All-day Kindergarten?

[thatchicktrish]

My DS went 1/2 day which both he and I loved because I still got to spend some quality time with him and he enjoyed his few hours of school a day (as did I). While I kind of wished they had an all day program to get him ready for first grade, we both liked the 1/2 day program. He was 5 at the time and I don't think he was fully ready for a full day right off the bat.

I think some schools should start out the first half of the year at 1/2 day then gradually work in full days, the transition would help a lot of little ones. I'd say 6 year olds would be ready for full day but some 4 and 5 yr. olds might need a bit of adjusting.

 

[skiwee1]

I am against mandatory all day kindergarten. Thankfully it doesn't start here until DD will be in 2nd grade. They talked about starting it earlier and if that were the case I would have home schooled her that year. In my area they only decided to go to full day because there are so many kids in daycare. They are doing it more for the working parents. It will also be mandatory. I wouldn't mind if you could chose letting your child participate in half or full but don't think we should be catering to the working parents. At least in my area that is what's happening. My DD wasn't held back and she could easily handle full day but I don't see it as necessary. They learn enough at an early age. They don't need it shoved down their throats at age 5.

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by Karel
See, I don't understand the naptime thing. If he's going to spend time in school napping, I'd rather have him home.

Exactly. Why send them to school to nap or have down time. If they need a nap or down time then they are too young to be going full day. My DD hasn't taken a nap since she was 2 y/o. I can't imagine trying to make her take one in school.

 

[Trish5768]

Originally posted by Karel
See, I don't understand the naptime thing. If he's going to spend time in school napping, I'd rather have him home.

They don't really nap, its more of a down time. At least thats what it is here. Neither of my kids would nap by the time they were 6.

 

[4greatboys]

I dont care for all day Kindergarten. My 4 yr old is in preschool this year, will be in preschool next year and then I will put him in 1/2 day kindergarten when he is 6. Though he has a Feb birthday I think he will benefit by having that extra year in preschool and then 1/2 day kindergarten.
Same with my last ds who has an April birthday.
Good luck with your decision.

 

[Mom2Ashli]

Originally posted by Trish5768
They don't really nap, its more of a down time. At least thats what it is here. Neither of my kids would nap by the time they were 6.

That is the same as it is here. They have rest time after P.E. everyday for 30 mins. Which is required by the State of Florida. Kindergarten is an adjustment stage for the rest of thier school life.

 

[Toby'sFriend]

My oldest son went to 1/2 day K and I hated it. There was very little time to learn anything -- all the worksheets got sent home.

Homework in K!

My middle son went to an all day program and it was much better.

 

[Freyja]

All my kids have been in all day K-garten and loved it. I have never seen a problem with it, as long as it is a good place and you feel comfortable leaving your children there.

 

[JessetheCowgirl]

We faced the same decision here.

The things I considered:

How does your DS like preschool? Does he ask to go on his days at home? (Mine did)

Does your DS still nap? (Mine did not)

Ask each kindergarten program for a copy of their daily schedule. What is done with the extra 3 hours? (In our case, the 1/2 day program was basically all academics, mostly math and reading. The full day gave them enrichment opportunities----lunch with their friends, science lab, art class, phys. ed., music, computers, trips to the library)

If he did the 1/2 day, what will you do with the extra time at home with him? (I have 2 younger kids including a new baby, so mostly I would be dealing with them while older DS entertained himself drawing, playing, etc. We would not be heading to the zoo or museum at that time of day EVER since both of his siblings require afternoon naps)

So, we chose the full day. And DS absolutely loves it.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[elemusing]

1/2 day Kg is barely even recognized anymore by most public schools. I would only recommend it for a child who has learning disorders of severe behavior disorders. I see that your child is already 6 - he will be able to handle all day for sure and it will already have him on an "all day" schedule routine for next year in first grade.

Remember- the second half of the day is usually filled up with "fun" social things like special area classes like music, P.E. and library (and possibly computer lab) and recess and even a 30 -45 minute rest time.

