cdrumm4448 Posted April 17, 2010 Share Posted April 17, 2010 My dd will attend Catholic Kindergarten this fall. The school has done some restructuring and will now offer 1/2 day as well as full day K. They put 1/2 day in the afternoon. Turns out the full day is already full, but the 1/2 day only has 6 kids in it. So, the principal called me yesterday to let me know that "due to fiscal reasons" they have decided to move the 1/2 day K to the morning, which means the 1/2 day and full day kids will be together. I asked how many kids we are talking about, and she told me at least 28. That is not good. The funny part about this is that when she was talking about all of this, she mentioned that "six children in a class is a bad thing." Really? Maybe fiscally for the school, but not as far as teacher-to-student-ratio is concerned. Made me laugh. I think we'll be bringing her home for 1st as the school has made it pretty clear to me that they're not too concerned with what the parents want or what's best for the children. Fiscal decisions are the priority. Kinda sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted April 17, 2010 Share Posted April 17, 2010 28 is pretty high for a K class, unless a lot of it is self-directed as in a Montessori class (and Monti classes are multi-age, and many have 2 teachers). Just curious--no judgement here--why are you still putting dc in K with such a big class? Could you go ahead and start homeschooling her in K instead? From your curriculum list, she's already doing K work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdrumm4448 Posted April 17, 2010 Author Share Posted April 17, 2010 (edited) 28 is pretty high for a K class, unless a lot of it is self-directed as in a Montessori class (and Monti classes are multi-age, and many have 2 teachers). Just curious--no judgement here--why are you still putting dc in K with such a big class? Could you go ahead and start homeschooling her in K instead? From your curriculum list, she's already doing K work. She really loves it there. I actually look at it as fun time for her, as well as reinforcing academics. My dh has wanted her to stay in Catholic school, but with these recent changes he has become much more open to hsing dd as well. Just not for the 2010-2011 school year. I'm fine with that because I never thought he'd open up to hsing dd. I secretly think his main reason for agreeing to hs dd starting in 1st grade is the money. It's so expensive in private school, and he is starting to see the advantages of homeschooling over any type of school. I think he needed to see how our first year went with ds. That said, he still has a year to change his mind. I actually just bought MP's K TG. Just in case.;) I forgot to add that I need to change my sign line. We were trying to do Little Hearts For His Glory, but we both dislike it. MP looks like something we'd really do. Edited April 17, 2010 by cdrumm4448 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted April 17, 2010 Share Posted April 17, 2010 But are they adding an extra teacher? I've seen that happen with large Kindergarten classes. 30 kids with 2 teachers and an aide. Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohdanigirl Posted April 17, 2010 Share Posted April 17, 2010 But are they adding an extra teacher? I've seen that happen with large Kindergarten classes. 30 kids with 2 teachers and an aide. Just a thought. Wow that is a lot. My ds was in a 4yr old K with 15 or so kids and two teachers, and it still seemed like a lot of children. I have to admit though that he had a ball and really learned a lot. Danielle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdrumm4448 Posted April 17, 2010 Author Share Posted April 17, 2010 But are they adding an extra teacher? I've seen that happen with large Kindergarten classes. 30 kids with 2 teachers and an aide. Just a thought. No, she specifically stated there would be one teacher and one aide. I do really love the K teacher; she's wonderful. DD refuses to learn how to blend. She knows her phonics/phonemic awareness. She just doesn't get blending yet. I'm hoping the light bulb will go on during the K year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terabith Posted April 17, 2010 Share Posted April 17, 2010 Blending is pretty developmental. I'm curious as to why your dh is okay with you homeschooling your ds but reluctant with your dd? Not major; I'm just nosy. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdrumm4448 Posted April 18, 2010 Author Share Posted April 18, 2010 Blending is pretty developmental. I'm curious as to why your dh is okay with you homeschooling your ds but reluctant with your dd? Not major; I'm just nosy. :D I don't think you're nosy. It's a good question. My ds is and has always been very social. He can make friends with anybody, anywhere, so my dh never worried about the dreaded S word. My dd is bashful and quiet. She has a hard time going up to kids she doesn't know and interacting with them. Dh is worried she won't have any friends. I just wish she had a girl her age to play with in our neighborhood. She has a friend at violin on Thursday nights, several at dance on Tuesdays. The rest of her friends are at school, although her best friend will be going to public K next year. Honestly, losing her best friend at school and all the things that have soured my attitude toward this school in the past two years have left me OK with hsing dd. Wait until my dh's family finds out! They're going to think we completely nuts. They think we're only 1/2 nuts now.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terabith Posted April 18, 2010 Share Posted April 18, 2010 I understand! My incredibly social six year old is homeschooling. My very shy, socially anxious almost five year old is attending preschool. She needs it. It has been soooo good for her. Her teacher is fabulous. She used to be a kindergarten teacher in California but got fed up with the expectations and such surrounding kindergarten, so when she moved here to be closer to her family, she decided to take a massive cut in pay to be able to teach in a way that she knows is better for children. She's so good that my plan is to enroll her as a homeschooler with the state, but send her to preschool. Her teacher manages to do a good amount of high quality academics in a very developmentally appropriate way, along with lots of play time, art projects, and outside time. In the company of other kids, and well coached social interactions, in 3.5 hours a day. (I teach music at the preschool two mornings a week, and my room is next door to hers, so I'm pretty confident in her skills.) We can do a little reading and math on the side, but the social experience provided there, I think, is far more important for her. And by registering her as a kindergartener homeschooler we're free to do our own thing (first grade) when she comes home. Several other kids from her class this year are coming back, including a set of twins a day older than she is. (Her birthday is April 27.) So it's not like she will be ages older than everyone else. Plus, I have to admit, I rather like having some time to work with my older dd without the distractions of my youngest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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