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Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)
Do any northern virginia public schools still have half-day kindergarten?
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Anonymous
| I still think it is BS. If one school is full day, they should all be full day. Every child has the right to the same curriculum and pacing of that curriculum. Just because a child lives in a "better" zip code does not mean that child needs less instruction, and/or time to learn the material. That really pisses me off, and no...I don't think it is fair! |
Anonymous
I totally agree and my school does have full-day kindergarten. I would be pretty annoyed if my kid only got half-day while the children one mile away get full day. |
Anonymous
| Well, it's entirely possible that full day K will go away next year. It almost did this year (except at Title I schools). |
Anonymous
Westbriar was political. It had been the subject of boundary wars. There was an area called Westbriar Island that was bumped from Spring Hill or Great Falls years ago plus a new dev called Middleton. |
Anonymous
Glad my DC is in kindergarten this year then! |
Anonymous
I was doing research on this because we were supposed to move next year out of state, but it is now starting to look like we might have to stay here. Our neigborhood school is a half day kindergarten and for some reason it appears to be the ONLY one in Reston that is half day. Dang it - I really need the full day schedule and I fully admit it is for daycare cost reasons. I cannot afford the extra expenses of after school care PLUS another baby  Nor can I afford to NOT work - totally damned if you do, damned if you don't.
As for 5 year olds not being able to handle full day, that is complete BS. I went to 1st grade at 5 years old and had no issues with the schedule. |
Anonymous
| A lot of 5 yr olds just can't handle 6 and a half hrs of academic K everyday. Watch DCUM this fall for parents talking about their K kids having behavioral issues. They have meltdowns, etc after school (or even at school) due to the long day. Some schools don't even have a rest period anymore in K. God forbid they use 30 mins for rest when they can use them for more instruction! |
Anonymous
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Schools with full-day kindergarten absolutely give nap time everyday until the kids no longer need it. And while "daycare" is not the reason to have full-day kindergarten, many of the children who have 1/2 day K go on to SACC or other activities after school - most do not go home to rest. With a large number of children around here who have been in daycare since they were babies, I don't think full-day k is going to be that difficult for them.
Another food for thought, it used to be that cutoffs in many states were December 31 for starting kindergarten. I was one of those students with a late birthday so not quite 5 when I started kindergarten and not quite 6 when I started 1st grade, which was full day. My son who has a November birthday was not quite 6 when he started full-day kindergarten, nearly the same age that I was when I started full-day first grade. Between the moving up of cutoff dates, along with many children having been in daycare for years, I don't think full-day is that difficult for many. Having said that some students are not ready for full-day K, and for others 1/2 day (especially those not-even-worth-it-to-go-to-school Mondays) K is not nearly enough. The latter was the case for my almost 6 year old son. I was thrilled that he went full-day - he was very ready for it. |
Anonymous
| None of my friends who have kids in full-day K had nap/rest time. It is not mandated so some schools don't have it. And many children have never attended daycare so going to a very academic K program all day everyday is stressful and tiring. |
Anonymous
| I wonder what percentage of kindergarten kids have been in all-day daycare vs. a few mornings at preschool, or home with a parent or nanny. |
Anonymous
| Our daughter had nap time in full day kindergarten in Fairfax County. The kids had to bring a pillow and a blanket in at the beginning of the school year. Every two weeks they came home to be washed. The teacher said some of them napped, and some rested. By about the middle of the year, none of them napped anymore, and they just had a short rest time. |
Anonymous
| It amazes me that there still exists a place where K is 1/2 day. A full day of school is not going to "wipe" a child at that age out. This is the best time to engage them and work their minds. I believe it is more of a fiscal issue when you get down to it. I live in what would be described as a upper middle class neighborhood that still has half day. Once again, I must foot the bill for private school, so that my child can get a proper education. Not that I have an issue with paying for education. My child at 5 is more educated than all his peers whom did not go to a daycare with curriculum. What bothers me is that I have to pay to educate others with my tax dollars. Not to mention, I also pay taxes in MD. The systems not geared toward the working professional with children, but rather stay at home parents or the unemployed. How about I pay half of the taxes? |
Anonymous
LOL at the bolded sentence. Troll much? You forgot to mention all the renters who send their kids to school. Parasites! |
Anonymous
You are incorrect. Every child has a right to a free and appropriate education. There is no right for an identical curriculum and pacing. |
Anonymous
|
There is a long thread about this on the general parenting board. There are 37 schools w/o full time kindergarten.
see http://www.wix.com/fairfaxfdk/fulldaykindergarten or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/FairfaxforFullDayKindergarten. |