re article on teaching PK through purposeful play--which schools do this well/not well?

[Anonymous]

my DS was at a reggio inspired preschool for a year, and is now at a EOTP charter that is sometimes called HRCS and sometimes not. I am very grateful for the year he spent doing expeditionary learning, and now I am glad he is learning to write letters and do simple math. I like that there are benchmarks and expectations of what he should be able to do by the end of the year, which was absent at the previous preschool. Even though it's still Pre-k, it's structured much more like a regular school day. He's learning as much as he did at the other school, but it's different. He doesn't come home reciting random facts about whatever topic the class is focusing on, he comes home telling me what letter a word starts with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mixed bag at AppleTree LP. IMO good early literacy work but too much drill, sitting, discipline and not enough purposeful play. Really active kids suffer somewhat from a toddler boot camp approach geared at catching up poor kids from tough backgrounds. They clearly aren't used to groups of high SES parents who'd be happy to see more fun and exercise in the mix. It's a really top down program.

In my opinion, purposeful play is a bunch of crap that some parents play into. Some play is fine. But I Want some academics too. My DD is in PK at a HRCS and her best friend is at the up and coming neighborhood public. Bestie can write first and last name, count to 40, knows a few sight words and writes simple sentences. My daughter is drawing pictures and stick figures in one color and playing grocery store. No letters, name writing or counting. My DD can barely write her name and I'm upset about it.

Now my DD and bestie play a new game - school. Guess who's not the teacher, my DD! Play with academics too is my vote! Of course, I feel like I have to now really supplement because in kindergarten there is no play or naps. I plan to now visit my local public and see what the expectation is in Kindergarten because I'm sure that playing house and grocery store is not the expectation. I am seriously considering enrolling my DD in my local public next year but fear that she'll be behind. Perhaps, I'll try Appletree.

I think you need to calm way down. Kindergarten teachers are used to kids with all kinds of background knowledge. They are used to working with different abilities.

[Anonymous]

We had no idea what Tools of the Mind involved before coming to Garrison for PK3, and frankly were a bit bewildered by the initial descriptions of the program, but we love it. The kiddo loves school and has had amazing progress in writing letters/words and numbers and speaking in more complex sentences in just two months. And at our "academic parent team meeting" (their version of a parent-teacher conference, but done collectively with a group of families), we were given instructions and activity supplies to extend learning at home in areas of language, persistence and cognitive abilities. Awesome!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We had no idea what Tools of the Mind involved before coming to Garrison for PK3, and frankly were a bit bewildered by the initial descriptions of the program, but we love it. The kiddo loves school and has had amazing progress in writing letters/words and numbers and speaking in more complex sentences in just two months. And at our "academic parent team meeting" (their version of a parent-teacher conference, but done collectively with a group of families), we were given instructions and activity supplies to extend learning at home in areas of language, persistence and cognitive abilities. Awesome!

Unbelievable! Letters and numbers aren't even supposed to be introduced in PK3. I can believe speaking in sentences but letters, words and numbers? That's a bit of a stretch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mixed bag at AppleTree LP. IMO good early literacy work but too much drill, sitting, discipline and not enough purposeful play. Really active kids suffer somewhat from a toddler boot camp approach geared at catching up poor kids from tough backgrounds. They clearly aren't used to groups of high SES parents who'd be happy to see more fun and exercise in the mix. It's a really top down program.

In my opinion, purposeful play is a bunch of crap that some parents play into. Some play is fine. But I Want some academics too. My DD is in PK at a HRCS and her best friend is at the up and coming neighborhood public. Bestie can write first and last name, count to 40, knows a few sight words and writes simple sentences. My daughter is drawing pictures and stick figures in one color and playing grocery store. No letters, name writing or counting. My DD can barely write her name and I'm upset about it.

Now my DD and bestie play a new game - school. Guess who's not the teacher, my DD! Play with academics too is my vote! Of course, I feel like I have to now really supplement because in kindergarten there is no play or naps. I plan to now visit my local public and see what the expectation is in Kindergarten because I'm sure that playing house and grocery store is not the expectation. I am seriously considering enrolling my DD in my local public next year but fear that she'll be behind. Perhaps, I'll try Appletree.

In my opinion, a child who is a whopping 48 months old cannot get enough free play during the day and almost all academic seat work is stupid and misguided. Some pre-numercy dry bean scooping is okay though.

Just a different opinion from a parent whose now-12 year old is killing it now in academia and has the vocabulary of an adult -- and who had a diet of exclusively "crap" playtime from ages 0-6, when he started formal school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son is at Inspired Teaching: the examples in the story of a successful classroom sounded like the things they are doing. Although play based, they have been working on writing words, simple math, Spanish, and science concepts. He is in PK4. We are very happy with his time there.

+1 My DD is in K at IT, loved her first 2 years and loving her time in K as well. DD plays and learns simultaneously, she doesn't yet know there's a difference between the two.

My son is in preschool at IT and I love seeing what they do in class - very play-focused, but aimed at building skills for learning. I've seen an amazing difference in him, especially in his vocabulary, in just 2 months of school.

[Anonymous]

The original article link isn't working for me. Anyone else?