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Getting Ready for Kindergarten
Ohanian Comments: Kids who might be young for kindergarten, enroll in a special class to get prepped on letter sounds. I special letter sounds and numbers prep available so kids can succeed in this class? Will Standardistos ever consider the question How soon is too soon?
Program Eases Kids into Classroom
By KAREN CROSBY
12/19/2003
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The North Polk school district is making sure its youngest kindergartners are prepared to face the challenges of going to school.
This year, 15 children, including four from the Ankeny school district, are enrolled in a program called optional kindergarten class. It's designed for students who are young and might need help succeeding in school.
West Elementary School Principal Pam Dodge said the program helps ease the students" transition into the classroom. She said without this option, some children might wait another year to attend school or struggle to succeed in kindergarten.
Instead, the eight students in teacher Jamie Weeden's class are busy practicing the skills they need to become competent learners.
"How do we make the number 19?" Weeden asked her attentive students, who had arranged themselves on the floor in a half-circle in front of the board.
Weeden chose Noah Fisher, 5, from the group of hand-waving children to draw the numbers. He sprang from the floor, found a marker and carefully drew the numbers on the board under the watchful eye of his teacher.
"Great job, Noah," Weeden said.
Encouragement and more teacher interaction are what students with birthdays in late summer and early September need to be successful, according to the program's philosophy. The class is for 4-year-olds about to turn 5, or those who have recently turned 5. At this point, many are not yet ready for the full-day kindergarten experience.
Weeden said her students need extra time to develop academically and emotionally. This can be true even if the child was sent to preschool the year before.
Optional kindergartners attend class all day, every other day, instead of five days a week as in regular kindergarten. The curriculum focuses on building many of the same skills, but at a slower pace. Optional kindergarten students move on to attend the regular kindergarten class their second year in school.
On a recent morning, the children worked on letter and number recognition, phonic awareness, counting and making patterns. The students also wrote a story focusing on items that start with the letter "B."
"A boy makes a bologna sandwich on a boat with a bald man," said Taelor Nealley, 5, as she smiled to her teacher.
Weeden said students who have completed the optional kindergarten program and go on to the regular kindergarten class typically know more letters and numbers than the average new kindergarten student.
"Next year, these kids may well be the first readers in the class," Weeden said. "But just as important, optional kindergarten gives an extra year for the development of social skills."
Developing good listening skills and learning proper school behavior are a focus of optional kindergarten. Throughout the year, Weeden's optional kindergartners pair up with older student mentors. Youngsters not only enjoy this experience but also learn important skills and behaviors from the older students, Weeden said.
After completing the morning activities, Weeden said to her stu- dents, "Now let's line up for music."
As she sang out the names of colors, the children jumped from the floor when they heard the color they wore. Once everyone was lined up at the door and prepared to leave, the class confidently walked out of the room in a straight line without looking back.
That is exactly how Weeden said she hopes her students will approach kindergarten next year.
Des Moines Register
2003-12-19
http://desmoinesregister.com/news/stories/c4780927/22858600.html
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