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How much homework for kindergarten?

YadaYadaYada

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@rockysalamander, you know I could technically homeschool him because I'm not currently working but I really thought that school would be good or his social development, not because I think homeschooled children are socially isolated (that is a common misconception) but because I'm not the best at being social so wouldn't want that to rub off on him. Maybe if I manage to find a job we will put him in private school or if not look into the magnet schools. You get my utmost respect for homeschooling, it is not an easy job.

@kipari, it's so interesting to read about how other countries educate their children. When I picked him up from school today he told me that he watched at least two shows today because the teacher was testing, so she sits them in front of the television while she tests?! Why not give them the packet of writing to work on that came home as more homework today? On one hand I absolutely hate that he is watching television at school and on the other I don't want to create a wedge between him and his teacher for his first year of school.

@Tartansparkles, makes sense to use the flashcard and then introduce the reading book and 15 minutes is a good amount of time, not so much that they lose interest and not too little to get any actual progress made.

@Daisys and Diamonds, kids don't get to be kids in the U.S. because it's all about test scores and funding, that is all the districts care about, not the well being of the kids unfortunately.
 

Arcadian

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My goodness...interesting! I don't even recall homework until grade 6! I skipped kindergarden and went to first grade.
 

YadaYadaYada

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Okay new question, is anyone familiar with Title 1 schools under the No Child Left Behind Act? The school our son is going to is a Title 1 school Status 2, I've read that I may be able to have him transferred to a better performing school if his current school is designated as "in need of improvement". I just don't know what status 2 is?

ETA: Disregard this because I believe the Every Student Succeeds Act replaced No Child Left Behind and I don't see a provision to move students out of an underperforming school.
 
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rockysalamander

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@rockysalamander, you know I could technically homeschool him because I'm not currently working but I really thought that school would be good or his social development, not because I think homeschooled children are socially isolated (that is a common misconception) but because I'm not the best at being social so wouldn't want that to rub off on him. Maybe if I manage to find a job we will put him in private school or if not look into the magnet schools. You get my utmost respect for homeschooling, it is not an easy job.

My husband and I both work full time jobs and homeschool our kiddo. He goes to a daytime homeschool drop off center where they have organized activities and will help with his daily work I send. They also give him tons of socialization. One day/week, we have a nanny that works on social-emotional skills and takes him to homeschool events in our area for us. We do "school" in the car, in the evening and on weekends. We have the whole year vs. the limited school year to achieve his goals. He is making massive strides and we can target the curriculum to his "level". He's 1 grad ahead in math and 1 behind in writing, but reading 3 grades ahead. We can customize in a way that they can't in public school. At least in our area, there are amazing groups of secular homeschool families and they've been very welcoming to our very atypical way of homeschooling. Most other families have a stay at home parent or grandparent. Its not easy, but our son is thriving and his spirit has been repaired from the hell of public school. I'd walk over coals for him never to experience that again...and I'm in a very well-off area with well-funded schools. They can still be terrible. So, I guess my point is that if it is something you want to do, anyone can do it. I have social anxiety, especially with new groups. But, I really pushed myself hard and I'm glad I did. The other parents really have welcomed us. On days I take off work, I just find an event in the area and everyone has been kind to us.
 
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Daisys and Diamonds

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@rockysalamander, you know I could technically homeschool him because I'm not currently working but I really thought that school would be good or his social development, not because I think homeschooled children are socially isolated (that is a common misconception) but because I'm not the best at being social so wouldn't want that to rub off on him. Maybe if I manage to find a job we will put him in private school or if not look into the magnet schools. You get my utmost respect for homeschooling, it is not an easy job.

@kipari, it's so interesting to read about how other countries educate their children. When I picked him up from school today he told me that he watched at least two shows today because the teacher was testing, so she sits them in front of the television while she tests?! Why not give them the packet of writing to work on that came home as more homework today? On one hand I absolutely hate that he is watching television at school and on the other I don't want to create a wedge between him and his teacher for his first year of school.

@Tartansparkles, makes sense to use the flashcard and then introduce the reading book and 15 minutes is a good amount of time, not so much that they lose interest and not too little to get any actual progress made.

