When do you start supplementing?

[Anonymous]

Question from a pre k 3 parent at a great Spanish immersion DCPS school. When do you start supplementing? My kid is just now getting over some of the “shock” of adjusting to a new language. She seems to be doing normally well, it’s not like she is writing code or showing signs of genius for a 3 year old. We do fun things on the weekend (swim class, ballet). One of her classmates is starting Kumon. When is a good time to start doing outside educational classes/activities? Do most people wait until around K? 1st grade?

[Anonymous]

Most people don’t ever. Just to be clear.

[Anonymous]

We're in a Spanish immersion DCPS and supplemented English reading at home in kindergarten since ELA didn't start until first grade. DC was reading a grade ahead in Spanish, so it was mostly learning all of the rules and exceptions for English. Not necessary, but didn't hurt and DC enjoyed practicing. We also did a lot of history and science reading because DC liked it, not because I thought my 6 year old NEEDED to learn about the Civil War or the digestive system.

Kumon for a 3-4 year old is SO extra. Anything they can do (like phonics and counting, I guess?) a halfway engaged parent could do equally well.

[Anonymous]

Never. Mom of four successful college grads.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Never. Mom of four successful college grads.

Things have changed, unfortunately.

Anyway, Kumon for three year olds sounds dumb. The commute alone eats up an awful lot of time you could spend actually engaging with the child.

While I played games like "count the m&ms" and pushed high-level vocabulary classic literature at my toddlers as if I were the neighborhood drug dealer, I don't think I started anything formal with them until the summer before kindergarten. That's when I started teaching them how to read.

[Anonymous]

You're worried about this in PK3? Please let your child have a childhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're in a Spanish immersion DCPS and supplemented English reading at home in kindergarten since ELA didn't start until first grade. DC was reading a grade ahead in Spanish, so it was mostly learning all of the rules and exceptions for English. Not necessary, but didn't hurt and DC enjoyed practicing. We also did a lot of history and science reading because DC liked it, not because I thought my 6 year old NEEDED to learn about the Civil War or the digestive system.

Kumon for a 3-4 year old is SO extra. Anything they can do (like phonics and counting, I guess?) a halfway engaged parent could do equally well.

Thanks! I will worry about this in K then. We read a lot at home, but again, we just do fun stuff. I didn’t realize how many people were doing outside academic classes and even more low key stuff like worksheets and flash cards until this year. It wasn’t something I was planning on doing but it’s hard to know what is extra and when that extra stuff is actually helpful.

[Anonymous]

I think Kumon at age 3 is a little overboard.

I started my son at 4 by accident. When the schools shut down in March 2020 I was just trying to find something online with circle time type stuff to keep him in the preschool routine and for a year he ended up watching a daily stream by a former K teacher that taught letter sounds, counting, some writing. It had a lot of fun things too like songs and dancing so he enjoyed it. That ended eventually but he was so far ahead I just continued. Right after he turned 5, he asked me to teach him to read so we did the "teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons". He's in K now doing 1st grade work. I have 5 Kumon workbooks (addition, subtraction, geometry, reading, writing) and he does one lesson a day (sometimes he wants to do 2) in the book assigned for that day (eg monday- addition, tuesday- writing etc). No more than 20 min a day. I will keep going as long as he is interested.

[Anonymous]

If you’re going to do anything, start a music program. Read to your child everyday. Nothing else will have much impact this young.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never. Mom of four successful college grads.

Things have changed, unfortunately.

Anyway, Kumon for three year olds sounds dumb. The commute alone eats up an awful lot of time you could spend actually engaging with the child.

While I played games like "count the m&ms" and pushed high-level vocabulary classic literature at my toddlers as if I were the neighborhood drug dealer, I don't think I started anything formal with them until the summer before kindergarten. That's when I started teaching them how to read.

Not really. What you described is pretty standard patenting. ..playing counting games, reading books, supporting reading when the kid seems ready.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never. Mom of four successful college grads.

Things have changed, unfortunately.

Anyway, Kumon for three year olds sounds dumb. The commute alone eats up an awful lot of time you could spend actually engaging with the child.

While I played games like "count the m&ms" and pushed high-level vocabulary classic literature at my toddlers as if I were the neighborhood drug dealer, I don't think I started anything formal with them until the summer before kindergarten. That's when I started teaching them how to read.

Not really. What you described is pretty standard patenting. ..playing counting games, reading books, supporting reading when the kid seems ready.

The "things have changed" is a response to someone who said "never". Nothing has really changed for very young children, but I have a low opinion of the reliability of schools as far as teaching things -- e.g reading, which is a bunch of 3 cuing nonsense in most of the local districts. The huge number of tutoring centers in strip malls isn't for the aesthetics (though I think that generally supplementing is better done at home.)

[Anonymous]

Third grade, we started Russian School of Math.

Before then we played games, read, and went to museums and the like.

[Anonymous]

I have a 3 year old that started preschool this fall. We do not, and have no plans to, do any sort of formal academic supplementing for the foreseeable future. I will consider teaching to read if there is interest before K.

That’s not to say we don’t support our child’s learning at home. So much natural play lends itself to teaching moments. Numbers, counting, letters, art supplies, play doh and kinetic sand (builds hand strength for writing), puzzles, easy board games, etc. etc.We read a ton, started easy chapter books and classic books with more difficult vocabulary. Limit screen time to educational shows or nature documentaries. Learning apps on the iPad. Go hiking, to museums, the zoo or aquarium. Kids this age are just constantly soaking everything up.

[Anonymous]

From birth. Started with Greenspan’s “First Feelings,” eventually moved on to the Gymboree soft bound play book.

Did baby sign language a la “Arrival,” then started holding her hand to my mouth when I spoke so she could feel vibrations from the sounds I was making.

Constant eye contact, lots of baby-wearing. Read to her ALL THE TIME. Anything and everything including road signs and cereal boxes.

Chose the right preschool, then the “right” public that we had paid a lot of $$$ to live near. Left for private. The only supplementation we do now is heritage language with a private tutor. I wasn’t a fan of the c2- or Kumon-type chains.

YMMV and good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From birth. Started with Greenspan’s “First Feelings,” eventually moved on to the Gymboree soft bound play book.

Did baby sign language a la “Arrival,” then started holding her hand to my mouth when I spoke so she could feel vibrations from the sounds I was making.

Constant eye contact, lots of baby-wearing. Read to her ALL THE TIME. Anything and everything including road signs and cereal boxes.

Chose the right preschool, then the “right” public that we had paid a lot of $$$ to live near. Left for private. The only supplementation we do now is heritage language with a private tutor. I wasn’t a fan of the c2- or Kumon-type chains.

YMMV and good luck.

This is also just normal parenting (with enough $$ to afford private).