My daughter has a Sept bday. I am not sure about sending her to kindergarden. She currently goes to pre-k 3, 1/2 days, per week. I would send her to the private kindergarden at her preschool if she goes this year. However, I would rather have her do pre k one more year, except that would give her 3 1/2 yrs with the same preschool teacher! This teacher has moved up as the class has moved so the teacher has been with the class since they were 2 /1 yrs old! My daugher has started complaining about this teacher (there are 2 teahers in the room, and I only hear complaints about one). She says the teacher is mean (this teacher is very structured and does hand our fair and consistant discipline -- she is young and has no children of her own though) and also that she does not want to do worksheets. We have spoken to both teachers together, me separately, my husband with my daugher, on many occassions. The teachers point out that my daughter sometimes gets frustrated with writing and worksheets... I know this is true from our work at home...Should I send her to the kindergarden so she can get a new teacher (we like the kindergarden teacher) even though I would rather see her do another year of preschool because of her age? What about a Montessori pre-school, would that be an option for us?
My daughter's Kindergarden had a "play-based observation" day (usu. in April) where the child went to the K classroom and was observed by several professionals. They can give you an idea if she is ready for K. I wouldn't worry about writing skills just yet...they really work on those during the K year. Sometimes different teachers can make all the difference.
I would look into a preschool which is developmentally based. I know it is difficult to change schools, but most small children will complain about doing worksheets. That is because their neurological system is not ready for that kind of work. Children learn through play. There are great moments with hands-on activities that teach children more than they can learn by doing worksheets. Pre-schoolers need a multi-sensory approach for it to implant in their brain. Worksheets are not very effective for long-term learning that will generalize at this age. If your daughter is already resisting this kind of work, I would consider another year in preschool, but if at all possible, choose a developmental one. Some montessori are very good, but others tend to push very hard to be reading, writing, and doing math by age 3 or 4. I visited one when looking for a school for mine where they spent a lot of time every morning doing complicated math and writing assignments. Your child will have time for all this as she starts school; let her play and explore, and her system will be ready for the other tasks as she matures.
Good luck!
K.
C.,
Seems odd to me that the school would allow the same teacher to move with the class each year. Also that they are doing "worksheets" in class and that they are required to do them. (can your daughter choose a different activity or do all the children do the same thing?) MAybe you should explore other options for preschool--this would allow your daughter to have another year to develop before the more academic kindergarten worksheets are part of the curriculum. There are preschools that believe in the power of play and imagination that can help her develop socially and emotionally before kindergarten. Studies have shown that children doing "academic" activities before they are developmentally ready can lead to frustration and resentment. A school that focuses on emotional/social development can help her deal with some of the feelings she may be having about school. If she is resistant now, it will only get worse. LEt her enjoy her preschool years.
Good luck
It sounds like your daughter needs a new teacher/classroom. I think you are wise to hold her back one more year. School is tough enough already without having your daughter "dread" going. Is there any preschools that offer a Pre-K program that goes 5 half days a week. I work at a private school that offers various preschool classes as well as a Pre-K class and then we have Kindergarten through 8th grade. It is always easier to hold back then to be held back. I have 4 kids and two I held back. I don't regret it for a minute. If you would like to more info of the school I work at, contact me.
If she's ready, I would send her. I'm a big advocate for sending kids to Kindergarten if they meet the cutoff. My sister and I had very late birthdays, but my parents still sent us, and we're so thankful for that. We have a whole year advantage to a lot of people we graduated with (I graduated college at 21 instead of 22 like most of the people I knew). That means that our lives got started a year before everyone else's did, and it really helped me who has a great career and started an early family, and my sister who is doing her residency and will finish that up and start practicing at 30 instead of 31 or 32 like others in her class.
Just the point of view of someone who was not held back!
