Ready to Register Your Child for Kindergarten?

I noticed in the newspaper the other day that registration for kindergarten is beginning next month in a nearby school district. Apparently students now have to be 5 years old by September 1st if enrolling for the 2012-2013 school year. So, it looks like the Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 is finally taking affect for the coming school year in California. When I checked to see what the kindergarten cut-off dates were in other states, I found that a majority of U.S. states appear to already have birth date requirements in August and September. It surprised me that California hadn't done this sooner. 


What is the Kindergarten Readiness Act? It's a new law in CA requiring the birthday cut-off date for kindergarten moved from December 2 to September 1 by the 2014-2015 school year. It's supposed to only roll back one month per year beginning in 2012, but apparently many school districts are opting to just jump ahead to the September 1 date and avoid any confusion. 
Additionally, the statute mandates that schools offer transitional kindergarten (TK), a voluntary 1st year of a 2 year kindergarten experience, for children who fall into the "gray area" with a 5th birthday between September and December. This amounts to about 130,000 four-year-olds in California this year. The argument is that a year of kindergarten readiness will improve student achievement and narrow the achievement gap (of course, someone wants to make sure test scores continue to rise). Also, children who start school too young not only have less academic and social preparation, but they tend to struggle to keep up with their older classmates. Transitional kindergarten sounds like a great fix, if schools can get the funding needed to actually implement it.


What do educators think about the Kindergarten Readiness Act? I have read numerous articles and spoken to several teacher friends and can sum it up with this: "It's about time!"  Teachers feel the pressure of meeting academic standards (yes, even in kindergarten). They are relieved that the "burden" of having four-year-olds who are not prepared to begin school will be eased, making their jobs a little bit easier. Also, many schools now start in July or August, making that many more four-year-olds in the classroom than when school started in mid-September.  One kindergarten teacher informed me that her kindergarten students are expected to know all of their letters, sounds, and basic sight words by December, when they are already blending and segmenting phonemes in words. The older children are ready for this, but the students with later birthdays "are USUALLY the ones that are having the most trouble, both academically and socially." 


Kindergarten is much different now than it used to be. It has a much more academic focus. One teacher commented, "With the rigorous standards, there isn't room for socialization" anymore. Another teacher friend of mine won't even put her own child into public Kindergarten, because she wants him to enjoy a well-rounded curriculum with art, music, PE, and the smaller class size that only private schools seem to be able to manage now. 


I visited the CA Department of Education website to look at the particulars. I was happy to see that exceptions can be made to the law. Under the Kindergarten Readiness Act, a child born after September 1 can still be admitted to kindergarten on a case-by-case basis, if the parent applies for early admission AND the school district agrees it would be in the best interest of the child.
Why do I care about this? Yes, my children are well beyond kindergarten, but if this law had passed before my youngest had started kindergarten, I would have had a problem with it. She has a late September birthday, but was ready for kindergarten when school started just after the 4th of July and she was still four years old. She could count past 30 and knew most of her letters and sounds when she began, and two years of preschool had already primed her social development. Fast forward ten years, and here she is ready to graduate from high school in three years instead of four, with her sights set on getting a PhD in a math or science field. I can't even imagine how much it would have held her back if we hadn't been able to enroll her in kindergarten until the following school year. Yes, there are exceptions to every rule.


It still amazes me that kindergarten can have academic standards and not be mandatory.  I checked online and found that each state has its own attendance laws that specify at what age schooling is mandatory, with ages ranging from five to eight years old. So kindergarten is mandatory in some states but not in others. Apparently this is the case world-wide as well, with many countries offering kindergarten as part of preschool, and some requiring it while most do not.


 If you have a 4-year-old and are looking to enroll soon, be sure to check with your local school district for their enrollment requirements. And be ready for the tears to fall when you watch your baby walk into that classroom for the first time....

Happy Anniversary #NCLB! That's Quite a Legacy You've Left Behind....

What will No Child Left Behind's legacy be?
o A focus on testing at all costs.
o Forget a well-rounded education - just teach reading and math.
o Schools who can't reach an impossible goal are failures.
o A flawed attempt at education reform.
o Children left behind... end of story.




This month marks the ten year anniversary of one of the most controversial pieces of educational reform in history. In January of 2002, then President George W. Bush signed into law the No Child Left Behind Act, an update to the original 1965 Elementary and Secondary Act, where the idea of raising achievement and closing gaps first originated. In a recent interview George W. said he is "extremely proud of the effects of No Child Left Behind."


Really? Proud of the effects? Proud that almost half of U.S. public schools aren't meeting their Adequate Yearly Progress? Proud that elementary teachers have to sacrifice time for history, science, art, and music to spend more time on language arts and math? Proud that our highest achievers are no longer being pushed to excel?


