Appendix A - Commonly Asked Questions

Note: This section provides brief answers to several commonly asked questions. For more questions and answers and additional information on each topic please refer to Children First: A Curriculum Guide for Kindergarten, 1994.

Are worksheets an appropriate activity for Kindergarten students?
It is not recommended that Kindergarten students be assigned to complete worksheets. Research has shown that in most cases they are too abstract for four to six-year-olds and therefore, devoting time to them is not a wise investment in the education of our children. Rather, children should be involved in an activity-centred program which provides writing tools and paper at a variety of the activity centres, offers numerous concrete materials and includes teacher-directed activities such as songs and fi ngerplays which meaningfully involve students of this age.

How much time should be scheduled for the formal teaching of letters and numerals in Kindergarten?
While it is important that children learn about letters and numerals, it is not recommended that time be scheduled for formal instruction or drill on letters and numerals. For many children of this age, sitting passively for more than a few minutes is often frustrating and stressful. Research has shown that Kindergarten students will learn letters and numerals more effectively through the use of concrete materials, teacher modelling (experience charts, graphs on chalkboard, etc.), selfinitiated writing activities, teacher-directed fingerplays, games, poems and songs in a stimulating, print-rich environment. Activity centres such as the imaginative play centre, quiet-time relaxation centre, block centre, computer centre and writing centre offer opportun ities for incidental teaching of letters and numerals.
As children recognize that print communicates meaning, feel the excitement of self-expression via writing and the satisfaction that reading and writing bung, they will usually learn letters and numerals at a very fast pace.

Are file folder games and other teacher-made or commercial games and puzzles that focus on numerals, letters, rhyming words, etc. appropriate Kindergarten activities?
They are appropriate materials to place in activity centres. Thus, the children can choose when and if they want to use them.

Should Kindergarten students be taught to write?
It is our belief that children arrive at Kindergarten as emergent writers. Their writing may be in the form of scribbling or non-phonetic letter strings, but these represent stages of writing development just as babbling represents a stage of speech de velopment. Teachers should accept children in the stage that they are at and optimistically anticipate advancement. They should not teach formal printing lessons, but should provide numerous opportunities for growth in a fertile environment.
For example, every Kindergarten should include a writing centre, well stocked with items such as paper, pencils, crayons, staplers, and hole punches BO that children can make booklets, write letters, stories, etc. during their playtime. In addition, wr iting tools and paper should be located in areas such as the imaginative play centre and the block centre so that children can create maps, menus, lists, signs, etc. as needed to support their play activities.
It is important for children to see teachers model proper letter formation when writing poems, songs, thank you letters, etc. It is also important to have print displayed in a variety of ways in the classroom e.g., signs, labels, posters.
Teachers should be available to assist children on an individual basis as required. For example, if a child asks how to make a D, the teacher could point one out on a nearby alphabet chart or demonstrate how to make one on a scrap of paper. These are o nly a few ways that teachers can guide children in becoming confident and capable writers.

How can very bright children be challenged in Kindergarten?
In a developmentally appropriate program there are unlimited opportunities for growth and learning for everyone. A balanced program which considers the whole child provides socio-emotional and physical challenges in addition to intellectual ones. Indiv idual activities are planned to help meet the needs and interests of each child.

Should children with disabilities be integrated into Kindergarten programs?
Yes, the Kindergarten program with its emphases on meeting the needs of individual children and using play as a vehicle for learning can be adapted to accommodate children with special needs.
The inclusion of children with disabilities in regular classrooms is one of the recognized best practices for children with exceptional needs. Involvement with non-disabled peers can be an enriching experience for all concerned, provided an appropriate program is in place and adequate support is available. This support could include human resources such as a teaching assistant, a speech therapist and a special education consultant. It could also include material support such as print and non-print reso urces that offer information and guidance, and special equipment to assist the teacher in meeting the individual needs of the student with a disability.