@Daisys and Diamonds, kids don't get to be kids in the U.S. because it's all about test scores and funding, that is all the districts care about, not the well being of the kids unfortunately.

that is so sad
i have a friend who taught 2nd grade in NJ since the mid 1970s
and all this testing seems exhausting for everyone
kids need to run around outside and scrap their knees and get a few bruises
i still remember the smell of the paint from kindy - i love that smell

i think apart from reading and some maths and the odd tearm project, homework should not be too indept at least until 10 or 11 years old and it shouldn't be more than 30 min
my standard 4 (doesn't exist any more but was the last year at primary school) teacher gave us general knowledge questions every night and that was waaaaaaay before the internet
thank goodness for the Pears encyclopedia !
 
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YadaYadaYada

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@rockysalamander, Wow that is pretty amazing that you manage to homeschool and you both work full time, didn't think that was possible but obviously where there is a will there is a way. Granted I haven't sat down to talk to the teacher yet but I am pretty disgusted already.

We are going to figure this out but I'm definitely looking into alternatives for next year.

@Daisys and Diamonds, you are so right but so much has changed. They don't get spelling words anymore (I still remember being in first or second grade and asking my dad how to spell people!) no cursive practice, doesn't seem to be any creativity anymore. It's not necessarily the teachers' fault either because the district dictates the curriculum. It's very depressing. School should be a welcoming and vibrant experience but it just isn't it seems for many kids.
 

Daisys and Diamonds

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@rockysalamander, Wow that is pretty amazing that you manage to homeschool and you both work full time, didn't think that was possible but obviously where there is a will there is a way. Granted I haven't sat down to talk to the teacher yet but I am pretty disgusted already.

We are going to figure this out but I'm definitely looking into alternatives for next year.

@Daisys and Diamonds, you are so right but so much has changed. They don't get spelling words anymore (I still remember being in first or second grade and asking my dad how to spell people!) no cursive practice, doesn't seem to be any creativity anymore. It's not necessarily the teachers' fault either because the district dictates the curriculum. It's very depressing. School should be a welcoming and vibrant experience but it just isn't it seems for many kids.

this is so sad
some years i liked school, some years i didnt
its important kids have a positive experience with learning
this was the bain of my existence
i never got past level 2
(my cousin, the same age as me was dumb but she could spell the whole book)
 

arkieb1

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I think it's an absolute myth that screen time Ipads etc make kids stupid and fry their brains. I have a son who did every level of Angry Birds in two days, by downloading it himself on an Ipad when he was 3.... At 8 he was assessed at having a reading and comprehension age better than most 16+ year olds.

He is a computer, and tech kid - in order to get him to do the homework and music practise he earns screen time, and he works to earn quite a bit of it.... He just sat tests to get into a gifted and talented program at a private school, they take the top 10% of children on standardised intelligence tests and three other test. He spends half his life in front of a screen and he scored in the top 1%.

Clearly there is no correlation between screen time and making kids stupid. My theory is that there are many parents out there that find screens easier than parenting and that's why those kids are stupid. If you give them a mix of both (good parenting and other things in their life and IPad time, gaming or whatever they are into), IMHO, it won't make them stupid.

I used to be an English/History teacher.
 
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arkieb1

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@arkieb1 I don't think just because your child is still intelligent, the consensus of many scientists, that screen time causes an addiction similar to drug addiction isn't wrong.


I've read those studies and take a keen interest in them, for every one that claims screen time is addictive there are just as many claiming that screen time doesn't cause addiction, just as it doesn't cause violence etc. I think actually it's too early to tell....

I remember my parents generation worried that too much TV would make their kids simpletons....

The point being if you balance screen time with lots of other things and monitor it then it shouldn't be an issue.

As a former teacher I can tell you there are lots of parents out there that cannot be bothered, don't have the time to parent well, or just are too obsessed with themselves to parent properly. Screens aren't the issue, people are the issue.

What I'm saying is that for a lot of people it's easier to blame the screen and a whole host of other things rather than look at how well or badly they actually parent or how dysfunctional they themselves might be.
 