I'm not one for bashing and name-calling, but when I was teaching in the classroom those four letters, N C L B, were like a four-letter word in my ears. The focus on test-taking and preparation has placed an unnecessary burden on teachers, schools, and the children sitting in their classrooms. For what? A test that gives a snapshot of performance on one day, in one format that may or may not be aligned to the child's best learning style.


Teachers have been beaten down (metaphorically, of course) by the loss of authentic teaching experiences they once loved to share with their expectant students. Social studies, science, and art classes have been removed from the instructional minutes at many elementary schools. Special education teachers complain that they don't get enough time to teach important life skills, because of the academic push to "bring up" this subgroup. And we are actually seeing less progress from our highest achievers; they are already in the Proficient or Advanced range, so they get overlooked in the monumental task of trying to bring up the scores of the rest of the students.


I have to give NCLB some credit. As much as I hate to admit it, No Child Left Behind has helped bring about some necessary changes in public schools. We have seen increased accountability for all students and sub-groups in public schools. The achievement gap is much smaller now than it was ten years ago. Without NCLB, we probably wouldn't have seen higher achievement in schools with low-income, minority, and low-achieving students. We might not have award-winning reading intervention programs in place (where schools can afford them), and maybe we wouldn't have RTI (Response To Intervention) strategies being used. Effective, research-based teaching methods such as Direct Interactive Instruction might never have been developed, as well as the mounds of research being done on effective strategies for working with special needs and English-language learners.


Is it realistic to expect ALL children to test Proficient or above by 2014? I think all children can improve and show progress towards goals, but I don't think EVERY child's best on a standardized test (especially a new English-learner or student with learning disabilities) will be Proficient. Schools with an API above 800 (which is really good) are hitting a plateau in test score gains now. They could have huge gains campus-wide, but be off a few points in one subgroup and not meet their target. And there are huge inconsistencies from state to state. What happens when the bar for "Proficient" isn't the same in Wyoming as it is in Florida? How accurate is the national data, really, when each state has different standards, goals, and tests?


What is the future of NCLB? Congress can't seem to fix it. It was designed to be revised after five or six years, but it still isn't anywhere close to being revamped or reauthorized. Most people agree that changes are needed, but few can agree on how to best do it. One thing is clear - either all of the states need to get on the same page, with Common Core State Standards and national tests, or the federal government needs to be less involved so states can make the best decisions for their population.


Can we at least start with a better name? No Child Left Behind is so negative and fear-based. Watch out! We don't want to leave anyone behind! This name evokes an image of a poor little kid running behind a moving school bus crying, "Wait! I'm right here!" I mean, where's the optimism? You tell me, what do you think it should be called? I vote for "Every Child Succeeds Act" or "Success for Children Act".

Martin Luther King Jr.'s Legacy and Standing Up For Your Children

Today we celebrate the achievements of a great man. Martin Luther King Jr. was a civil rights leader and activist who used his voice to speak out against injustices.  He, like Gandhi before him,  left a legacy of peace while practicing nonviolent resistance.  What does this mean for us and our children?

We have a challenge presented to us, to stand up for ourselves and our children's educations, to follow our hearts and fight for what we know is best for them.  But we must do so peacefully and with respect for others.  Getting upset, yelling, or writing threatening letters are NOT peaceful ways of communicating.

As parents, we need to use our  voices to communicate with teachers, counselors, and school administration about the needs of our children. Start with the teacher. Don't wait until conference time to meet your child's teacher and talk to him about the issues surrounding your child's learning. Teachers are busy, yes, but they also have their students' best interests at heart and will take time to talk with you. Send them an email and ask when would be a good time to drop by. Give them as much information as possible early on so they can best determine what they can do to help your child in the classroom.  Also, let the teacher know what you are doing at home to help.

Remember, elementary teachers spend most of their day in the classroom with your child, AND 19 to 39 other students.  If they don't seem to be able to address your concerns properly, then you need to seek out someone who can help. This may be another teacher who already knows your child, a counselor, or maybe you'll need to go to a principal or assistant principal to have your concerns heard. In many cases the classroom teacher just needs some extra support to get the ball rolling or help brainstorm for possible solutions.

Parents aren't the only ones who need to speak up to be heard. Teachers need to also stand up for the children in their classrooms, seeking adequate resources and the means to meet their diverse needs. They are only one person, after all, charged with the responsibility of teaching a robust curriculum to ALL of their students, regardless of their academic and cultural diversity. School administration and support staff are a necessary part of the education of these children, and so are a child's parents or caregivers. Teachers need to communicate with others regularly regarding children they are concerned about and who may need additional services or support. Teachers need to be able to collaborate with other teachers, so they don't feel like a lone island in the middle of the sea of learning.  And teachers need to know that there are other people who support them, and are there to listen and provide reinforcements when they need it.

Take charge of your child's learning and be a positive force in their lives.  Educate yourself on ways you can help, and be supportive of other people's efforts.  When you feel beaten down and battered by the powers that be, ask yourself: what would Martin Luther King Jr. do?

