all day kindergarten

[Karla]

Hey, my school district has agreed to pilot several sections of all day kindergarten...yeah. I am looking for any good tips...nap thoughts and SCHEDULES. I am very excited.

[Amy2]

Karla, this is so interesting to find your post here this morning. There was an editorial in the Seattle Times this morning, touting all day Kindergarten. For me, I specifically chose NOT to go for an all day kindergarten. I feel like it is too much for most five year olds, and why put them in so early when they'll have to go all day next year? (Tristan will be doing kindergarten from nine to one three days a week, and all day on the fourth day. Halfway through the year we will increase his attendence to add another full day to prepare him for full time next year.) I wonder if I am missing something? What do you consider the upside of all day programs? Amy

[MaryL]

IMHO, some children are not ready for all day Kindergarten. My school offers only half day programs, but other schools nearby have the full day option. Some children who have been in childcare for a full day and are used to that sort of schedule usually do fine. Children who still nap, and are not used to being scheduled all throughout the day may/may not do as well. I really think it depends on each individual child. You'll need to really decide if it is right for your family. I get bugged when people use all day kindergarten for "childcare solution" only. My own ds, who will be in Kindergarten next Fall, would probably do wonderfully in an all day program. He's used to being gone from me all day (he attends family day care during the school year), and he no longer naps.

[AnnW]

My oldest went to half day K..full day wasn't offered. He could have done all day..he didn't nap, he was almost 6, and very bright. Because it was half day, they went at a fairly fast pace to get all the material in that they needed to in a short period of time. That was great for him because he was/is very smart, but it was hard on alot of the kids. One of the nice plus sides to half day and the faster pace was that they needed the parents in there helping all the time, so that was great to be able to see what was happening in the classroom, meet all the kids and really get to know them.
DD was in full day kindergarten. (our school changed from half day to full day) She struggled a little more with the "all day" concept..it really wore her out, but they did have rest time and many of the kids slept. For her half day and the faster pace would have been a disaster...she needed the extra amount of time spent on the subjects that full day afforded the teachers. She also loved getting to go to the computer lab, art, music and health fitness...my ds didn't get to do any of those cause half day didn't afford them the time.
I think there are plusses and minuses to each program and you can't just say a program is good because it's half day or full day and vise versa, you can't say it's bad because it's half day or full day. I think it depends on the child and what they are actually doing during the school day.

[JAK]

My dd went to all day Kindergarten and they did not have a nap/rest time. They WORKED all day. Several of the younger children in the class had a hard time with it, but most did great. They did have Pre-K in the elementary school as well (5 days a week/ 2 1/2 hours). I think that's what prepared them for the all day kindergarten.

My ds will start kindergarten in Sept. and it is all day as well. Since we are now at a different school, I wonder if they take naps/rest? Will be intresting to see. He will have a long day as school here is 6 1/2 hours a day.

[kat]

Jen, I teach all day kindergarten. I can't imagine not having nap time. Our principal is against it and wants to cut it out. But they need it. About half of mine sleep and they all benefit from just resting. We have nap time from 1:00 - 2:00. We break up the work times with recesses (we have 3) and less structured center time.

My only experience with half day programs has been kids that have transfered in, and without exception those kids were far behind academically. They've had too much play and socialization and little to no academics. I don't know how half day kdg in your areas are.

[momtomonkeys]

I taught kindergarten for six years, full day. The kids I taught never had a problem with it. They did take good naps each day (of course some didn't). Some of my parents noted that they were very tired the first week or two but after that they did fine. I think we really stayed busy which helped the kids.

Something even more controversial is that my dd is going to private school in the Fall. She will be in Pre-k for 4 year olds. She will turn five in Nov. so she cannot start kindergarten this year in GA. The pre-k will be a full day! They do have an option of early dismissal which is only an hour or so earlier, but they miss their special classes like music, P.E., art and Spanish. Those classes are usually one of the best parts of school so I know she will not want to miss them. What do you do? They have to go five days a week. I really want her to attend this school. She is also extremely excited about going! The other kicker is that she has never attended preschool. I have been home-schooling her! Yikes! Talk about a transition...she will surely have one!

I know the upside of all day is that they are able to learn lots and not be pressed for time (especially in a public school where a lot of time is spent in the hall, going to assemblies, listening to annoc., etc.....in other words wasted down time). I could never have fit all the info I taught in a half day that is for sure.

[Linda/NE]

My older boys both had half day programs. I think they learned a lot, but I personally didn't like the hours. They didn't offer busing for them which made for a real headache in transportation.

My dd will go all day 3 days a week. We'll see how it goes, but I think we'll like it better than the half day. In talking with the kindergarten teachers in the area, they really like it. With half day programs they felt that is was a constant rush to cover all the bases. The full day programs gives them the flexibility to add more creativity and spontaniety to the lessons.

The public school will have all day everyday. There is concern with some parents that it is too much for the kids and the teacher will not have enough help. Some parents are thinking of sending their kids to one of the schools this year and then to the other next year.

I think many times the younger children you find having problems are the result of parents choosing to send children to kindergarten to save daycare costs. I know of one little boy who won't turn 5 until late summer or early fall. He's small for his age, too. The parents are sending him to the all day everyday program because their daycare costs are $1000/month. I know another little girl who will probably be in dd #1's class who is younger than dd#2. The daycare cost is a factor here as well.

The best parents can do is assess the programs available in their area and decide what is best for their child.

[andyandlexismom]

My daughter started full day kindergarten this year and I was convinced that it was going to be horrible for her. I was so wrong! They have nap time at the same time every day. I never thought that my DD would take part in it but she does. In fact, more often than not, she says that she goes to sleep. ;) We had a rough time with it the first couple of weeks only because she was not used to being away from me for so long but after things settled down with that, she now LOVES school!! (I was harder on me to take her to her class and have her break down crying and begging me to stay and then have her teacher to tell me to just walk away. OMG, talk about heartbreaking!) We both got over it! :loveeye:

My son attended 1/2 day kindergarten and excelled in school but at this point in the school year, my dd has already learned more. I do agree that parents have to evaluate their children to see if they will be able to function in an all day class. My son was tested in Pa. before being enrolled in kindergarten but here in NC, my daughter was not. In both cases, I home preschooled them. I think that it's the parent's responsibility to prepare their children. They might surprise you once school starts.