MaisOuiMadame

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Completely agree with you on most accounts @arkieb1 . Balance is key and I'm convinced NO screen isn't a solution, because children won't learn how responsibly use all the devices. My casual observation is that the addiction potential seems to vary widely from child to child, as every addiction does. So on behalf of all the kids who already watch too much unbalanced and unsupervised TV or have a very high susceptibility for anything on a screen I'm still appalled at films in class (other than scientific examples).
Glad you found a way that works so well for your family.
Eta:sorry, posting from my mobile with very wonky coverage in the countryside
 

LightBright

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Okay new question, is anyone familiar with Title 1 schools under the No Child Left Behind Act? The school our son is going to is a Title 1 school Status 2, I've read that I may be able to have him transferred to a better performing school if his current school is designated as "in need of improvement". I just don't know what status 2 is?

ETA: Disregard this because I believe the Every Student Succeeds Act replaced No Child Left Behind and I don't see a provision to move students out of an underperforming school.

Where I live, all this does is give more points for magnet lottery. Eg if your school is under performing among other things you have a better chance to be selected for magnet.
 

YadaYadaYada

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Our lottery system for magnet schools is supposed to be totally random, having a sibling in a magnet school gets you an edge and if they have a low admittance from certain towns then they will seek to pull kids from those towns to fill the spots. I debate all the time about whether pulling the oldest out of the magnet system was the right choice, I had valid reasons and concerns but now I just don't know.

They should give consideration to getting kids out of the lower performing schools, the parents are obviously making an effort to get them in and will more than likely be involved in their child's education.
 

kenny

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Do parents who pay less in income tax and property tax have a right to the same quality of school as kids of those who pay more in tax?

I think they should, but I doubt they do.
I believe wealthier areas have better schools, but shouldn't the least-advantage kids actually get the best schools?
 

diamondseeker2006

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Ridiculous! Kids need time to play, veg out, be kids. It is crazy the amount of work they give little kids. I only let my kids work on lower elementary homework for 30 minutes a night, including reading. I told the teachers that was MY policy. They did fine. My older 2 are honor society and make great grades. My younger one is still in elementary and also does well. I am an advocate for my kids and I believe in fostering a whole kid, not a robot of the state, lol.

:appl:Good for you!!! I am like that, too, as a former teacher. I WILL tell them when something is inappropriate!

Six to seven hours a day in school is more than enough academic learning time for a kindergartener. There should be NO homework!!! I think it's fine to ask parents to continue reading aloud each night to their kids, but that's it! The rest should be playing outside!

For 1st-3rd, I'd say 20 minutes of reading aloud and maybe practicing math facts. Even in 4th and 5th, I still wouldn't want more than 30-40 minutes. Children need to be able to play, have other interests such as sports, art, music, etc., and spend time with their families.

I've read multiple articles that say that more homework does not equate to higher achievement. I resent wasted time.
 

diamondseeker2006

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Do parents who pay less in income tax and property tax have a right to the same quality of school as kids of those who pay more in tax?

I think they should, but I doubt they do.
I believe wealthier areas have better schools, but shouldn't the least-advantage kids actually get the best schools?

They have a right to the same basic education, yes. But considering most children go to school in the areas in which they live, certainly there will be differences based on the additional things provided by the parents through fundraisers and other donations. When you say "better schools", you may mean higher performing schools. Wealthier areas have more educated parents, and their children are more likely to be high acheivers. Therefore, those schools will have the higher test scores. Busing children an hour or two to schools in a better area has been tried, but somehow I don't think 3-4 hours a day on a bus does anyone any good.

However, higher poverty (lower performing) schools can access federal money (such as Title 1) for extra reading specialists, etc.
 

Begonia

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Screen time is a tough one, but I can tell you it was the biggest source of stress in my house when my kids got to be 13 or 14 and continuing until 16/17.

It’s one thing when you can control the amount of time when they are small and they accept your decision, but at some point the desire for screen time caused mine to sneak on, or start up the wifi when we had turned it off (when they were teens). We would set rules, they would break them, there would be consequences and the resentment and back talk happened. Then it would all repeat.

These are nice boys, but thru that time I can tell you, it was tough. I believe they were hooked on it. They wouldn’t take breaks, wouldn’t eat properly. The conflict went on every damn day. I wanted to throw those screens out the window. We talked about getting rid of the computers or not having wifi, but felt it would chase them away from the safety of our home, seeking the internet God knows where and with whom.