A Prologue to Red Apple Reading (aka: Why I Left the Classroom)

Those of you who know me may already know the story, or at least part of it, but I thought it would be appropriate to start this blog with a back-story, so you know where I am coming from.  I have no intention, however, to make this blog about me and my experiences - who wants to read that?  My hope is that it will develop into a place of sharing for educators and parents alike, a place where questions can be asked and answered, information can be shared, and positive vibes can emanate.

The story begins about fourteen years ago in a first grade classroom in a very large school district where I felt very small. My first six years of teaching were in first grade, where I became almost addicted to teaching reading. It was my favorite part of the curriculum. I loved reading stories to my class, and loved sitting with a small group at the back table during center time to teach phonics and guided reading. What I loved the most was watching that little light bulb go off in a first grader's head when he finally figured it out - he figured out the "code" and was finally able to read! Ahh, those were the good ol' days. 

Then I had the opportunity to leave the classroom and start a reading intervention program , a pull-out program in the school's computer lab for 4th, 5th, and 6th graders. I loved the program, and my first-grade experience with reading helped when it came to filling in some gaps for those older students who were struggling. For the first time  I was able to see how difficult school could become for a child who couldn't read fluently by third grade. I also saw how negative behaviors developed in kids as a coping mechanism, and a way to hide the fact that they could barely read. These were really great kids, and I enjoyed working with them every morning for their alternative language arts program.  This led me to a school change after a few years, to a middle school where I had hoped I would be using this same intervention program every class period to help struggling 7th and 8th graders. 

Wow, was I in for a culture shock!  I really have to hand it to middle school teachers, especially the ones I worked with at this very needy inner-city school. My first stumble was learning that I wouldn't be using the reading program every class period, but I still needed to provide reading interventions. With what?  I was given no materials, no help, and I think some of the roughest kids I've ever come into contact with.  Don't get me wrong, some of these students didn't give me any trouble and I think they really wanted to learn.  The rest were gang members, drug dealers, and truants, and I started to feel more like a warden than a teacher.   Needless to say, my elementary school experience and quiet gentle nature didn't get me very far in that assignment.

That was when I jumped ship to the much smaller school district of my new hometown. A new town, a fresh start, schools with much higher API scores - how could I go wrong? The administration, staff, and parents were all a breath of fresh air, and even the school district leaders were friendly people I actually became acquainted with over the course of four years.  I was asked to be on the school's leadership team, to attend special district collaboration sessions, and even piloted another reading intervention program for my school. 

What I didn't realize was that when schools are doing well, the school budget is tighter because the schools getting all of the federal funding are the ones doing poorly, thank you very much No Child Left Behind (I'll save that rant for another blog post!). My fifth grade class averaged 35 students, and there was no money for classroom aides or a resource teacher. Lesson plans, preparation, and grading were sucking up all of my free time, the amount of paperwork was increasing, blah, blah, BLAH! I think just about all teachers are facing this dilemma these days.  But the straw that broke this camel's back was the overwhelming frustration that I had a student in 5th grade who couldn't read, and try as I might I could not get him the help he needed.  My heart broke for this kid.  Even with special education identification this boy was not getting the level of systematic phonics instruction that he needed to become a better reader. And with a classroom full of other students and 5th grade standards to teach, I didn't have the time to do it myself. 

So I left the classroom, but I didn't want to leave teaching - I love teaching children! It's all of the other stuff that goes with it that was too frustrating.  I'm a teacher at heart, not a circus performer who jumps through hoops. One clear night while gazing up at the stars, I had an idea that hit me like a sledgehammer. I wanted to continue helping children learn how to read.  It's what I knew, it's what I loved. So why not make instructional reading software that 's fun AND uses the latest strategies in effective teaching? At that moment  Red Apple Reading  was born!

Since that fateful night over a year ago my life has been an exciting and challenging whirlwind of activity. Even though I spend a lot of time on this project, I love my new job as the guiding force of   Red Apple Reading, and I enjoy working with all of the wonderful people helping to make this dream a reality.  What dream?

The dream of helping as many children as possible learn how to read, by providing a wholesome, instructional, online reading program that's fun and effective.

I promised myself I would not use this blog purely to promote my own product, but I do feel the need to get the word out about this latest greatest addition to the online children's reading software market.  Red Apple Reading is in the testing phase and will be ready for sale soon, but in the meantime you can learn more about it by visiting our website:  Red Apple Reading .com.  Also check out our videos on YouTube on the Red Apple Reading channel, and keep an eye out for our Open House video series coming soon! Keep up with Red Apple news on our Facebook page (please click the LIKE button!) or via our Twitter feed.  And stay tuned right here for more blogs on the latest in education, ways you can help children with reading, and of course you won't want to miss my blog celebrating the 10th anniversary of the NCLB Act! I also welcome guest bloggers, comments, and discussions, so please feel free to join the educational forum.