DD, 6, is in a progressive private. She is 6 and she can't read. The school doesn't seem to care. They don't seem to teach anything of substance either - it's all feelings all the time.
Are parents in progressive schools expected to teach the kids to read? What about math? I always thought it was the school's job.
They won't worry about it until the end of 2d grade. That doesn't mean you shouldn't. Does she know her ABCs? If not, teach them to her. Read to her every day, for at least 30 minutes and for as long as she will tolerate. Find things she's interested in to read to her about. Read her favorite stories over and over and over again -- eventually she will "read" because she will recognize the words. Get the BOB books so that she can start to read herself with their very simple stories. In other words: jump on it. All the school cares about is that she reach the minimum requirements necessary. It's up to you to make sure she reaches her highest and best potential.
wow, yeah, you pay through the nose and then it’s up to you to teach her?
Nah.
OP - what the hell am I paying for is the question that I keep asking myself. I don't think this is for us.
If you think private means they’re going to take care of everything, you really need to reassess. Private will take care of the basics as they define them and on their timeline, not yours. If you want to ensure mastery and/or acceleration, you’re either going to have to do it yourself or get tutors. That’s just how it is in private. And if you didn’t know, now ya know ...
if you're talking about C&C they are very open about this during admissions. Honestly I totally get that it's a trust fall and not for everyone but it shouldn't be a huge surprise - they say they dont formally teach it till the 6s.
I mean, this is absurd. What are you paying for, then?
I no longer know
@anonm You've gotta say what school. If this is C&C, you knew what you were getting into when you signed up.
Agreed with this. If the school told you what they do and what they prioritize, then it's on you. However, it's a simple fix. Don't re-enroll, and apply out.
I love progressive schools but from our personal experience with a progressive private we saw multiple kids who didn't read in K( as per the lack of it being part of the curriculum)who later were diagnosed with dyslexia and the school was not on top of this. Parents were angry by grade 3 or 4 when the diagnosis came from outside( not a school specialist).
Is she in a print-rich environment (has lots of picture books and magazines)? Do you or another loved adult read to her for 20-30 min per day? Do you sing songs with her? Then you are fine and don't need to worry about it until 1st. Phonics instruction is time consuming, bores the sh*t out of 5/6 yr olds, and takes away from them developing their oral and receptive language skills and building daily vocabulary.
We read together for hours, in several alphabets. She loves it. I just don't get why I should be teach her and not the school
Oh, if you are reading in multiple alphabets you should expect her to read a little later than her peers anyway. But it sounds like you have the reading environment covered. Why don't you ask the teachers what literacy skills they are covering? There is a lot that happens prior to direct reading instruction that they should be able to tell you about.
@anonm Her reading will be delayed if she is growing up bi- or multi-lingual, but it will come together soon.
Ds (6 in April) was in a progressive preschool and taught himself to read at 4, and they actively discouraged him. I was educated in the strict-as-hell system in a communist country, and over there they didn’t much care about reading until around age 7, like many euro countries, so I really wouldn’t worry yet about her falling behind. But it did piss me off that they actually discouraged him from reading on his own—I mean, wtf? He’s in K at a public g&t now and they’re learning to write 3-paragraph procedural compositions, with full punctuation and everything. There are many paths to the end, but I would probably share your concern about what I’m paying for if I had to teach this stuff myself
OP - I am from a the same background. I went to 1st grade at almost 8, but I could absolutely read!
@anonm +1, started school at 7 and did not read or write at all. If you like the school in general, don't sweat this. I think there is too much pressure with academics from an early age, so a lot of kids around you probably read already, and you may feel your DC is falling behind. It really all evens out by the end of 2nd grade.
A kindergartener still learning to read doesn’t worry me.
OP here - it doesnt worry me either. what worries me is that they don't seem to teach it. or track her progress. or teach anything at all. I witness what they do on zoom - it's ridiculous
Ah, frustrating. i don’t have any experience with progressives. My kids are in public, but did a Montessori preschool. Idk what I’d do in your shoes... I am not a natural teacher!
My kids are in a progressive public that doesn’t do any formal reading instruction in k—tons of read aloud and books all over, just no teaching. They do support kids who already read, like there was a book group for the kids who already wanted chapter books. I heard that going in, but it was still disorienting, and for parents who hadn’t paid attention it was really weird. Yes also to the possible delay in diagnosing dyslexia, but as someone said above, you don’t want to leave finding learning issues to the school anyway.
How about this, OP? Trust your own gut. The educational pedagogy du jour swings from right to left and back again. I'm in a Westchester public. Everyone learns to read in K. Anyone falling behind gets support and issues are diagnosed and addressed early. Lots of reading aloud from teachers. Kids allowed to pick their own books to take home from the school library every week. No-one ever enters second grade (or even first grade for that matter) not reading. Lots of progressive touchstones incorporated into the curriculum as well. Progressives allow children to bloom at their own pace and give them plenty of space to do it. Take what you will from that.
We are in private K (more traditional), DC turned 6 in Sep and was fluent reader. He learnt himself. We read to him ALL THE TIME, and Pre K did sounds and letter recognitions. We also did bob books at home. Once the pandemic hit he started connecting longer and longer words and slowly picked up. All that said, about half of his classmates don’t read. They focus on sounds, letter recognition, read a ton to kids, etc. i don’t know how any other schools teach reading but this seems age appropriate. If you want more you need a tutor but it doesn’t sound like you need it. Fwiw I grew up in communist block and didn’t start learning to read until 1st grade and it was all very formal. My mother was actively discouraged from teaching me to read even though I was very interested.
My child didn't read in K at Hunter. They didn't even really seem to do much about it until the second semester of K. I was worried and the teacher told me to not stress it until end of 1st! Every school has their own timeline is my point, even the crazy ones. I really wouldn't worry about it just yet.
I have two children. One read very early, could read and write words at 3. Reading full books in K. The other didn't start to read until the end of K. The early reader now has no interest in reading and the later reader loves books. It really doesn't matter and that is why schools don't push it. You really don't want kids to develop a sense that reading is a chore.
That said, OP it sounds like progressive is not for you. If I were you I would start to look elsewhere before you get even more frustrated and "labeled".
It really isn't necessary for kids to be reading in K, and the focus in a progressive is not on things like reading in early grades. Doesn't mean that progressive is a good fit for OP's family, but there is nothing inherently wrong with not emphasizing reading in K.