On a positive note, my oldest son is now in third year computer science, and his younger brother will do something similar I expect.
They live a somewhat more balanced existence, although are still committed gamers.
 

arkieb1

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This is a problem in our society, I see lots of parents and lots of people glued to Iphones, so much so in Australia they get run over crossing roads looking at screens instead of watching for cars. They die in car crashes because they are looking at phones and not the road. I'm sure America and other parts of the world it's the same story.

Yet we preach to our kids too much screen time is bad....... that too much screen time is addictive. These kids are living in a generation that have computers, Iphones, Ipads and video games everywhere, many of them will use the skills they get from these things in future careers.

Yes, as @Begonia points out it's a daily struggle in many households (mine included) but it's still up to us as parents to ensure that kids get a balance of other things as well.

I know parents that claim they can't stop their kids from playing games, one of my good friends is one of them - I'm like it's simple turn it off. If they turn it back on and fight you sell the console on Ebay or somewhere. And the reply I get is oh no I couldn't do that, I'm like why not? Kids need boundaries, so set them.

Some parents are too afraid to take the hard road if needed with these devices, some parents find it easier to allow their kids to play video games 24/7 than have to interact with their kids....

Screen time can be addictive, but it becomes addictive if we the parents allow it to become addictive. I've seen plenty of parents that fail to take any responsibility for why their kids are allowed on these devices so much in the first place.
 

Begonia

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Arkieb, how old are your kids?
 

YadaYadaYada

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@diamondseeker2006, I appreciate your perspective as a former teacher so much.

DH decided he is going to the conference (I have to pick up our older son at the same time) because he feels that I will not ask the hard questions to avoid any possible upset or confrontation. Fine by me, I can be too nice so this is probably a good thing.
 

Asscherhalo_lover

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I have been teaching for 13 years now, from grade 8 all the way down to "3K" (3YO) now. I have taught gen ed and have been teaching special ed for the last 11 years (but of course there's huge range in the kids). For early childhood, I focus on play and social skills. Every child develops certain skills at different rates and if they're READY for something, of course it's worth exploring and teaching them. If they're NOT, focus on what is most important, social skills! My own son goes to a nature based pre-school. The focus is on learning through nature and play. They do some "academic" and traditional learning, but in small spurts. Most of their day is spent outside in all kinds of weather on a nature preserve. He has never had any homework. The school sends out a bulletin once a week of what they "worked" on in school and suggests activities you can do WITH your child to support the concepts. We are not at Kindergarten yet but when he goes to the public school they will certainly hear from me if what they are doing is not developmentally appropriate. And let's not even talk about standardized testing for young children. I see what it does to kids all the time. Nope.
 

rockysalamander

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I have been teaching for 13 years now, from grade 8 all the way down to "3K" (3YO) now. I have taught gen ed and have been teaching special ed for the last 11 years (but of course there's huge range in the kids). For early childhood, I focus on play and social skills. Every child develops certain skills at different rates and if they're READY for something, of course it's worth exploring and teaching them. If they're NOT, focus on what is most important, social skills! My own son goes to a nature based pre-school. The focus is on learning through nature and play. They do some "academic" and traditional learning, but in small spurts. Most of their day is spent outside in all kinds of weather on a nature preserve. He has never had any homework. The school sends out a bulletin once a week of what they "worked" on in school and suggests activities you can do WITH your child to support the concepts. We are not at Kindergarten yet but when he goes to the public school they will certainly hear from me if what they are doing is not developmentally appropriate. And let's not even talk about standardized testing for young children. I see what it does to kids all the time. Nope.

I'm so surprised how terrible things are in public school (as a product of them all the way through my advanced degrees). But, it was so pressured. One thing I've found is that homeschooled kids are nicer, less judgemental, and allowed to be an individual. Such a nice change from public school. I'm sure they are not all like ours, but I've yet to see much difference.

You might look into private schooling. In my area, there are schools that focus on nature-based and outside learning. Public school simply does not allow any outside time. In my district, recess is optional and the individual teacher decides - in elementary school. Ridiculous.
 

arkieb1

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Arkieb, how old are your kids?

He is 11, all his friends are mostly into gaming, they have Youtube accounts, they live stream, they chat on various sites, they were coding and designing games from age 5 onwards, it's hard to keep up with them. Bright kids using technology in ways that never existed when we were kids. Most of the parents of his friends all set boundaries, ie they all have different rules for screen time in different houses but the rules still exist.

