Des Moines Register
02/09/06
Full-day kindergarten nearly in full swing
Time switch in D.M.-area districts thrills some parents
By MEGAN HAWKINS
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Half-day kindergarten may soon be history.
Kindergarten registration meetings began this week in some Des Moines-area
districts, and parents are scrambling to get children into the programs that fit their
needs. Many school districts are moving some or all of their kindergarten
sections to full-day programs to the delight, or annoyance, of parents, depending
on perspectives.
"I'm for all-day," said Jami Johnson , a West Des Moines mother of three who is
waiting in a lottery system to get her oldest son, Kole, 5, into a full-day program.
"Especially if they've had two or even three years of preschool, they're ready for
full-day. A half-day doesn't keep them interested enough."
If she can't get Kole into full-day kindergarten at the district, Johnson said she
may consider moving him to a private school - that's how important it is to her.
The growth of all-day kindergarten programs illustrates the evolving educational
atmosphere that now expects children to be better prepared academically earlier
in life. Statewide, 96.5 percent of Iowa school districts now offer all-day
kindergarten, although Iowa children are not required to attend kindergarten.
"It's the new normal, the wave of the future," said kindergarten teacher Sherry
Stevenson of Ankeny's Crocker Elementary School.
Ankeny switched all classes to full-day kindergarten last fall; Urbandale will next
year offer all-day kindergarten almost entirely; West Des Moines is gradually
offering more all-day sections; and Sacred Heart, a private school in West Des
Moines, just announced it will join most other private schools and offer all-day
kindergarten next year. Officials expect it to be a major draw for the school.
The push for full-day kindergarten has been accelerating nationwide since the
federal No Child Left Behind law was put in place in 2001, said Mimi Howard ,
early learning program director at the Education Commission of the States, a
national organization. Sixty percent of U.S. kindergartners attend full-day
kindergarten, commission data shows.
Successful all-day programs appear to teach children more information than halfday programs.
Crocker Elementary teacher Melinda Douma went over results from winter
reading assessments and found that her full-day kindergarten students this year
scored as well after one semester as her half-day students scored at the end of
last year.
Explained Stevenson: "With the half-day program, all our time was given to
reading and writing. Math suffered, play suffered, all the fun stuff we want to do."
Educators say many factors are now driving the trend toward all-day
kindergarten, even though research about the benefits has been around for
years.
"Schools have struggled for the past 20 years with whether to move from half-day
to full-day. It's a variety of things in terms of No Child Left Behind, wanting to
increase academic achievement, and I think there's also the societal issues out
there," said Larry Jablonski , principal at Urbandale's Olmsted Elementary
School, which has housed all district kindergarten programs for 18 years.
Still, some schools hold onto half-day options because of demand from parents.
At Sacred Heart, both kindergarten classes will be full-day next year, but parents
can choose to take children out halfway through the day, said Martha Kahle , a
parent and board member.
"As a parent with a young one at home, I really empathize a lot with those
parents who want to be with their kids," said Kahle, whose youngest child is 3.
"Some people feel that having all-day kindergarten, you're pushing the kids and
they're only 5 years old and it's this age compression. We just keep forcing them
to do more and more and more at a younger age and making them grow up too
fast, and that's a valid concern.
"But on the other hand, some of those who, maybe their social skills aren't at a
higher level yet, it would be a slower-paced day."
Full-day kindergarten offers more time for math and science. Teachers say it also
allows more social and emotional development with peers, and takes the
overwhelming, rushed atmosphere out of the transition into school.
There's time to chat and to celebrate accomplishments such as finally learning to
tie shoes. And to learn how to share a firetruck or to solve a problem rather than
just whizzing through letter recognition.
In the past, some of these activities were taught by parents, many of whom were
stay-at-home. But times have changed.
Iowa has one of the highest rates of households with all parents in the home
working, at 71 percent, according to an Iowa State University Extension
report. Many child-care providers do not offer such nurturing and learning
environments, and many children lose out.
"The reality is most mommies are not at home anymore," Stevenson said.
"Some day cares are wonderful, but some are less than utopia. People feel better
knowing their children are in one place all day. There's the economic factor to
parents, too, not having to pay for as much child care."
Education experts agree that the time and quality of accredited teachers in
kindergarten rooms make a strong impact in children's lives.
"Just by being with a high-quality, certified teacher, that's huge," said Sheri
Hoffman , an early childhood teacher for the University of Northern Iowa's Price
Lab School.
Hoffman and others say having the time to incorporate themes into the
curriculum is key.
"If you think of that quote, 'All I need to know I learned in kindergarten,' it's very,
very true. It is your first start for a lot of kids," Hoffman said. "If you've got a
qualified teacher that knows about conflict resolution and knows how to
implement it, think of the benefit when these children are starting full-time."
Ankeny teacher Mary Longnecker said the world and its expectations have also
changed.
"If I were explaining kindergarten to a 60- or 70-year-old, it's that the world has
changed so much," Longnecker said. "There is so much information to be
learned and shared."
Her colleague, Lisa Pighetti, who incorporated cooking and science experiments
in her class this week, added that nothing could entice her to return to half-day
kindergarten.
"You would be amazed at the things children can do if they have the opportunity
to do it," she said.