Preschool Behavior - Denver,CO

Keeping her in for recess seems over the top for preschool. It's normal for kids this age to get distracted.

It's preschool. Why couldn't she have finished it at home (or not at all)?

That definitely doesn't sound like something they should do in PRESCHOOL. It's PREschool for crying out loud! Your poor daughter. I would definitely have a talk with the director about that. What, she didn't finish gluing her macaroni to the construction paper so they made her stay inside? Seriously too harsh for a 4 year old. No wonder she had a fit. I don't blame you for being upset and asking this question. This makes me sad just reading it! Good luck! Give your girl lots of kisses and hugs! :)

I think for a 4 year old that's a little off the hook.

Was she told that she would have to stay in IF she didn't finish?

Preschool is for learning to socialize with other children. Recess is for playing with other kids and being active. I think it is ridiculous that she would have to miss recess to complete a 'project'. If the project is that important, the teacher could put it aside for later. I would speak with the teacher about this. If I thought it might happen again, I would speak with the director of the preschool.

Kindergarten is also about teaching kids to enjoy school. It means children's garden, not grown up work. And not all kindergartens require kids to complete lots of work. My son's Montessori allows him to select his own 'works', complete them (or not) on his own schedule and put them aside when it is time for outside play (or snack). They view preschool and kindergarten as an opportunity to encourage a child's love of learning.

I have a little girl in my class who doesn't like to do her work. She's dawdle around until the other kids are done and then want to go play. Preschool is for prepping them for Kinder and in "real school" they will be required to do their work. I make her finish. Now, missing recess? No. But I'm in-home so my schedule is more relaxed and I can allow time to let her finish before we move on to something like that.

I'm sorry, but that's insane. Time management skills in a four year old? Needing to finish a project in preschool? Being made to stay in from recess? A preschooler's job is to play, learn to socialize and maybe get some pre-literacy skills. The teacher's job should be to help her manage her frustration/disappointment over not finishing the way she wanted and then to help her get re-directed and interested in something else.

I think keeping a preschooler in for recess (unless they are being super naughty) is ridiculous. I actually cannot believe they would keep her in to finish a project. She is way too young.

One of my son's flat out refused to do projects in preschool because he told his teacher that he had already done the projects with me at home. Obviously when they told me about it I explained to him the way of school and he did it from then on, but they NEVER made him stay in at recess!

I would find a new preschool!

I think that's crazy for preschool!!!!

That is absolutely beyond ridiculous. That should not happen for many more grade levels, if ever. It pisses me off to no end how schools think its ok to use recess as a behavior tool. Especially at this age, recess is just as important if not more important than worksheets and projects which I find (I'm a pediatric occupational therapist so I go into a lot of preschools to do screenings - contact me if you want to talk more directly) are very often not age-appropriate. I agree with others, the teacher could have had her finish it later. If there was a specific behavior issue that came up during the project that prevented your daughter from finishing it, that needed to be addressed (and NOT by withholding recess) but especially if she truly kept her in as a direct result of her not finishing her project, that is unacceptable.

This doesn't sound like preschool; it sounds like kindergarten -- at the least. What projects are they doing that would have a deadline so firm they must stay in from recess to finish them THAT day? Probably the teacher wanted to move on to another thing the next day but in that case she should have told your child, "OK, you're done" and let her go out. What was this project? Worksheets and "busy work" or something like an art project that needed time to dry before pickup or before tomorrow? That could make some difference, I suppose. But it seems a bit much for preschool. Yes, as someone said, preschool is for helping get kids ready for "real" school, BUT in preschool years kids also need to blow off steam and get outside regularly or they melt down more. I'd ask the teacher what the project was and the exact sequence of events. Did your child really stay in for all of recess or was it more a matter of "I'll take you out in five minutes after you finish this one little thing" and then she got out for the rest of the time?

I'd look at whether the preschool curriculum is too focused on work. Lots and lots of worksheets and sit-down-with-pencil activity can be too much; the kids should still be doing hands-on things with clay, sand, paint, etc. as well as academic work, and the academics, if any, should be made fun, not a chore. Think about whether this was a one-time thing or part of a larger picture of "busy work" that doesn't give the kids time to manipulate things, play and get social interaction.