One of my son's best friends hacked into the internet account at their school and changed everything to increase the speed of their internet.... The kids tell me the staff don't know what happened, but the school's internet now runs much faster. That same kid has hacked into all his neighbours several blocks in either directions internet accounts just to prove he can do it. He's hacked into mine when he was at my house..... took him less than 1 minute.... just to prove a point (he told me after he did it) he also charged a $9.95 charge to my credit card (without me giving him my credit card or any secure passwords) to purchase something they wanted to use via the Internet. Again he did it in less than 1 minute.... I had some stern words to say to him about accessing all my seemingly private passwords - but that's what I deal with.

11 & 12 year olds, I'd guess, that would run rings around most average adults when it comes to using and abusing technology.
 
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Asscherhalo_lover

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I'm so surprised how terrible things are in public school (as a product of them all the way through my advanced degrees). But, it was so pressured. One thing I've found is that homeschooled kids are nicer, less judgemental, and allowed to be an individual. Such a nice change from public school. I'm sure they are not all like ours, but I've yet to see much difference.

You might look into private schooling. In my area, there are schools that focus on nature-based and outside learning. Public school simply does not allow any outside time. In my district, recess is optional and the individual teacher decides - in elementary school. Ridiculous.

Unfortunately nearly all private school here is religious or costs a FORTUNE. We already pay VERY high taxes so I will NOT pay more for school. If we had to I would move to a more flexible district. We do have one near us that has a no homework policy until 5th grade. We'll see what happens once he's in school.
 

Begonia

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And I mean this with all due respect. In about 1 to 2 years, you may find that even the most reasonable rules and boundaries are not so readily respected by your son. They hit an age where they have a voice and a will that they will use whether we agree or not.

We had no problem with setting boundaries. It wasn't a democracy in my home but we were fair and patient, and things went fairly smoothly...until ages 13 - 14.

Just sayin'.
 

Elizabeth35

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That seems like an inordinate amount of homework for a 5 year old. And frankly, at that age, the burden is on the parent to make sure it gets done. This makes it unpleasant for parent and child.

Is perhaps a new teacher? I can't imagine that an experienced teacher would have such ridiculously time-consuming expectations of student and parent.

Does your school district have any orientation meetings for Kindergarten parents that explain curriculum, practices and goals/outcomes?

I would meet with the teacher for a separate meeting to address homework expectations. Go into this meeting knowing what the district and the school define as appropriate (if possible).
I would not be super happy with an app for homework being required. Many responsible, highly-educated parents severely restrict screen time for their kids. I guess 15 minutes is okay but would 15 minutes of reading time with Mom or Dad be better developmentally?
 

Daisys and Diamonds

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I think it's an absolute myth that screen time Ipads etc make kids stupid and fry their brains. I have a son who did every level of Angry Birds in two days, by downloading it himself on an Ipad when he was 3.... At 8 he was assessed at having a reading and comprehension age better than most 16+ year olds.

He is a computer, and tech kid - in order to get him to do the homework and music practise he earns screen time, and he works to earn quite a bit of it.... He just sat tests to get into a gifted and talented program at a private school, they take the top 10% of children on standardised intelligence tests and three other test. He spends half his life in front of a screen and he scored in the top 1%.

Clearly there is no correlation between screen time and making kids stupid. My theory is that there are many parents out there that find screens easier than parenting and that's why those kids are stupid. If you give them a mix of both (good parenting and other things in their life and IPad time, gaming or whatever they are into), IMHO, it won't make them stupid.

I used to be an English/History teacher.

like a large proportion of the western world i grew up with Seaseeme street, i actually didn't go to Kindy much because i had alot of bronchitis at that age but i went to school knowing my ABC's and 123s thats to Jim Hanson's muppets and the children television workshop
coincidently i read this last night
 