Will the Kindergarten curriculum adequately prepare students for Grade 1?
Attendance at Kindergarten is optional in our province; therefore, a child can enter Grade 1 without having attended Kindergarten. However, the Kindergarten program is aimed at developing the whole child to herlhis full potential so that shelve can bec ome a proactive participant in a journey of life-long learning Metaphorically
speaking, Grade 1 is only one port-of-call where children should be wanaly welcomed and carefully guided with adaptations for individual travellers being made as required so that they are able to continue confidently on their adventure.

Are four-year-olds ready for school?
If schools offer developmentally appropriate programs based on the physical, socioemotional and intellectual needs of the students then most four-year-olds will adjust easily.

How should a teacher respond when someone refers to the Kindergarten program as "just play"?
A teacher could respond by inviting the person into his/her classroom to observe the learning that takes place during the Kindergarten day. If the invitation is accepted, a checklist could be provided to help guide the observations.
Another suggestion is that the teacher could offer to loan the person a resource that aptly explains the value of play. There are presently many excellent materials available on the topic including videos, booklets, articles and books. Several of these titles have been included in Children First: A Bibliography for Kindergarten, 1994.

10.

Are there situations where a student would benefit by being retained in Kindergarten for an extra year?
The child-centred philosophy is generally not supportive of retaining children. Reliable studies have indicated that the majority of children do not benefit from retention. A preferable alternative to retention is to promote the child to a Grade 1 prog ram that will adapt to the needs of each individual.
Decisions about student progress and placement should be based on the principle of providing the most appropriate reaming environment for each child. This decision should be made by an educational team led by the classroom teacher and should include th e parents/caregivers and student.

11.

Should all Kindergarten students have to pass a prekindergarten screening test?
Readiness or screening tests should not be used as a basis for admission to the Kindergarten program. Some standardized tests may be biased in the areas of gender, culture and socioeconomics and may measure only certain areas of children's learning It is difficult for tests to measure curiosity, the ability to get along with others, appreciation of beauty and diversity in the world, kindness towards others, persistence in real-life situations, or a sense of responsibility for self and others.
Furthermore, a child's test results can vary greatly in a short period because young children change so quickly. Their skills, abilities, and understandings blossom with tremendous speed throughout the early childhood years.
In addition, readiness tests may force delayed entrance upon the very children who need school the most--those who have experienced relatively less stimulating learning environments in their preschool years.
The main question in the child-centred view is not whether the child is ready for Kindergarten, but whether the Kindergarten program is ready or appropriate for the child. Unless there are unusual circumstances, all children who meet the school divisio n's entrance age requirement should be allowed to attend Kindergarten.

12.

How should the Kindergarten area be set up in a multi-grade classroom?
In a primary multi-grade classroom, Kindergarten involvement presents opportunities for activity-centred learning for all children. By starting from the Kindergarten curriculum, the teacher can build an appropriate program based on the developmental le vel of the students.
Desks are not needed, but tables, chairs and adequate space for personal belongings should be available as well as quiet areas for reading and writing. Activity centres must be equipped with a wide variety of materials, from simple to complex, in order to meaningfully engage all the children.

13.

How can educators encourage volunteers to help?
Volunteers need to know that they are welcome in the classroom and that their work is important. An invitation for them to participate can be extended at the orientation meeting and via letters or telephone calls. Parents/caregivers should be made awar e that their involvement will contribute to their children's success in school because it reflects the attitude that school is important. People from the community, such as the elderly, should be told that their contributions are welcome and valued.
Once volunteers have offered their services, teachers should be flexible in assigning duties. Tasks should suit the interests and schedules of the helpers. Training sessions could be offered so that volunteers are clear about their responsibilities.
The work of volunteers should be well recognized. Some ideas for expressing gratitude to volunteers include inviting them to teas or meals, presenting them with student-created gifts, cards or letters and displaying their pictures in places of honour.< /blockquote>
14.
How can Parents/caregivers prepare their children for Kindergarten?
Parents/caregivers should model a positive attitude towards school. Research has offered evidence that the attitude of Parents/caregivers toward education has a strong impact on student success.
It is extremely important that parents/ caregivers read to children and recite traditional verses and stories. Children need to hear the rhythm of language and they benefit from repeating the same stones and verses over and over again. If their Parents /caregivers value literature then children usually will too.
Parents/caregivers can provide writing tools and paper for their children and encourage them to "write" lists, thank you notes, etc.
Also, Parents/caregivers can help children explore their environment by taking them to libraries, stores, zoos, farms, lakes, museums, art galleries and parks. These outings are great opportunities to talk with children about what they see, hear, smell , and feel. They will provide valuable background experiences that will help to expand children's horizons enhance further learning. For example, a story about a farm will mean much more to a child if shethe has visited one.
Parentslcaregivers can provide suitable toys and manipulatives to enrich their children's play experiences.
Additionally, parents/caregivers could take advantage of programs on parenting that are offered in their communities or elsewhere.

