temperament not only directly influences the school readiness of preschool children at the age of 5, but also indirectly affects their readiness through mediating the sleeping patterns of children. However, while shyness has a direct impact on preschool children's readiness for learning two years later, its indirect effect was found to be insignificant. Conclusions This study confirmed the longitudinal effects of the negative emotionality and shyness of 3-year-old children's temperament and the children's sleep problems one year later in explaining the school readiness of 5-year-old preschool children. These results can be used to raise the importance of sleep in early childhood and to develop a range of measures to support children's readiness to learn based on their temperament.