My kindergartener seems to be stressed and tired

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP I heard the same thing from our MCPS 1st grade teacher. Our transition to K last yr was pretty good apart from the ratios you describe. But the room did have various play areas and toys, and also a lot of the learning was centers where they moved around, stacked things (all those math toys/objects), etc. We heard that there's no more centers this yr in our ES even for 1st? If so it seems like a terrible move - my kid learned a ton but it felt like they also got movement, variety, and a lot of working with classmates and applying their learning tangibly.

I'm that PP and one typo - meant to write that we heard no more centers/small groups type moving around & learning even in K.

Anyone knows the reason behind to get rid of centers/small group type moving around & learning in K starting this year? Any mcps link?

My child in K last year had centers. It sounds like it varies by school/teacher.

[Anonymous]

It varies a lot by teacher but K is very stressful for most kids now. They have removed centers or limited the center time to 30 min max. ELA block is 2 hours and Math block is 75 minutes. Both are waayyyy too long for K students. Ideally, learning should take place organically with 30 min ELA, 20 min phonics / science of reading direct instruction, and 30 min math. There should be lots of opportunities for exploration and free play. Students should have more time in centers and work with teachers mostly in small groups as there is usually a wide gap between student skill level…small groups allow the students to learn and stretch at their own pace. Some students come into K knowing how to read and others don’t know all of their sounds / letters but all kids deserve to be met where they are and have the chance to grow. K students don’t nap anymore but they should be allowed to have 20 minute rest periods with dimmed lights, music or book read aloud because being in school for 7 hours a day can be very overstimulating - particularly when lunch periods overlap with other grades.

[Anonymous]

My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

[Anonymous]

My child had an old school K teacher who did lots of centers. This was about 3 years ago. She still came home pretty tired though. 1st was very tough for her because the centers definitely went away. Even though she had a good teacher, she was pretty unhappy. Now she has adjusted and is fine but I wish the schools did more hands on learning type stuff which I think she would enjoy much more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP I heard the same thing from our MCPS 1st grade teacher. Our transition to K last yr was pretty good apart from the ratios you describe. But the room did have various play areas and toys, and also a lot of the learning was centers where they moved around, stacked things (all those math toys/objects), etc. We heard that there's no more centers this yr in our ES even for 1st? If so it seems like a terrible move - my kid learned a ton but it felt like they also got movement, variety, and a lot of working with classmates and applying their learning tangibly.

I'm that PP and one typo - meant to write that we heard no more centers/small groups type moving around & learning even in K.

Anyone knows the reason behind to get rid of centers/small group type moving around & learning in K starting this year? Any mcps link?

My child in K last year had centers. It sounds like it varies by school/teacher.

I'm that PP and yes mine had it last year too, seemed like it worked great. I heard secondhand that they are changing that this yr, at least at our ES. I haven't seen anything official (to the PP asking for a link to MCPS policy). It may not be universal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

I don't understand why private school parents are commenting so much on the MCPS forum. This is about MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

I don't understand why private school parents are commenting so much on the MCPS forum. This is about MCPS.

Because it's frustrating not to have a local school system where you feel comfortable sending your child.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It varies a lot by teacher but K is very stressful for most kids now. They have removed centers or limited the center time to 30 min max. ELA block is 2 hours and Math block is 75 minutes. Both are waayyyy too long for K students. Ideally, learning should take place organically with 30 min ELA, 20 min phonics / science of reading direct instruction, and 30 min math. There should be lots of opportunities for exploration and free play. Students should have more time in centers and work with teachers mostly in small groups as there is usually a wide gap between student skill level…small groups allow the students to learn and stretch at their own pace. Some students come into K knowing how to read and others don’t know all of their sounds / letters but all kids deserve to be met where they are and have the chance to grow. K students don’t nap anymore but they should be allowed to have 20 minute rest periods with dimmed lights, music or book read aloud because being in school for 7 hours a day can be very overstimulating - particularly when lunch periods overlap with other grades.

I don’t know any K that doesn’t have read aloud. They are still doing read alouds in many 4th/5th grade classes.

[Anonymous]

K is relt stressful! We have kids in MCPS. 27 kids (way too many) In our K class this year. My 3rd grader had 22 and it was much better. There are centers and they change up what they are doing every 20 minutes. But there is no random free play like in preschool, limited quiet time and a lot of listening and moving in unison to transition. And its loud! Really hard on 5 year olds. My Dd is very academic, loves worksheets and writing etc but lack of nap and sheer exhaustion of paying attention all day results in evening meltdowns. She goes to bed early nd we only do one weekday activity. Give them some time to adjust.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

I don't understand why private school parents are commenting so much on the MCPS forum. This is about MCPS.

Because it's frustrating not to have a local school system where you feel comfortable sending your child.

The don’t. But it’s not helpful on the MCPS forum to hear how private schools do things. This is a public system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

I don't understand why private school parents are commenting so much on the MCPS forum. This is about MCPS.

The usual: backdoor recruiting. Dis MCPS and write glowing reports of privates.

[Anonymous]

This is why we opted to invest in private school for kindergarten and first. Kids are now in MCPS and doing great, but we’re able to have a gentler transition to schooling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

I don't understand why private school parents are commenting so much on the MCPS forum. This is about MCPS.

Because it's frustrating not to have a local school system where you feel comfortable sending your child.

Did you base your decision on DCUM?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is in 2nd grade at a private school. K and 1st were nothing like what people have described on here. K in particular still had a lot of learning through play.

I don't understand why private school parents are commenting so much on the MCPS forum. This is about MCPS.

Because it's frustrating not to have a local school system where you feel comfortable sending your child.

The don’t. But it’s not helpful on the MCPS forum to hear how private schools do things. This is a public system.

+1
If folks want to come here to justify spending a ton of money on private and get satisfaction from other's struggles, then lurk quietly.

Btw, I learned the hard way DCUM isn't a good basis for decision making most of the time. My DC just started K in MCPS, and along with other moms I know we are all tentatively thrilled with how well our DCs have adjusted to K. Our kids have all struggled in the past (special needs, counseled out of preschool) so we were expecting trouble. DC's teacher has almost 30 years of experience and is amazing.

I don't say this to deny OP's experience or those of folks who have posted with similar experiences - I believe them to be real. But they reflect the experiences of the people posting here, not the totality of kindergarten families.