R. Ann Whitehead, M.A. Educational Psychology

We know the legislatures changed the birth date for kindergarten entrance from December 2nd to September 2nd.   The change is to occur over three years, beginning in November of 2012, then October of 2013 so that by 2014, all children will have to be five by September 2nd.  The legislature also mandated that transitional kindergarten programs be offered to children whose birthdates fall between December 2nd and September 2nd. 

Why did the legislature take transitional kindergarten away from the field of early childhood education where it has been for the last thirty years?

Legislators told us they assumed that transitional kindergarten would be provided by those in the early childhood care and education.  However,  The powerful Kindergarten Teachers Association lobbied them to demand that  the public schools would be mandated to provide transitional kindergarten programs. This was done not for what is best for children but in order to maintain jobs for kindergarten teachers.  Although the mandate is to begin in 2012 many public schools are quickly gearing up to provide these programs next fall.

Why is developmentally appropriate curriculum important?

Developmentally appropriate requires that teachers tailor the curriculum to the developmental level of the group.  It also requires hands-on learning which allows children to problem solve, hone their skills and begin to understand the world around them.  It allows children to:

• – manipulate counters and other objects to understand various math concepts,
• – create simple science experiments for hypothesizing and discovery,      
• – problem solve using a variety of open-ended materials,
• – use dramatic play as a way to learn how to interact with others, explore family relationships and to deal with stressful situations within their lives,
• – have many opportunities to use their creativity to express their unique visions and their personal views of the world

Why public schools cannot provide developmentally appropriate curriculum.

Public school transitional kindergarten will have the same teachers and ratios (1 teacher to 24 to 30 children) and in the end be only watered down versions of kindergarten. Having children sit at desks and do dittos and other paperwork bores them or can create stress in youngsters when they cannot be successful.  Instead of increasing their academic success, many of these students will become discouraged or resistant in their future schools years. 

The basic idea of changing the age requirement to September was to insure children were mature enough to meet the demands of the elementary school curriculum.  Many public schools insist their programs will be developmentally appropriate.  But, experts agree the public schools do not have the financial resources to implement genuine developmentally appropriate programs.

By R. Ann Whitehead, Masters Educational Psychology

Transitional kindergarten (T-K) or junior kindergarten is a crucial time for preparing children for the rigors of elementary school.  We know that research has proven that quality preschools create substantial gains for children entering elementary education. 

Unfortunately, most of those gains are lost by 3rd grade because eventually public school lost the child.

Private preschool providers have been the experts in educating and caring for young children since World War II.  Many of these programs meet the challenging quality guidelines of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)’s best practices. The bottom line for these programs is what is best for children.

Young Transitional Kindergarteners need nurturing teachers who encourage them to explore, discover and question.  However, public T-K programs will be watered down versions of kindergarten with 26 to 30 children to one teacher, with little time for individual student attention.  These youngsters can easily become discouraged and decide that school is a frightening place where they can never be successful.

 At The Child Day Schools we take the responsibility for Transitional Kindergarten very seriously.  We provide activities that are developmentally appropriate and give students time to learn . Nurturing teachers plan a wide range of activities, including language, phonics, math as well as science and creativity. They help children resolve conflicts and develop empathy for each other.  Also, all our programs meet the demanding standards of NAEYC’s best practices.

“We wanted our new website to reflect our curriculum goals and philosophy. Our programs are truly one of a kind, and we feel it is important to represent who we are as a company and how fundamental our values are to our entire organization,” says Founder and Owner R. Ann Whitehead. “We’re excited for this new website to tell our story, while at the same time supporting parents and acknowledging our staff.”

The Child Day Schools has been providing for young children for over thirty years, our curriculum has kept up with important innovations and current knowledge about how children learn.

Our schools serve young children in Antioch, Lafayette, Moraga, San Ramon and Pleasanton. We are currently accepting applications for toddlers, preschool, pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and school-age children. Visit our campus program pages for specific enrollment details.

We invite you to browse our new site, and we hope that you enjoy learning more about our early care and educational programs.