K Push

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Home : 2002 : April : 18

K Push
By Rae

I don't find your commments critical at all. I appreciate your questions and enjoy sharing and discussing issues on this subject!

I present the letter sounds, etc. similar to how you stated you do in the play centers and
in real life context. (For example, if a child decides to write story about a cat, they may begin to ask how it is spelled. I encourage them to listen to the sounds in the word and write what they hear.)
But then I have children who are simply not ready for any kind of formal reading presentation. I don't think these kids should be looked at as failures, just kids with different

needs, different strengths.

I observe and see if there are children in my room who are interested and ready for more reading instruction. If they are, or ask for it, I will meet with small groups of kids and design games, stories, etc to get acquainted with sounds. I have recently begun to feel the academic push to have these kids be accountable for reading skills so young. I am getting worried that the standards in my district are going to change. But I don't think it's right. I am trying to get a feel for how many kindergarten programs out there are feeling the push as well.

These standards seem to drive us all nuts! It seems as if there is such a push to have kids reading in kindergarten. I guess I don't see the value in it. (As far as direct instruction to the whole class) There are so many children that need remediation in first, I just think that if we waited, the kids would be better off. Especially with all of the brain research that's coming out now and the speculation that early academic pushes can actually cause learning disabilities.

It's great to hear that some of us are still allowed to give our children play time! (I think that is where the bulk of learning takes place and so many skills are learned.)

If you have any specific questions about play and skill development, please feel free to ask.