I teach K-2 music at a public school and I highly recommend all day.

 

[DissyLove]

First off, let me state my bias on this subject-I work at a school that switched 2 years ago to an all day, every day Kindergarten.

But as a mother of 2 late-in the year kids (meaning, I held them back a year also) I must say I was hesitant on the all day kindergarten at first.

Then, I studied the program-at our school, it simply means they spend less time "reviewing" with the kids because they have a more regular school-it is more laid back and less cramed in because of the extra time-and they get more time for the extras, like specialized reading, work on fine motor skills, and more.

Studies have been extremely positive on the benefits of all day kindergarten, and with two kids who have been through it, I have watched them blossom with it-I would recommend using your parish and the all day kindergarten. Good luck whatever you do.!

 

[Kae]

We have both. To get into Full day it's a lottery because it is a test program. They started out with 2 of the schools then after 2 years they added 4 more & next year all will have it. We still have to offer both.

I will put him in all-day & if he can not adjust to it then you could change schools. Our school did not have nap time but down time. They had snack time which was part of math. My son had the Teacher who bought all day to our system-she was great. Most of the kids that had full day had 3rd grade reading buddies last year that was one of the extras they recieved.

I guess you have to decide if the full day school is right for your son. It was very hard for me to put DS in all day but in the end it has been the best thing for him.

Kae

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by elemusing
1/2 day Kg is barely even recognized anymore by most public schools. I would only recommend it for a child who has learning disorders of severe behavior disorders. I see that your child is already 6 - he will be able to handle all day for sure and it will already have him on an "all day" schedule routine for next year in first grade.

Remember- the second half of the day is usually filled up with "fun" social things like special area classes like music, P.E. and library (and possibly computer lab) and recess and even a 30 -45 minute rest time.

I teach K-2 music at a public school and I highly recommend all day.

Now see my DD is half day. What do we do on the other half of our day? We do fun things! We go to the zoo, library, gym class, museums, playdates and anything else we want to do. I don't need to send DD to school to do that. We have a great time together. I think at this age they should stay children. Kindergarten should not be the place to put a bunch of pressure on them to learn. They have another 12 years plus college for that. They can learn at home and be with the family. My DD reads quite well but she did that on her own before kindergarten. Sure some days I would love for her to go full day just to have more time to myself but that is what a parent is for. I knew that going into being a mom that is part of it. I don't think it should be mandatory. Parents should have a choice for kindergarten.

 

[geetey]

My best advice would be to compare the two programs and see what the differences are. If given the option, I would have chosen 1/2 day K for my two children. It is not an option at their school. The 'extra' time was spent with a mandatory 1 hour nap time (required by the state), a 2nd snack, a 2nd break time (or 3rd recess - however you want to count it), and a story. No extra learning time or classes like music, pe, art, computers, library, which were covered before lunch time.

This is at a Catholic school in TN, where we used to live. The school cut off date is Sept 30, so most of the time was spent correcting those who couldn't lay still, couldn't sit still, couldn't be quiet, etc... It was an odd mix of 4 to 6 yr olds (I was in the classroom a lot) - many who were not ready to be in full day K but had no choice. BTW, there is no preschool system in TN either - just Mother's Day Out, so for some children, this was their first exposure to school. Lots and LOTS of tearful mornings for some of the children.

Personally I would have preferred to have my child at home with me, doing fun stuff, versus getting his number changed for whispering to his beanie baby. My dd was fine with it, and started napping again. DS wanted to learn and *do* things, not lay on a pad for an hour.

Good luck with your decision! Make sure you understand what the differences are in the two programs.

 

[MUFFYCAT]

I think full-day kindergarten should be mandatory. There is so much to learn these days that half days just don't have enough time. Kindergarten should be playtime also. But with half days, I remember the teacher saying that there isn't enough time to "play". At least with full day they could have a balance of both.

The beginning may be rough, but soon they'll get use to the school routine.

