Most kindergarten-aged kids, regardless of when theirs birthdays fall, are not developmentally ready to sit in desks and fill out worksheets for hours on end. Kindergarten is what first grade used to be, so when parents red-shirt the result is that six-year-olds are learning to read and write. . .just like they did in the old days, when academic learning began in first grade. If kindergarten were developmentally appropriate, then parents wouldn't feel they need to red-shirt their kids.

Now many of my fellow parents expect their children to *enter* kindergarten reading. I always point out that I did not learn to read until six, and I turned out just fine.

I'm not sure I agree.  I have a late birthday and was reading a little when I started Kindergarten that fall.  By the time I was six I was well under way.

 

I don't know what kindergarten's all about now, but when I went in the early seventies we definitely learned to read, learned letters and vowels, etc.  We did not spend much time in desks though, if I recall.

completely wrong. i learned to read and write in kindergarden 20 years ago. i remember it well- i LOVED it at the time. the younger you start them reading and writing, the more they will actually like reading and writing. you are underestimating your child and doing them a disservice.

I'm not sure if I was a little "slow" or not but when I was in kindergarten, I may have known letters and how to sound out some words, but I didn't actually learn to read until 1st grade.

I distinctly remember the day that it all just clicked. I literally didn't know how to read in the morning and could read in the afternoon.

Obviously, memories faid and my perceptions probably weren't completely accurate, but I don't recall being behind the curve.

kitchenfire:

Most kindergarten-aged kids, regardless of when theirs birthdays fall, are not developmentally ready to sit in desks and fill out worksheets for hours on end. Kindergarten is what first grade used to be, so when parents red-shirt the result is that six-year-olds are learning to read and write. . .just like they did in the old days, when academic learning began in first grade. If kindergarten were developmentally appropriate, then parents wouldn't feel they need to red-shirt their kids.

Now many of my fellow parents expect their children to *enter* kindergarten reading. I always point out that I did not learn to read until six, and I turned out just fine.

I believe my dad started to teach me how to read when I was like 4, I think. He was home disabled from a back operation, signed me up for the Grolier Book club and it went from there. That was like 1975/76.

Although I don't really recall when I actually started to read on my own.

I remember kindergarten being about play, but there may also have been some "learning" aspects to it.

My oldest daughter just finished kindergarten last year. Her birthday is early October and the cut-off date for the school is early December. I put her in the pre-school program that was attached to the school to help her get ready.

She was a little behind in some ways, but she was always the kid that was either right on time or behind with everything developmental (smiling, rolling over, crawling, talking, walking, etc.). She was a "textbook baby" as they say, but sometimes just slightly behind.

When it came time for kindergarten, she was assessed and they said she did okay, but we might want to think about holding her back. I just didn't believe in it. I knew that she would "catch" up; that things would click. Maybe there was a feeling of "inferiority" going on, too. Who knows.

But I have to agree that what they expect out of kindergartners is NOT developmentally appropriate. The reason why some kids I think do better is because they are OLDER (closer to 6 rather than 5) when they start and therefore the same age as First Graders, when we all really started to learn stuff like math. My daughter was learning ADDITION and SUBTRACTION. In KINDERGARTEN! Shit, I was still eating glue!

I did put her in an "intervention" (tutoring) class though in the beginning of the school year. By the end of the first semester she had caught up, but she has a tendency to fall behind if you don't make her "practice". Other than that, she's just very shy and very afraid to make mistakes and also extremely stubborn (how else can you explain her "I know that's the way to write "e", mommy; that's what the teacher said!" - even though IT'S BACKWARDS!). She doesn't even like to read words to me, even after she just did it for my mom (my mom watches her during the day while I'm at work). She clams up. And mind you, I don't give her any unnecessary pressure. I just try to encourage her. She did receive an award at school for Improvement, though, and we are very proud of her.

My younger one has all the benefits of being the younger one - she can write letters already and she hasn't even gotten to pre-school yet (she starts later this month). She can also count to 100. All because she copies her sister, but she WANTS to do it. She pulled up to standing at 7 months, walked at 10 months, etc. etc. She did everything early, as many second and third, etc. children do. Her birthday is March (so she'll be almost 4 1/2 going into preschool).

Anyway, I agree with you that I don't think kids are developmentally ready to start such tasks at the age of 5 and keeping them back just means they are doing first grade work at the proper age - 6, rather than doing first grade work too early.

And quite frankly, if teachers don't think most 5 year olds are ready for the New Kindergarten, then they should just change the age that they start to 6 and stop dicking around.

Kids in some European countries don't start school until 7 and they still do better than our kids! That tells you a lot about our system, IMHO.

I went to Kindergarten in 1983 and while there was some academic aspect to it, and while I could read at the time, it was mostly about socialization and "learning" how to be in school. I certainly didn't have homework like my 5 year old who just started Kindergarten (on time, but will still turn 6 halfway through).

Reading wasn't formally taught until I was in first grade, with all the endless phonics workbooks and worksheets, blech. About half the kids if I remember correctly couldn't really read yet beyond a their names and a few basic words while the other half could make their way through the Hop on Pop type stuff (like me).

Yes, some kids are ready to read at four. But others are not ready until six or seven. I don't have a problem with some reading instruction in kindergarten, as long as it is developmentally appropriate, and children who are not ready to read at that age aren't stigmatized. I think teachers and parents should follow each child's cues, and teach them to read when they are ready. What bothers me is the one-size-fits-all approach.

I don't buy the correlation between learning earlier/ loving to read. I have an M.A. in lit, and I read more than anyone else I know. Like I said, I did not learn to read until six. Children need a literacy-rich environment. They need to go to the library, and hear books being read aloud, and see their parents and other adults reading for pleasure. But they don't need to sit at desks and fill in worksheets at five.