Comments on: Year-End Thoughts on CPS Kindergarten

By: CPS Kinder Teacher

CPS Kinder Teacher — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 02:04:37 +0000

I love reading about your family’s experience in CPS. As a CPS teacher, I fully understand the challenges of teaching in an overcrowded classroom (I taught 40 full day Kinders) with little resources. I’m so glad that there are parents like you out there who value early childhood education and are invested in your child’s success. It gives me hope =)

By: cpsobsessed

cpsobsessed — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 08:57:23 +0000

Peggy, thanks… I have heard about that including the best endorsement – from an older child who goes there who raved about it. I saw a brochure at some point and it sounded fantastic. I’ll see how it goes next summer. I hope to be working so gotta figure out logistics. I’m sure I could handle the booger-making at home for now – ha ha.

By: Peggy

Peggy — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 03:40:02 +0000

CPSobsessed,
Do you know about NU’s program, the Center for Talent Development? (I am mentioning it because you wrote about hoping to see more in depth work) I actually teach in their summer program and there are virtually NO worksheets or workbooks….it is all in depth, accelerated, compacted and incredibly hands on, project and subject based learning. I am teaching one class next week all about gross science….making boogers, studying blood, etc….to kids entering Kindergarten this fall. If your son’s school doesn’t offer everything you want (and really, no school does!) you might consider NU’s program. I am going to send my daughter next semester…..it is probably the coolest program I have seen in 15 years of teaching. It isn’t cheap, but definitely worth it for gifted kids.

By: cpsobsessed

cpsobsessed — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 13:45:09 +0000

We were REALLY lucky and our class had an aide during much of the day. She was one of the bus assistants and is getting an education degree so she volunteered her time. This is a very rare situation though.
The norm is NOT to have an aide in the classroom. Some classes will raise money to pay for an aide (in fact when I met Arne Duncan he mentioned that they did this for his daughter’s Kindergarten class.)
If your school has one I’d love to know how they get the money for it!
I wish more schools would even get 1 aide for the 2 or 3 Kinderclasses who could float between as needed. Even that would help!

By: another mommy

another mommy — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:25:47 +0000

This is really good to know! My son is starting kindergarten in the fall and I’ve been kinda wondering what a typical day will be like for him. My main concern was class size also. I guess if you are aware of what’s going on in the classroom and make sure he has every opportunity to reinforce what he is learning, it might not be so bad. My son is very talkative, like his dad, a social butteryfly. I plan on warning his teacher beforehand! Do they have teachers aids that help out in the classroom at your son’s school? At the school my son will attend, I believe they have one in each kindergarten class.

By: cpsobsessed

cpsobsessed — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:50:47 +0000

Diving in – I responded to the email you listed.

By: cpsobsessed

cpsobsessed — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:50:27 +0000

It took a few weeks to adjust to the long days, but then they seem to be fine. It helped to hang out on the playground and let him burn off some energy at the end of the day.
But yeah, it seemed like the last thing he wanted to do was sit down to do homework. I know there were plenty of parents in the class who had their kids do the homework right when they walked in the door before they started to play but I’m too much of a pushover for that.
We usually ended up doing the homework on the weekend when things are more relaxed and there’s more time but that’s probably breeding future procrastination tendencies.
Another common homework time (maybe later in the year) is while dinner is being made – the kid can do a lot of it themselves. In fact I found that sometimes he was better off if I wasn’t hovering. I’d walk away for 5 min then questions why he was coloring when he needed to do his homework and he’d be like “I did it already.”

By: Kdg is coming up

Kdg is coming up — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:54:35 +0000

How did your guy do with the long day? I’m not looking forward to doing homework with ‘crabby man’ after an 8am to 2:30pm ‘work’ day.