[kmomteach]

In this article, I discuss if kindergarten children should learn to read and write. My take on the subject is that if they are ready then why not? Our society demands more and more of students and people. Everything is being pushed to a younger level. While children are being forced to grow up too early, we should also match their capabilities. Others feel that it is an injustice for the children to be learning these skills at such asn early age. What do you think?

[lavatea]

I'm amazed that anyone would criticize kindergarten students learning to read and write! I thought most kids were reading by that age. My 3 yo is on the verge. The only criticism I could see as valid would be against a teacher's methods if he/she were being overzealous or tyrannical, but that would be about teaching style not curriculum.

[allybama]

Honestly...I think Kindergarten is too young. Kindergarten curriculums today are what Grade 1 curriculums were 10-15 years ago which are what Grade 2 curriculums were 10 years before that.

Kids only get a very short time to actually be kids. Kids who are 4-5-6 years old are usually not developmentally ready to sit and be taught things like reading and writing.

I mean, yes, by all means if a kid is interested and seeking it out, teach him. But setting it as a curriculum guideline for ALL kids that age is ridiculous, and almost seems like setting kids up to fail from the very start.

I remember learning things like "don't eat paste" and "share the red crayon" in Kindergarten. When Thomas was in Kindie, I was HORRIFIED that he was expected to do worksheets. I was under the (apparently mistaken) impression that Kindergarten was more about transitioning to school than it was about actual schoolwork. You know, things like learning routines and sharing and making friends and socialising and all those things which are small to us but are HUGE to a child who has never been to school before. I am totally of the mind that the first year of school ought focus on doing these things successfully, and leave the fancy-book-learnin' to the second year, once these important skills have been mastered and the children feel secure, safe and prepared for what school is going to bring.

[Alejandros Mommy]

I understand Ally. Being a mom of boys I advocate for them. Boys are not developmentally ready to sit at a desk for a long time. There are many,many studies that have found this. I only wish that they allowed children te freedom of active learning in the lower grades.

My 8 year old has a wonderful male teacher that he has thrived with. He teaches active learning...but also incorperates lessons that are geared towards the girls as well. My son has grown tremendously this way....and I have seen through my shcool volunteering that other children have as well.

[allybama]

Precisely! Thomas is a freakishly rare boy who can sit and listen to a teacher lecture for weeks at a time, but generally speaking, that's NOT how boys learn.

It is high time that the school systems figured out that teaching kids works best when you do it in a way that is going to work for THEM (after all it is THEIR education) and that continually expecting more of younger students isn't going to produce better results in the short term and in fact will likely produce worse results in the long term. All they will be accomplishing by pushing up the curriculum is that they are going to create students who don't like school, who aren't excited about learning and who don't live up to the potential they all have in them, if they were given just a bit more time to be kids. That time is SO SHORT after all...I am always inclined to just let them be little while they are. In such a short time, they will be grown ups and what do you think they are going to have for memories then? A worksheet at a table in Kindie, or lifelong friendships formed in the block corner?

They have PLENTY of time for learning, but their time to be little is very very limited and I hate to think that we are stealing it from them in the name of being smarter-better-faster-bigger-stronger.

[AussieD]

I taughtmy son to read at 4. With our laws he couldn't go to school till just before he was 5. I taught him before school because he was ready to learn and wanted to. I tried with my daughter. When she wasn't keen, I didn't persist and left it to the school. I think it depends on the child and where they're at develomentally and where they're interests are. And also the quality of the teachers when they are at school to deal with children as individuals with individual needs. What works with one doesn't always work with another.
My duagh

[mcmama]

I have one who was reading at 3 and one who learned in kindergarten but was not really interested in reading. He doesn't read for pleasure, but he does write very well.

Kindergarten needs to be a flexible time for children to really pull together the readiness skills for reading, and encourage those who begin to read.

The one who began to read in Kindergarten was only interested in nutritional panels.

[hennypenny]

I am a big supporter of child and adult literacy. Yes, they should at least be taught to read in kindergarten. However, my brother, myself, and my daughter all learnt to read a long time before starting kindergarten, without being pushed. I hope my other two children will follow suit, as it's been such a wonderful thing

[twinzplus3]

I'm in a minority too--I don't necessarily support teaching kids to read and write in kindergarten. It saddens me that the big push is towards teaching kids things younger and younger. . .without giving them time to develop appropriately. I am happy to share links if someone really feels like they need them but. . .there is pretty compelling research out there that says that teaching a child to read later rather than earlier improves comprehension ten fold. Makes sense--you are able to attach meaning to what you're reading because you've simply experienced more. I just have to say too that supporting reading as a subject to be taught later is not contradictory to supporting early literacy. There is much to be said for reading out loud to children and honestly I think it's under done. But I do recognize that this isn't the direction our schools are going which really kind of puts a damper on the whole, "teach them to read later" thing. I think if we'd back off a little and start teaching kids to read later and instead encourage other types of thinking and communication in the early grades--we'd find ourselves with a generation of kids who love school and love to learn.

With that said. . .I have a 2yo who just taught herself how to read. As in favor as I am of the "later rather than earlier" philosophy--I agree that K should be a time where kids can explore and develop. . .and if that develop happens to naturally take them in the direction of reading well then so be it.

[pattiewrites]

Theoretically I don't have a problem with kids learning to read in K, as long as it is done correctly. I think there is more difference in kids in a Kindergarten classroom than probably any other year. Some have had pre-K, others have never left mommy for 5 minutes prior to K. Some know their letters, letter sounds and concepts of print, others do not have these skills. The problem comes when teachers try to teach the entire class to read using the same book, regardless of whether the kids are emergent readers, early readers or not reading at all. This is INSANE! It really makes my head ache.

I do think writing should be taught with reading. Writing is the inverse process of reading and the two support each other. Writing brings in spelling, phonics, letter sounds, story structure and many other concepts which support the emergent reader. It makes me NUTS that kids aren't learning to write in school until later. When I tell people my K/1 class did writer's workshop every day, they look at me funny. Well, it works and it really helps improve literacy skills.

It isn't really the teachers or curriculum that is pressuring our kids. It is this climate of standardized testing being the be all and end all in terms of measuring learning and NCLB. This is so counterintuitive and does little to improve overall performance in school.