Are you ready for kindergarten? Am I? Is Z?

[dsrtao]

Here's what the school district wants in a child entering kindergarten:

[Unknown site tag]

• Listen to stories without interrupting. That sounds like it's for the teacher's convenience. I don't listen to stories much in the office, although I do write them from time to time. Z can do this.
  
• Understand actions have both causes and effects. 37% of the voters don't know this one.
  
• Cut with scissors. I suppose. Although a knife with a straightedge guide is usually better.
  
• Follow simple directions. Z manages complex directions, when he feels like it. Creating simple directions is harder -- that's programming!
  
• Manage bathroom needs. An excellent skill. Everyone should have them. Politely excusing your self from a meeting or class, for instance... what do you mean, carry a pass?
  
• Button shirts, etc... the people on television aren't great role models, and Z's only clothes with fasteners are one button-down shirt and several polo shirts. He's so preppy...
  
• Begin to control oneself. I hear some subtext...
  
• Separate from parents without being upset. Have I ever told you the story of How I Went Home in the Middle of the Day and the Teacher Never Noticed?
  
• Speak understandably. Z can pronounce seventy-nine dinosaur species.
  
• Talk in complete sentences of five to six words. How about fifty words with proper subclauses and phrases?
  
• Identify some alphabet letters. Z is teaching himself to read silently. He identifies some non-English letters.
  
• Count to ten. E counts backwards for rocket launches. Z is trying out counting by 2s and 3s.
  
• Be ready to listen. No comment.
  
• Be responsible for putting away his toys. Well, when prompted.
  
• Establish a clear dismissal routine for your child to follow. Fish bicycle?
  
• Smile. Condescend much?
  
• ...more things for parents, not kids.
  

The question is not whether Z is ready for kindergarten. The question is whether he is ready for first grade or second.

Comments

[sareena99.livejournal.com]

>I know some people will bemoan the amount of sitting and concentration involved in kindergarten - but it's just how it is.<

Right.
Which is why I question the whole system, one which puts pressure on very young children to behave in such ways.

I have taught in public schools, have volunteered in schools and have also home-schooled my own children and I agree that it is usually the boys who have most difficulty in sitting still for prolonged periods of time - that is, for more than a few minutes. In fact, most young children learn more effectively by DOING rather than listening and repeating back information. Playing is how young children learn. Directed play is how children learn more. Not to say that some more formal education is out of place, but in judicious amounts, adapted to the needs of each child. Of course, this is very difficult to achieve when there is a ratio of one teacher to twenty children or more.

Schools are how our society *socializes* children. That is, how it prepares them for our industrialized society. Depending upon your point of view, this could be either a good or a bad thing. For those that have concerns about our educational system, there are other options.
- You can supplement your child's *official* schooling with after-school activities. The downside of this is a prolonged day. The extra activities come at a time when the child is already tired and takes away play time.
- You can place your child in a private school that meets his/her needs - small classes and more individualized instruction, but that is very expensive.
- You can teach your child at home, connecting with the many excellent home-schooling organizations which offer all kinds of exciting programmes. However, this does require at least one parent to be available to the child during the day, and not every family can manage that.

In the end, everyone has to decide what will work best for their particular family. For many, that includes changing from one option to another, according to their needs. It never has to be an *all or nothing* situation.