How do you know when your child is ready for Kindergarten?

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My daughter's preschool has a "developmental kindergarten" program, which is basically a third year of preschool with somewhat more structure. They push this program, particularly for kids born in the second half of the year, suggesting that kindergarten is much more rigorous and academic than it was when we were kids. Nearly all of her preschool class is signed up to continue on to DK.

If we send my daughter to DK, she'll be entering regular kindergarten a few months after she turns 6, and first grade a few months after she turns 7, which seems kind of old to me.

Is kindergarten really that much more rigorous than it used to be? How do you know if your child is "ready"? In fact, what does it really mean to be ready (or not ready) for kindergarten?

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Parent Replies to "How do you know when your child is ready for Kindergarten?"

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As a Kdg teacher and reading teacher over the past fifteen years, I have been asked this question numerous times. There are many factors that can help you determine if your child is ready for Kdg. Is she is able to sit and pay attention for at least 10-15 minutes? Does she retain information quite quickly? Is she able to work independently? Is she more immature than otherchildren her age?Is there support at home to help bridge the gap between school and home? No need to worry if your child does not know her letters, sounds, numbers, or simple sight words at the beginning of the year. These are skills she should learn during her Kdg year. By the end of Kdg, with good instruction (guided reading, daily writing, read alouds,small group instruction, word work), your child should be able to read simple sight words, write sentences, understand and produce rhymes,manipulate sounds in a word, blend letter sounds, segment words, have a sense of syllabication, read from left to right, use her reading finger, and appropriately interact with text . These are all pre-reading skills.True, the Kdg curriculum has changed dramatically over the years but with good reason. Research shows that by the time children reach the end of third grade they must have their reading skills and strategies mastered in order to be successful readers and writers. No need to panic. You know your child best. Do what you feel is in your heart. Remember, learning is liking walking. You didn't expect your child to get up and just start walking one day. She first needed to roll over, crawl, support herself on furniture, balance and then walk. Approach her learning in the same way. Take baby steps. Acknowledge her for where she is at on the learning continuum, celebrate her, and move her along from that point. A wonderful website you can visit to print copies of simple sight word books for your child to read at home is www.ReadingAtoZ.com You will have to pay a small membership fee to print the materials.

Yes I agree -- but long before 9/11 the government was sticking their nose in education & after 9/11 the citizens of the U.S. sort of rolled over and let them -- I'm saying that as a group not as individuals -- even those of us that did speak out our voice wasn't loud enough or politically powerful enough to sway those that had the power to make education legislation what it needed to be -- pertinent, powerful & appropriate FOR ALL KIDS & practical & well funded for those that are educating & understandable for those that parent.

You are not the first educator I have heard say those very words to me.. I know many a teacher who has alot of ill feelings about the standards of learning and how they are used to push these kids so hards its just unthinkable. I would just like to see some of the old ways come back into play and focus.. where the kids were given a chance to actually learn and enjoy it all at the same time... The government needs to wake up and realize, smart or not, our kids will not know when and if another 9/11 happens.. its not rocket science in that.. no one is ready for an attack.. I know in a certain way, the government means well, but really.. its time to give education back to the educators and parents.. we knew what we were doing before 9/11 we know what we're doing now.. and we know whats just too much for all the kids..

I'll be honest with you .. I often consider leaving eduaction because ethically it makes me ill to see how hard we push kids. I often contemplate opning my own preschool and doing what I know is best for kids and what will prepare them for public education when they turn 5. I don't know what to say other that No Child Left Behind. I suspect in time the pendulum will swing and their will be a huge out cry, but you have to understand that no child left behind was passed on the back of the world trade center bombing ---- the government want you to believe that if our kids were smarter the bombing would not have happened.

They really do get loaded down with homework.. I am shocked that the school systems feel these children can handle such a work load as this. And they are expected to be well behaved 24 hrs a day when in school.. It makes me angry and sad to see how much things change every yr. I will be dealing with it again this yr and honestly, Im worried over how much homework my little boy will be brining home. Much of the time, the schools dont even get that this is just TOO much for such a young child. They do experience an level of over load that when met, they react too. This is why, IMHO schools PUSH behavior drugs so much.. they do not get the work over load on kids.
I get that they need to know certain things, but I also feel that all things can be easily learned in and at it's right time.
At 5 and 6 yrs old, kids need to be allowed to chill out to keep that over load from getting the best of them.

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