Study: Preschool for all California 4-year-olds a wise investment (Rand Corp.)

Bakersfield Californian ^ | 3/29/05 | Paul Chavez - AP

[DumpsterDiver]

Hey! I failed Kindergarten! It wasn't easy..... (I am not joking, either)

Dear Parents,

Javelina does not play well with others, grumbles at nap time, talks during story time and annoys the other children during recess.

[Tacis]

Won't the $2.62 in savings simply be sent home to Mexico?

[exDemMom]

When I was a kid in California, we had Earthquake Drill, too.

Don't forget Atomic Bomb drill, too! (Am I giving away my age? Oh, no!)

[enai]

Unfortunately those days are long gone. At least in the district where I teach. Kindergarten is an all day affair with no nap, a 30 minute lunch and only one 15 minute recess break. By the end of their Kindergarten year the children are expected to write with correct form all letters of the alphabet using lined paper, identify upper and lower case letters as well as produce all the sounds that go with them-three sounds for "O", two for "S" etc.; read 32 different high frequency words; count to 100 by ones, fives and tens; add and subtract to 10; recognize simple fractions; write simple stories using some correct literary form and reasonable spelling; and read simple "decodable" books. We're not talking "Dick and Jane" either. There is no time for free art, show and tell, music or story time and sadly, children with no prior school experience start out behind and many never catch up because they never get the foundation skills they need to be successful.

[enai]

Unfortunately those days are long gone. At least in the district where I teach. Kindergarten is an all day affair with no nap, a 30 minute lunch and only one 15 minute recess break. By the end of their Kindergarten year the children are expected to write with correct form all letters of the alphabet using lined paper, identify upper and lower case letters as well as produce all the sounds that go with them-three sounds for "O", two for "S" etc.; read 32 different high frequency words; count to 100 by ones, fives and tens; add and subtract to 10; recognize simple fractions; write simple stories using some correct literary form and reasonable spelling; and read simple "decodable" books. We're not talking "Dick and Jane" either. There is no time for free art, show and tell, music or story time and sadly, children with no prior school experience start out behind and many never catch up because they never get the foundation skills they need to be successful.

[Tax-chick]

Don't forget Atomic Bomb drill, too!

I remember Atomic Bomb drill, too - so I guess you're giving away my age :-).

[hershey]

English? What's that?

[q_an_a]

if even one education "expert" read the work of Piaget or Marvin Minsky at MIT, they would know that kids this age need to run and play not try to learn anything. their minds are not ready for the concept of conservation, how much water is in the short 8oz glass vs. the tall 8oz glass, let alone subjects of Pre-School.