Has anyone noticed that new standards seem to move requirements down a grade level? What was once required in 5th grade is now required in 4th. First grade standards are moving into kindergarten. What does this mean?
Are our kids suddenly smarter? More capable? More worldly? More knowledgeable due to all the technology surrounding them each day? Parents and teachers should read this article...Kids Haven't Changed: Kindergarten Has.
Great food for thought.
I have said this for the past few years. I am all for high standards & I want my personal children to learn a lot and become successful. BUT ~ at what point is a child's maturity just not ABLE to grasp a concept?!?! Especially little boys, it just breaks my heart! I hope that I am around long enough to see it swing the other way again...
ReplyDeleteThanks for the article.
~Fern
Fern-Smith.Blogspot.com
It was when we were leaving the kindergarten orientation for my oldest son that my husband turned to me and said, "OK, you can homeschool."
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to change these modern perceptions among the few I interact with, but it's very difficult. I don't know why they listen to each other instead of the research and the older moms who have been there.
ReplyDeleteI'm so gald we kept my youngest home instead of sending him to kindergarten. He is a late August birthday. He HATES to color so his fine motor skills for writing are his weak area however he loves math and science. He is actually working at a 1st grade Math level and except for his penmanship skills he is reading at a 1st grade level but would not have kept up in the public school system I was able to tweak his lessons to help him thrive... The system unfortunately expects these kids to thrive but doesn't manipulate the environment or the process to help them grow and learn.
ReplyDeleteI have put together a daily blog intended to be used as an additional study tool for you and your child. History, math, science, vocabulary, and geography are given every day many with a link to the document to study. I also have researched sources that I hope may be helpful to you as an aide for your child. The site is actually very child friendly in terms of use.
ReplyDeleteI ask you to visit it and see what it has to offer. The first post “The Furniture of the Human Mind” will explain the site and hopefully you will look around.
Thank You
http://www.dailyhistory365.blogspot.com
That is a great article, and it makes me wonder who is it that keeps pushing these unreasonable standards on our students. If parents, teachers, and child development experts are all able to recognize that some of the expectations are not appropriate, then why can't policy makers? I'm like Fern, I'm all for high expectations, but the curriculum should be developmentally appropriate.
ReplyDeleteIt's heartbreaking. I feel so sorry for all those kids who, at age five, are already receiving the message that they aren't good enough. No wonder drop out rates are so high in high school!
ReplyDelete