Kindergarten Stuff

Kylie - posted on 06/08/2010

My 5 year old went to three year old kindy and learned to write her name there. They started off with finding their name on the bag tags and picking their name out of a a groups of different names. And then the teachers printed each child's name and laminated it and the kids got whiteboard markers and wrote over the top to build their confidence
But honestly i don't think it's a big deal, he sounds like a very bright child and will pick up writing his name when he's at school.

Katherine - posted on 06/08/2010

Ooooh I love those.

Brenda - posted on 06/08/2010

No pre k here. :) I've got him lots of writing/drawing stuff for his birthday, so maybe that will encourage him. Even got him one of the easles witht he white board on one side and chalkboard on the other. :)

Katherine - posted on 06/08/2010

I wouldn't push him, that will just make him nervous. He starts this year in July? We just ended May 27th. Sydney will start Sept 7th and will be 5 Sept 20th. She knows how to write her name, tie her shoes, but I haven't really gotten into the reading part yet. I think one of the major requirements is the name writing. They really don't need to know anything else.

Did he go to pre_K?

April - posted on 06/06/2010

wow...july 15 is early for school to start! is it an all year around school?

don't worry...your little boy is going to do great! he has got your genes and your husband's. he has probably also inherited your ambition, too!

Brenda - posted on 05/29/2010

Used to be Kindergarten (probably equal to your grad 0) was just getting them ready for the school experience, but there are so many expectations on them these days, and whereas years ago kinder was about learning the ABCs now they are expected to write them! Crazy. *sigh* Oh well, got him writting stuff for his bday so maybe he'll take off with it. :)

Aleks - posted on 05/29/2010

From what I have observed with my son ( but each child is different ) is that some things you can't teach them until they are ready to learn. I have been trying to teach my child to write his name and colour in pictures from about the age of 3 or 3.5 and to no avail for a very long time.. Mostly I got the brush off or if he did agree to sit down and colour in (read hold a crayon or pencil) was mainly to humour me! Only recently he has become more interested in that sort of stuff. He actually can colour in pictures very well, trying to stick to the lines and make sure all of the surface area is covered with colour and no white paper is visible, etc. He now takes quite a pride in that, however, he still struggles with writing his name. He gets the letters mixed up (ie, the order in which they go) and also forgets at times which letters there are in his name. I believe that he can 'recognise' his name written down at times, but I don't believe it is reading. He only showed interest in writing down letters at 4.5 yrs (just a few mths ago). Basically wrote out all fo the alphabet on his own (I helped with like 3 letters only), just like that... I was so proud, and yet sad at the same time as I believed that my mum or his dad (whom he had spent quite a bit of time prior to that fateful day) had "taught him" during their time together. I was curious so I asked him: "Who taught you to write these letters?" and his answer was "you did". I didn't quite believed him so rang mum and asked her, then I rang my other half and they both said that they did not spend any time "writing letters"! Guess, I did teach him (what with all that time spent showing him how to "write letters" ), he just didn't do it or wasn't ready to write them.

I believe that a childs brain can retain a lot of information and things learned, but until a certain part of it matures enough or develops enough to tackle a certain activity, the child has no way of being able to express that, be it reading, writing, colouring, hopping on one foot, etc...



Besides, teaching a child to write down ones name, isn't it that teachers job????

Since when do kids have to know how to do that at 5???

I'm in Aust and currently looking around for schools (not kinders) for my son for next year (school year here starts end of Jan early Feb) and anxious parents ask the teachers about school readiness and ability to read and write being the "ready" part and all the teachers have said that some that start can read and write well, others just a little bit, and others yet not at all... However, by the end of that first year (called prep or grade 0 ) just about all kids can read and write!



So, while your worry is very natural please don't stress out too much...



:-)