 

[disykat]

I prefer half day, but in your situation I might do full day to keep him in the same school. Hard decision!

 

[39CINDERELLA]

DHB- our parish only offers full day also with the choice 2x's a year to change to 1/2 if it is much for your child at least that is what I gathered, DS will just turn 5 a week and 1/2 before school starts so I don't know if he will be ready for all day every day he goes 3 days preschool for 21/2 hr now, next year scholl will be 6 1/2 hrs every day! that is a big adjustment for anyone to handle let alone a little child. we have the choice to send to public for 1/2 every day or 2 full and a 1/2 or something like that. I guess it all depends on the child we'll see.
good luck.[color=CC0099]39CINDERELLA[/color]

 

[elgerber]

They started full days in our school when DS started. He is 11 now. He had been in pre-school, but he didn't care much for it. He was on the younger end, turned 5 in May before school started. I was very upset and not happy about the idea at all. I was so very wrong. He did great with it, and they got to do so much more stuff in that time. They had more time to learn, but also more time to play because they were there all day. They also got to have library and gym and music, things the half day kids never got to do. My dd then had all day K and both transitioned well into the 1st grade because of it.

 

[deadheadbelle]

Wow! Thanks for all the responses. I went to a meeting this morning at the school at our church & it went really well. They are giving parents the opportunity to pick up their kids after 1/2 day. However, once I spoke with the principal, I started thinking that the all day may be a good thing. Basically, they have found that during the 1/2 day, the teachers only have enough time to instruct the kids on the various subjects. Keeping them there the full day gives the kids the opportunity to practice what they've learned through games, manipulatives, etc. They also brought up "what will your child be doing when you get home?". Well, unfortunately, I am not a super-mom. We don't head to the zoo, museums, etc. everyday. More often than not, we'd be at the grocery, the mall or at home. I have an almost 2 year old daughter, so it's not like we'd have tons of one-on-one time to really work/play together & discuss all the things he learned at length. Call me lazy or a bad parent if you want, but I am realistic & know how I am. I know I'll miss him, but I also know it'll be good for me & my DD as she hasn't gotten a fraction of the one-on-one time that DS got. She gets me to herself 3 days a week for 3 hours.

Oh, one last thing. DS doesn't nap anymore & he LOVES his pre-school. He asks if he can go on the days he doesn't & they have a "lunch bunch" every so often & he begs me to let him stay for that. I suppose he may just be ready for allday, even if I'm a little sad about it.

Thanks again for everyone's advice. Everyone is different & I know it's a personal choice, but I like seeing how everyone looks at the situation differently.

 

[stacie_d]

I'm not sure if anyone else has brought this up but...
What school will he attend for first grade? If you start him in half-day K in one school and then switch him to school for 1st grade that has all day K, he might have some trouble with adjusting in 1st grade.

What I mean to say is, at least for my DS, K is a hugh transition year. It is something new for all the kids, who come from all sorts of backgrounds (meaning some have been at home with parents or other family, in preschool, in daycare...)

My DS goes all day, and it was a little bit rough at first, because he did not spend as much time in daycare or preschool as most kids (but probably rougher on me than him). He was only is his preschool program for about 3 hours a day a couple days a week. The rest of the time we spent together. That transition to full day, everyday was tough on all of us. But, K in general was a big transition for all the kids, so he was right with the other kids. Personally, I would rather DS get use to the full day program at the same time as all the other kids to eliminate the possibility of problems in 1st grade.

And, as for social aspect--I think the social aspect of K is much different from what I was able to offer him, because when we did things together, he still has "mommy" right by his side. It is amazing how independent he is becoming. He is picking his own little circle of friends, and making his own decision. (Not that I am ready to send him out to live on his own, mind you! lol) That shyness I used to see all the time is going away, he is just blossoming now.

Personally, I would choose the full day. That was the best choice for my son.

You know your child best, and I know you will do what is best for him and your family. Good luck with your decision.