how they deal with multiple levels in MCPS kindergarten

[Anonymous]

Apparently at our school they end up with kids that don't know their letters to kids reading 2nd grade level. Does anyone have any insight on how they deal with that? I hear they don't to as much breaking out of kids in K as upper grades. Or does this totally depend on the school?

[Anonymous]

I think this is true for any public school system. I know it's true for Arlington County and the way they deal with it varies from class-to-class and school-to-school. At our school I know the kids who are reading on 2nd grade level get individualized attention, as do the kids who need extra help learning their letters. I volunteer in the classroom 1x per week and with 2 teachers and 23 kids (I know MCPS do not have assistants), all the kids in the class receive one-on-one attention from either the teacher or assistant to review things they are working on. By January or February they break out into reading groups.

[Anonymous]

I think you totally need to ask your school (or ask about your school specifically). Ours has been great with differentiation--pull-outs for advanced groups of 5-6 with a reading teacher, even accelerating into 1st grade reading groups (for any kids reading many grades ahead, not just 1 or 2). But I've heard and read enough complaints to know that the situation varies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Apparently at our school they end up with kids that don't know their letters to kids reading 2nd grade level. Does anyone have any insight on how they deal with that? I hear they don't to as much breaking out of kids in K as upper grades. Or does this totally depend on the school?

I agree with the others - this is to be expected but they do differentiate once they figure out who's who.

My son didn't know his letters or numbers when he started K, because he went to a Waldorf nursery school (they don't do such things there) and we didn't do any of that at home. He was with the program in a matter of days and now attends a competitive-entrance middle school.

Don't assume that kids who don't know their letters/numbers are any less capable than your child is.

[Anonymous]

That spread (no letters to about 2nd grade reading level) doesn't seem at all big to me. In schools I've taught at we had kids who didn't speak English and knew no letters or sounds, to kids reading up to a 4th grade level -- all in the same kindergarten class. Now THAT's a challenging class to teach!

[Anonymous]

I hear you. Quite the challenge. Just like the spread from counting numbers to 10 and a kid that already knows the multiplication tables (double digit multiplication) and simple division. I seen this too.

[Anonymous]

This totally depends on the school. You need to ask the principal and other parents.