15.
How can educators promote gender equity in the classroom?
Teachers can model gender-fair language and equitable interaction with the students. They should have equally high expectations for both males and females and should encourage and respect the interests and abilities of students of both genders. For exa mple, if girls are interested in participating in sports that have been traditionally considered to be masculine, such as football or hockey, they should be encouraged to do so; if boys are interested in participating in activities that have been traditio nally considered to be feminine, such as cooking or playing with dolls, they should be encouraged to do so.
Teachers can choose fair and equitable resources for the classroom. For example, the puppet theatre could include a male nurse puppet and a female firefighter puppet and the literature that is shared with children should include a balance of male and f emale protagonists.
Teachers can point out inequities in resources and interactions to children so that they will learn to recognize bias and stereotypes.
Teachers can group students heterogeneously rather than by gender. They can encourage cooperation between the genders and try to ensure that neither gender interrupts nor takes ownership of an activity or project to the exclusion of the other.
16.
Why is it important for Saskatchewan educators to include Indian and Metis content in their programs?
Students are influenced by what they see and hear. The images and behaviours they are exposed to can become a reality for them through time. Stereotyped images have long been associated with Indian and Metis peoples, so it is important that their persp ectives, traditions, institutions and achievements are accurately reflected in the curriculum. Kindergarten provides a unique opportunity to develop sound attitudes toward others and the self.
Instruction that is based on accurate information helps to offset negative images students may hold. It builds confidence and a positive self-concept in all children. Students who come to believe in concepts of inferiority and superiority of people are at a disadvantage when it comes to independent learning and critical thinking.
A positive cross-cultural approach moves from identifying diversity to including everyone in specific learning situations. Developmental tasks for learning about identity and attitudes are set. This approach makes a conscious effort to address the impa ct of stereotyping, bias, and discrimination and effects on the reamer.
Students who are actively taught to identify bias in resources and interactions and to examine its effect on their thinking will learn to understand other individuals and groups. They may then transfer their understandings to their personal lives. The result will be students who are developing the attitudes, knowledge and skills necessary for successful living in a complex, diverse world.

Appendix B - Article

The following article has been included to further the understanding of early childhood philosophy. It could be used as a stimulus for discussion with Kindergarten and primary teachers as well as with parentstcaregivers. Focuses for discussion might be :
talking about responses the participants find controversial;
thinking of different questions that participants might have asked if they had written the article and suggesting appropriate answers; and/or,
comparing the philosophy in their particular school with the one reflected in this article.

How Good Is Your Kindergarten Curriculum? by Carol Seefeldt. Principal, Volume 68, Number 5, May 1989, pp. 11-15.
Copyright was obtained from National Association of Elementary School Principals. All rights reserved.
Here is a little test that should help principals evaluate the Kindergarten curriculum in their schools. Circle the answers that best fit. If you can answer these ten questions correctly, you've got a model Kindergarten.
1. How many Kindergarten teachers hold specialized degrees in early childhood education?