Daisys and Diamonds

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Gary's daughter and SIL have 2 kiddies
im not sure they have been read a story book in their life (ive given up giving them)
they just got plonked in front of the cartoon network
i brought this absolutely beautiful book with illistrations to Bob Dylan's Man gave names to all the animals
it came with a sing along cd
i doubt that has ever been played
nor have the kids ever played a board game with their parents
my parents sat on the floor and played games with us and on wet weelend days we played board games as a family


we didn't get alot of extras as kids but each month i was allowed to choose a book from the scholastic series that used to be sold though school

and every year my mother took part in the program at school where parents donated new books to the library
my mother certainly wasn't mother of the year, but she did her best
she never once complained about all the music i made with my toy drum, recorder, harmonica, cassanetts, tamborine, triangle, tin whistle and yet when i have gifted the gift of music to little ones the parents only think of themselves, not the child's musical development
my parents never went places in the weekend and went without us, we were a family
this doesn't always seem to be the modern way

sorry for going off on a tangent
 

YadaYadaYada

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@rockysalamander, what we have been most shocked about public school is the level of violence. Our oldest is 12 and attends our public middle school and everyday there is a fight, he has been hit multiple times and he does defend himself but all this is happening in front of the teachers and they do nothing. My son's STEM teacher actually grabbed him by the arm for no apparent reason and when we reported it guess what happened? Nothing. It is crazy but our high school is very well regarded so if he can just get through middle school he will be golden.

@arkieb1, coding at 5? Wow. I'm also in awe of this kid that can hack into computers, hope he uses his powers for good when he gets older, he could go far with that.

@Elizabeth35, she's not a new teacher and actually my neighbor after hearing that our son was in her class said we would love her. When I saw her recently and asked about the amount of homework she just dismissed it as what is necessary to get them to learn to read. I'm a bit concerned because our son at this point has no desire to learn how to read so I think he is still a little immature for this accelerated learning.

They did have an orientation which we attended but nothing sounded off or raised any red flags. This level of work though is across all the kindy teachers at this school which makes me think it's all coming down from the new principal. IMO his 15min of app time would be better spent practicing handwriting or practically doing anything else, there is nothing he is learning from this app that can't be reinforced in another way that doesn't involve a screen or device.

@Daisys and Diamonds, Sesame Street was the best! Our youngest is also fond of Simon and the Land of Chalk-Drawings, I believe that might be a British cartoon, it is very cute.

It really is so important to foster a love of books at an early age, I remember having a while bookcase that I would pull books from daily, it was a favorite pastime.
 

Daisys and Diamonds

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@rockysalamander, what we have been most shocked about public school is the level of violence. Our oldest is 12 and attends our public middle school and everyday there is a fight, he has been hit multiple times and he does defend himself but all this is happening in front of the teachers and they do nothing. My son's STEM teacher actually grabbed him by the arm for no apparent reason and when we reported it guess what happened? Nothing. It is crazy but our high school is very well regarded so if he can just get through middle school he will be golden.

@arkieb1, coding at 5? Wow. I'm also in awe of this kid that can hack into computers, hope he uses his powers for good when he gets older, he could go far with that.

@Elizabeth35, she's not a new teacher and actually my neighbor after hearing that our son was in her class said we would love her. When I saw her recently and asked about the amount of homework she just dismissed it as what is necessary to get them to learn to read. I'm a bit concerned because our son at this point has no desire to learn how to read so I think he is still a little immature for this accelerated learning.

They did have an orientation which we attended but nothing sounded off or raised any red flags. This level of work though is across all the kindy teachers at this school which makes me think it's all coming down from the new principal. IMO his 15min of app time would be better spent practicing handwriting or practically doing anything else, there is nothing he is learning from this app that can't be reinforced in another way that doesn't involve a screen or device.

@Daisys and Diamonds, Sesame Street was the best! Our youngest is also fond of Simon and the Land of Chalk-Drawings, I believe that might be a British cartoon, it is very cute.

It really is so important to foster a love of books at an early age, I remember having a while bookcase that I would pull books from daily, it was a favorite pastime.

this makes me even sadder than your son doesn't enjoy reading
after my great seaseeme street start i lay the blame 100% at the teachers for my slow start to reading
i bet the school books your son has to read are just of no interest to him
would he read comics ?
just to hook him in to the enjoyment of reading
i remember hating the books at school and being in the 'slow' reading group it was so babyish
i struggled on until i got into cricket at 10 and i would read the cricket in the newspaper
maybe you could make a day of it in the holidays and go to your main city library, that's what mum would do with us
or do they have a library bus where you live - that night be fun for him
or go to a book fair and give him $10 and tell him he can buy what ever books he wants so long as he reads them

that'd not at all nice about your oldest son's middle school
high school can't come soon enough
 
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