I love this article because it shows a learning program that treats children like real little individuals who need to be children. No wonder Finnish schools are doing so much better than those in America.
I remember my own kindergarten experience.
There were no reading lessons, just listening sessions as we were read to. I remember the big clock that helped us learn our numbers, but I don't remember any pressure to tell time.
What do I remember learning in kindergarten? How to tie my shoes. And I was so proud! We had a wooden shoe that made me think of the nursery rhyme, There was an old woman who lived in a shoe. As a matter of fact, I bet hearing and reciting nursery rhymes was part of my kindergarten experience. Thank you, Mrs. Toby, for making kindergarten a fun time that got me off to a good start in life. Today, to get that same experience, children need to be home schooled.
Is it any wonder with the pressure to sit still and do "desk work" that active little boys are suffering academically and being labeled "learning disabled" and drugged? There needs to be a change in the U.S. Let little ones be little -- more play, more running, more recess, lots of picture books; less sitting, less desk work, no electronics!
Now, put on your memory cap. What did you learn in kindergarten?
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