feedback for "3 Most Common Mistakes: Kindergarten Prep"

1. It seems so obvious that children should be able to perform these simple life tasks on their own by the time they go to school, and I feel for our teachers who are too often becoming babysitters instead of teachers. This article is just more proof of the trend. We are expecting schools to raise our kids instead of doing it ourselves. And I am NOT a teacher by the way...

   posted by : Mommy_in_10_days on 9/19/2008 at 4:26 PM Flag For Abuse

2. I hear what you're saying Mommy_in_10 but I actually think it has less to do with thinking schools should raise our kids and more to do with a lot of parents thinking kids shouldn't grow up. I look at the helicopter-parenting phenomenon for the reason kids can't put on and tie their own shoes (that and Velcro), wipe themselves and use an unfamiliar toilet. Although honestly? I think these teachers are talking about some kids in every class at most, not entire classes of kids (crossing fingers, crossing fingers). And I don't think Kindergartners should HAVE to know how to write their letters (top to bottom, etc.). That can happen in the K year, though, sure, new curriculum and "standards" contradict me there.

   posted by : anticopter mom on 9/19/2008 at 4:42 PM Flag For Abuse

3. What do they mean, writing letters from the bottom up versus top down?

   posted by : Maybeduh on 9/19/2008 at 7:31 PM Flag For Abuse

4. Kindergarten is not about learning academics. It is about learning to walk in line, stay quiet in the halls, raise your hand to speak, listen to the teacher, not touch anyone else, not touch anything without asking, stop working when the teacher tells you times up. It is about learning obedience and not to question authority. It is not about learning to socialize or spell. How can you socialize with other children when you are not allowed to talk or play except for 30 minutes at recess? THey have to learn that the teacher is not a parent or even a friend but an authority figure.

   posted by : Alice on 9/19/2008 at 9:28 PM Flag For Abuse

5. I hope parents of babies and toddlers at least give their local schools a chance - do a little research, sit in on a class, etc. Not all schools are about creating little soldiers marching in a line. I am curious about people with very negative opinions - i.e. Alice and EllaAnne. Are the opinions based on experience or on assumptions? The emphasis on obedience as opposed to socialization was not my family's experience, but perhaps we are just quite lucky.
   
   As for letter writing? I have honestly never thought about that before. I'm going to get off the computer and write each letter to figure out how I do it... weird!!

   posted by : BBBGMOM on 9/20/2008 at 9:35 AM Flag For Abuse

6. Top to bottom is the most efficient way to write letters and it is actually more advantageous to teach that way bc eventually the child will learn cursive and will have to write fast using cursive and cursive writing is top to bottom. its much harder to fix issues like this in 2nd or 3rd grade. The argument could be made that with technology and computers, writing is a lost art and it really matters little if a child can print letters legibly or not...eventually they will use a word processing software. However that goal is not realistic for K-3 graders....kids need to know how to write and write efficiently. Handwriting is barely taught in schools these days as it is....kids have poor grasp and inefficient writing mechanics which affect them in 2 nd grade when they have to write paragraphs and take spelling tests. Dismissing handwriting in the early grades leads to issues down the line.
   
   I also think that parents have a duty to prepare a child for K by going over the basics of letter sounds. Its not hard and you don't have to be a teacher...you just have to make the time. Both my kids could sound out basic words and read simple readers by the time they began K and neither is "gifted" (most overused word in my opinion)...It was important for me to share a love of books and they took it from there. I spent 10 mins doing basics 4-5 times a week.

   posted by : mom22kiddos on 9/20/2008 at 6:48 PM Flag For Abuse

7. Teaching kids to flush their duty is dangerous. Talk to any doctor & they will verify that the best way to diagnose major diseases is to do regular & close analysis of the kids poo. You can learn a lot about someone from their poo.
   
   Parents & teachers should always *always* take a good look at the kids' poo & make sure it has the right consistency, color & odour...otherwise something could be seriously wrong & no one will know.
   
   I've seen several kids' lives saved this way: one had eaten a light bulb, another had a 13 ft tapeworm & a third was eating so much sand at the playground that he practically shat bricks!
   
   Don't shirk the duty!

   posted by : BungRamen on 11/14/2008 at 8:19 PM Flag For Abuse