100% 50% under 25%

2. How many centres of interest are in any one Kindergarten classroom? (A centre of interest might be a place to build with blocks, easels and paints, a library corner, or a game centre.)

none 5 or 6 over 10

3. Is there a dramatic play area in which children can dress up and "make believe"?

yes
no

4. Is the Kindergarten nice and quiet? For example, are children taught to raise their hands before speaking?

yes
no

5. What is the average age of Kindergarten children at midyear?

6 1/2 6 5 1/2

6. How often do Kindergarten children take walking field trips in the school building or neighbourhood?

weekly monthly Once/twice per year

7.Are children taught to recognize all 26 letters of the alphabet, both lower and upper case, and to make letter-sound correspondence?

yes
no

8. How many children fail Kindergarten and are placed in some other program before attending first grade?

none less then 20% more than 20%

9. How many poems, songs, or fingerplays should a Kindergarten child know by the end of the year?

less then 12 couple more than 12

10. Before children are permitted to attend Kindergarten, must they pass a test or some type of developmental screening to guarantee that they can do the work successfully?

yes
no

How did you do? Let's find out.
1.
How many Kindergarten teachers hold specialized degrees in early childhood education?
Give your Kindergarten 10 points if your teachers have had training in early childhood education; 5 if about 50 percent of them have and 0 if fewer than 25 percent.
You really need teachers with early childhood background for a successful Kindergarten program. A successful Kindergarten curriculum is not found in a commercial kit, prescribed lesson or unit plans, predetermined competencies, or programmed materials. It is found in teachers who have knowledge in three critical areas:
Knowledge of Children
The world has changed but children's growth and development have not. Five-year-olds are still about 36 inches tall, weigh about 40 pounds, and are active and energetic. Their thinking is grounded in the concrete, and although they are beginning to use symbols, they cannot think abstractly. They confuse reality and fantasy, believe inanimate objects have thoughts and motives, and do not understand that properties remain the same even if the shape or spatial arrangement has been changed.
Teachers should systematically observe children, talk with them, and try to uncover each child's thinking processes. In this way teachers can adapt each curriculum experience to meet an individual child's needs for challenge and successful achievement.
Knowledge of Content
If anything is characteristic of five-year-olds, it is their desire to ream. Curious, enthusiastic Kindergarten children want to know all about "ants, worms, cars, boats, water, air, space, foreign countries, letters, machines, trees, colours, fam ilies, seeds and rocks. And their deepest concerns are the timeless ones--love, hate, birth, death, friendship, war, peace, cosmic forces, good and evil" (Martin, 1985).
Because of children's broad interests, teachers must have in-depth knowledge accessible to young children. Bruner (1966) advocated the idea that each content area has its own structure. Teachers who are knowledgeable of the structure of each content ar ea are better able to determine the scope and sequence of learning experiences, and to make each one more meaningful for children.
Knowledge of Process
When teachers are familiar with both child and content, they are able to capitalize on every opportunity for teaching and reaming. The reaming potential in the simplest of activities, such as blowing bubbles, are seized. For some children, the goal of that activity might be to develop physical control. Others may be challenged to blow the largest, smallest, or most bubbles, or to measure how long a bubble lasts. Back in the classroom, children can describe their bubble experience in original stories an d poems.
Teachers should share control of activities with the children. A good Kindergarten curriculum is like a ballet between a sensitive adult and enthusiastic children. Both are in control, both initiate, both respond, and both take cues from one another.
Teachers should not be permissive. Froebel (1912) reminded Kindergarten teachers that although they had to follow the natural laws of child growth and development, as gardeners they were also responsible for removing obstacles to growth. Teachers have the responsibility not only to tend, fertilize, and increase productivity of children but also, with sympathetic understanding, to redirect, guide, and prune undesirable growth.
Through systematic observing and recording of children's behaviour, or structured interviews or tasks, teachers must evaluate children's progress continually. The object, however, should not be to grade children or determine whether they have passed or failed a set of predetermined competencies, but to better plan, monitor, and foster each child's growth and achievement.

