Full day Kindergarten, Good idea or not?

[Anonymous]

I think it's great for working parents who don't have nannies, and that's quite a few of us. (Not all of us, but the majority of moms I know, personally.) My daughter's always been in full-day daycare, it's what she knows, and after doing full-day daycare and full-day preschool, she'll be ready for full-day kindergarten, and full-day elementary won't be such a transition. I imagine full-day kindergarten will be a lot harder for kids who are used to being home, or going to a half-day preschool.

[Anonymous]

I have 3 kids, aged 3, 6, and 8, and all 3 were/are nappers up through JK. I think it's genetic - doesn't matter what time they went to bed - we tried putting them to bed earlier and it made no difference. My first DS attended full day K and we would get notes home from the teacher saying that he wanted to nap during recess - one time he laid down in the snow (in snow pants and full snow gear) and went to sleep on the playground at recess. My 2nd DS is now in 1/2 day K, with after K SACC, and it is perfect. I thought he would be bored as he attended full day preschool and full day junior K, but it really has been a wonderful transition. We are planning on sending our 3rd DS to 1/2 day K as well. I realize that some kids grow out of needing a nap/rest in the afternoon much earlier, so full day K may be great for those kids.

Both my DH and I work full time, so we had to juggle a bit to handle the 1/2 day K, but it has been worth the hassle.

[Anonymous]

The concept of full days being "too much" is so odd to me. I grew up abroad and attended full-day (8:30-3:30) preschool starting at 3, as did pretty much everybody else I knew, regardless of whether they had an at-home parent. We did have naptime through age 5 and three outdoor play periods per day.
Some of the most difficult parts of adjusting to school for a kid seem to me just making the daily switch from "at home" to "at school" routine/rules/people, plus the time wasted commuting, so I would hate to impose those disruptions on a kid for just 2-3 hours' worth of the school experience.

[Anonymous]

Serious question and not being snarky: What happens when all day 1st grade comes around?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Being in a school environment can be more tiring than just being at home, because there are a lot more kids to interact with and more is expected of thr child -- having to follow the rules, pay attention, stand in lines, do "work" etc.

Mine is exhausted by full-day K. He falls asleep on the car ride home and has gone back to napping on the weekends. It is pretty overstimulating for many kids esp the boys who are all just dying to run around. Thank God for recess!

I thought my son would be exhausted, but because he doesn't get to run around a lot during the day he is quite hyper by the time he gets home. If possible, my nanny or I take him to the playground to run around immediately after school for 45 minutes or so, but now with the colder weather that is impossible. Even with PE and recess, it is still not enough for him. That said, he is doing well in full day K and likes school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Serious question and not being snarky: What happens when all day 1st grade comes around?

Well, the children are a year older than they were when they started kindergarten. That makes a big difference.

[Anonymous]

The only problem with that is those kids who are older for their grade. My daughter has an early November birthday. Thankfully, she was in full-day Kindergarten. She was mature enough to eat lunch in the cafeteria and to handle a full day. I cannot imagine her waiting until she was almost 7 years old to go to school for a full day. I do have a child on the other end (one of the younger kids in the grade with a late spring birthday), and full day was more of a challenge for her.

The problem with 1/2 day, though, at least in FCPS is that Mondays are ridiculous. They are only in school for 2 hours! So basically they are in school for 3 hours 4 days per week and 2 hours 1 day per week. Even for children who did not go to daycare full-time (mind did not), preschool hours were longer than that!

There is no perfect answer for every child.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question and not being snarky: What happens when all day 1st grade comes around?

Well, the children are a year older than they were when they started kindergarten. That makes a big difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is no perfect answer for every child.

Agreed. My ds is in K at a charter school from 8 - 4:30 and has a late August birthday. He wasn't the least bit tired until we enrolled in a half hour karate class twice a week. He also did full days in pre-k3 and pre-k4.

[Anonymous]

My daughter is in first grade now and had full-day kindergarten last year. I personally think full-day kindergarten is almost a necessity these days because of the amount of material they expect kindergarteners, and first graders, to master.

Our full-day kindergarten included a lot of curriculum but still left plenty of time for recess, centers, nap time, and so on. If they had half day kindergarten I'm pretty sure they wouldn't get that extra down time and would still be expected to learn all the material in half the time, and then they'd show up at full-day first grade and it would be a shock to the system. First grade is much more demanding, not nearly as much "fun time" and still more to learn and retain....