Parents of kindergarteners... Opinons please full time or part time?

Question

Okay Where you live does your school have full or part time kindergarten? Do you feel feel the program is effective for its duration? If you child goes full time do you think the benefits are larger then the part time programs? If your child goes or went part time do you think they would have benefited from a full time program?

Answer 1

I'm not a parent of a kindergartner, but I am a kindergarten teacher, so I will give you my professional opinion. If you have the opportunity to send your child to a full day program - DO IT!! It is highly effective for a number of reasons:
-provides more time for an intensive study of kindergarten topics (meaning, they don't usually learn MORE topics, they just get to spend more time learning them and learning them well!)
-greater time for social interaction
-excellent preparation for full day schooling in first grade (where the curricula often get MUCH harder & some schools even begin standardized testing in 1st grade, so full-day K is a good preparation for that)
-more time for remediation and special services if your child needs them.

I hope that helps! Please feel free to email me if you have any questions regarding full or half day programs!

Answer 2

The state I live in has kindergarten going all day 5 days a week. The preschool program is half days, four days per week. In kindergarten here, they were teaching my son to read, math, and all sorts of subjects that I didn't learn until I was in first or second grade. School is so advanced any more that it would almost put them behind the others plus, they benefit from any interaction with other kids and they learn how to walk in lines, raise their hands etc. I think that it may depend on your child, can they read already, do they already have interaction with peers?? I think the part time preschool was great, it prepared them for kindergarten but there was the inconvenience of transportation, etc... If it were my kids, I would say full time kindergarten. Another thing to find out is what they will learn during the year.....

Answer 3

My son had full day kindergarten Monday thru Wednesday just like the older kids. My daughter is starting Pre-k this year and they only go half days, two days a week. I think that a full day definitely benefits the children, half days they spend alot of time settling into the school day and don't actually accomplish much learning, especially if there is a difficult child in the class the teacher spends more time getting that child to settle down, or helping with coats, shoes, etc. that they don't spend enough time on what they are there to do. When my son was in kidergarten they spent a few minutes outside in the morning before school actually started (it was spent between breakfast and playing) after everyone is there and the school day was to begin they would spend a good fifteen to twenty min getting everyones coat hung up and getting the children to their desks. Then they would have about three hours of classroom time, lunch, playtime and naps and then two more hours of classroom time before they go home. This schedule gave them time to learn something rather than just playing, snacks and worrying about coats, shoes and bathroom breaks. It was very beneficial for my son.

Answer 4

I had the choice this year of full or half time and was very wary of the half day option. I chose to speak to my older son's kindergarten teacher as she does an excellent job and has been teaching for many years. What she told me opened my eyes to many things.

While the requirements for kindergarteners have increased enormously, the time available has not. She said that she barely has time to get through all the requirements that she's supposed to and many not as well covered as she would like. She also told me that many states today mandate all day kindergarten and she expects our state to do so eventually.

The all day program my child will attend has a rest period built into it. They also do most of the more academic topics in the morning hours when the children are more fresh. My child will have music, art, gym and library time in the course of the week. I think he will really enjoy his time.

One thing - my child had two years of preschool 2 1/2 hours a day 4 days a week, so he was really ready to go to school.

Answer 5

Mine actually started today.. I feel that she will benefit alot more being there full time than if she were their half a day... she would spend more time on a bus ride than she would in school... my oldest was also full time Kindergarten, and she has done quite well. I feel it is good for them to get into the habit of going full time in kindergarten instead of part and then when they get to first grade they get homework and full time school etc.. it prepares them for future schooling and their education is larger than it is for half day they learn more and socialize more than just a few hours.. it all depends on how early these parents are sending their kids too, we have parents here who send their kid when they just turned 5 and they are not ready so they have to hold them back in kindergarten again because they started them too soon.. it's rediculous..

Answer 6

Our K program went to full days 3 years ago. My oldest son was the last class to go half-days, my middle son just started the full day program. I sent him to a "transittional kindergarten" program last year that was half-days and offered through our public schools -so that he wouldn't have to go full days. I just thought he was too young to spend the whole day in class. I'm fortunate enough to be home during the day so I didn't "need" them to go full days.

I think the program is effective only because the state requirements have increased in several areas. Where our kindergarteners used to only have to be exposed to reading by the end of that year, now they will be tested on how well they actually read.

Aside from state requiremnts, I do not think full days are better. I am just thankful I had other options so my kids did not have to struggle through that first year. And I think they did benefit from going half days to start to get used to the structure and expectations of school.

Now both my boys are among the oldest in their classes. My oldest is in a reading level a grade above him and has NO learing issues to deal with. And I am hopeful my middle child will thrive as well having a year up on most of the kids. -Not to be better than them, but to be able to perform well in comparison with the rest of the class.

Answer 7

my two boys did 1/2 day kindergarten and some of their friends did full day. I noticed that the full day kids were tired and kind of crabby after school. My kids new school has only a full day, and our daughter will go there. I think its going to be a tough transition. Kindergarteners need more breaks, and a little more mom time I think, but if mom is working all day, its a safe and affordable place for them to be.

Answer 8

I have had 2 older boys that went to full day kindergarten. I have a boy in part day kindergarten now (budget cuts). I personally believe that full day is best because they actually have more time to learn things, plus they get more "fun" time like art, music, pe and recess.

But I honestly have not had a lot of time to compare them both because my younger boy just started a couple of weeks ago.

Answer 9

I used to teach grade school, all grades. I would say that a full-day Kindergarten is only effective if your child absolutely does not need a nap, or even a rest time, anymore.

Answer 10

I have not heard of a part-time Kindergarten class.

My son goes full time and I think that is the best for him. You can learn more in a full time setting then a part time.

Here Pre-K has the option of part time or full time. My son went full time in that as well. He loved it!

If there was an option for part time in Kindergarten here I would not take it. My son loves School to much for me to do that to him.