Submitted by Jutti Marsh (not verified) on February 14, 2008 - 01:50.
Two of my sisters have taught kindergarten for a number of years. They comment how kinder has changed since they first started teaching it. It is a far cry from kinder=child garten=garden. Kindergarten used to be a chance for children to socialize, learn to function in a school setting, and develop oral language.
At one point I taught in a multi-age classroom: K-2. By the second year of the program it was apparent that giving children time to develop is very important. Things kinder students struggled to learn were a snap for first graders. Language and math skills that first graders spent weeks trying to master were easy for second graders. The big aha: children learn easily when they are developmentally ready to learn what is being taught.
I am currently teaching fourth grade. We are faced with teaching many concepts that are beyond fourth grade. The other day, during math, one of my students stepped back, looked at work we had done on the board and said "This looks like high school!" He was right!
Early Education in Sweden
Submitted by Jutti Marsh (not verified) on February 14, 2008 - 01:50.
Two of my sisters have taught kindergarten for a number of years. They comment how kinder has changed since they first started teaching it. It is a far cry from kinder=child garten=garden. Kindergarten used to be a chance for children to socialize, learn to function in a school setting, and develop oral language.
At one point I taught in a multi-age classroom: K-2. By the second year of the program it was apparent that giving children time to develop is very important. Things kinder students struggled to learn were a snap for first graders. Language and math skills that first graders spent weeks trying to master were easy for second graders. The big aha: children learn easily when they are developmentally ready to learn what is being taught.
I am currently teaching fourth grade. We are faced with teaching many concepts that are beyond fourth grade. The other day, during math, one of my students stepped back, looked at work we had done on the board and said "This looks like high school!" He was right!
Jutti
Los Angeles, California