Is kindergarten really JUST kindergarten? Am I expecting too much???

I have been really disappointed in my son's kindergarten experience so far.... no homework or activities, seems like VERY little instruction of letters and words... I am trying to supplement with as much reading as we can at home. My friends keep telling me that he is just supposed to go and have fun and not to expect much in the way of actual education... I realize kids can learn through play, however, I do want him to learn more than just play.... Am I expecting too much????

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Asked by Anonymous at 1:23 PM on Oct. 2, 2012 in General Parenting

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Sounds like more of a daycare than a school. I would not expect homework, but if they aren't doing much for activities, would be very concerned.

Answer by anng.atlanta at 1:26 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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have you talked to his teacher yet? that might shed some light onto the situation. perhaps she has more methods than 'play' for the school day.
my ds didn't have one bit of homework in k-garten/2nd semester. his first semester (different school/town) he had homework for the week, that was to be turned in on Fridays, along with an expected schedule of having read 5-10books/wk.

Answer by dullscissors at 1:26 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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It gets more with every grade. I think it is just getting them use to part of the school aspect. The rest comes later. Trust me in a couple years you will wonder how the hell are kids supposed to do so much.

Answer by Anonymous at 1:26 PM on Oct. 2, 2012

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My DD gets homework every week, of course, it only takes her one night to do it but, still.

Answer by 3libras at 1:30 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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I wouldn't expect homework. Is your DS learning anything? Can he count, is he learning his letters, how to read them and identify them? The first part of the K seems to be more focused on getting them use to school and doing the very basics. If you are concerned hold a parent teacher conference with his teacher and see what his goals are for the year. My DS's K teacher last year sent home a newsletter spelling out what they would be going over and what the kids were expected to know. DS came home with a lot of art type projects, but he was learning.

Answer by kmath at 1:31 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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My 4 year old even gets homework from preschool. Granted, the assignments are things like "tell 5 people your teacher's name" and "count how many times you can jump on one foot" but I was actually surprised at the amount of actual instruction he's getting. He learned to spell his name in the first 3 weeks! While I wouldn't expect Kindergarten to be overly intensive, I would expect more than what you are describing.

Answer by maecntpntz219 at 1:32 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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When mine went to school and then again with DGS the first few months was a breaking in period. Learning to follow the school routine. and the niceties of classroom behaviour. Then came the spelling words. I think about 5 or so a week at first. In the classroom even from the beginning they were being introduced to coloring within the lines, motor skills, letters and numbers.
When I subbed we were doing subtraction amd addition. This was in a state that was ranked 49th in the nation. So I would be talking to the teacher and seeing what is coming up.

Answer by Dardenella at 1:40 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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In kindergarten mine had homework for the week that they had to turn in on Fridays. If they aren't doing anything other than playing, I would be concerned. Mine were reading when they started so they had reading groups for them, but the majority of the class was learning to read. I would talk to the teacher and find out what the goals for the year are and what exactly they do during the day.

Answer by missanc at 1:54 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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Your school is very different from ours. My grandkids 8 and 9 now both had heavy instruction in kindergarten. You don't leave kinder here unless you have a minimum DRE reading level. I would be talking to the teacher. We also have conference one each semester. We also had homework plus math facts and reading logs.

Answer by GrnEyedGrandma at 2:03 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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DS's K teacher took the first few weeks to review, figure out who was where (some kids went to preschool and were ahead of others, some kids were clueless), and make the plans of how to teach the different groups of kids. Maybe his teacher is still in that kind of phase. I'd talk to her if you're that worried.

Answer by idareyou at 2:10 PM on Oct. 2, 2012
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