2.
How many centresof interest are in any one Kindergarten classroom?
Your program gets 10 points for 10 or more centres of interest: 5 points for 5 or 6: and 0 points if there are none.
Because children, as all humans, learn through experiences, they must be able to touch, handle, move, taste, pound, see, hear, and do something in order to have an experience.
Centres of interest, arranged throughout the room, are one way teachers provide children with first-hand experiences. There should be spaces for block building, art activities, music, reading, board games, puzzles, sociodramatic play, writing, science, and math. Children must be given time and freedom to explore, experiment, and engage in hands-on activity, alone or with others.
Raw materials--sand, wood, water, boxes, paints, paper--should be featured. These foster thinking because children have to figure out what to do with these raw materials and how to do it.
Children should choose the centres in which they work and make choices within those centres. For example, a child may choose the writing centre and then make a choice of assembling a word with plastic alphabet blocks, printing it with letter stamps, ty ping it on a computer, or writing it on paper. In control, and making their own choices, children do not fail.

3.
Is there a dramatic play area in which children can dress up and "make believe"?
You get 20 bonus points if you have a sociodramatic play area: O if you do not have one.
You get extra points because it takes real courage in today's pressured climate to recognize the value of socio-dramatic play for children's intellectual growth and development and to provide an area for it in the classroom.

4.
Is the Kindergarten nice and quiet? For example, are children taught to raise their hands before speaking?
Take away 10 if the Kindergarten room is quiet. Give yourself 10 points if there is a hum of activity present and children are talking and arguing with one another.
Children must be encouraged to converse freely with one another, for it is through their informal conversations and interactions that "intellectual development in general, and literacy growth in particular" (Dyson, 1987) take place. Children should be encouraged to talk about what they are doing as they work together on a puzzle, rotate the eggs in an incubator, or build with blocks.
More formal conversations should take place during group times when teachers encourage children to tell how they completed a project, found their way to the nurses's office, or why they think the fish died. As children talk, listen, and discuss shared experiences, they gain insights into one another's perceptions and views.

5.
What is the average age of Kindergarten children at midyear?
Take away 10 points if children are over six at midyear: take away 5 if they are about six and give your program 10 points if the average age is between five and five and a half.
Kindergarten is for children between the ages of five and six. If children are over six at midyear you have a clear sign that the Kindergarten curriculum is simply "too soon, for too many young children" (Uphold and Gilmore, 1988).
Years ago, the Kindergarten program and curriculum were adjusted to the nature of five-year-olds. Today, however, pressures for academic excellence and accountability have resulted in greater demands being placed on Kindergarten children. An increasing ly academic and accelerated curriculum of worksheets, drill and practice, and rote recitation have replaced the once cognitively rich Kindergarten cumoulum. The fiveyear-olds are being pressured to master knowledge of letter names, corresponding sounds, a nd math facts once only required for first- and second-grade children.
To protect children from this accelerated curriculum, many parents hold their fiveyearolds out of Kindergarten until they are six and have a better chance of succeeding. Some school systems, responding similarly to the unrealistic demands of the accele rated Kindergarten curriculum, have raised the entrance age for enrollment.

6.
How often do Kindergarten children take walking field trips in the school building or neighbourhood?
You get 10 points for weekly walking field trips: 5 for monthly trips and 0 for once or twice a year.
A sound Kindergarten curriculum expands children's experiences by taking frequent walking field trips through the school building and into the community. On these walking trips, children observe and participate in the social life of others. The relatio nships of occupations and social systems are observed and experienced. Representatives from the community should also be invited to visit the Kindergarten and demonstrate skills, occupations, or hobbies.
When walking trips are used, continuity can be planned. For example, a trip through the building to identify all of the signs with words lead to a trip into the neighbourhood to find other signs. Once back in the classroom, children can then create the ir own signs.
Walking field trips also give children a base for their own social activity and sociodramatic play. A behind-the-counter trip to a fast food restaurant may result in children playing restaurant and taking on the roles of cooks, servers, and customers.
One group of children walked to a nearby police station and, after returning, began building a police car in the room with large blocks. The teacher added a steering wheel, a piece that looked like an instrument panel, and some boards. The block struct ure was expanded and became a more identifiable "car" with seats, dashboard, horn, and shift. Picture books were consulted as children tried to make the car ever more realistic.
Throughout, children were the chief learners and teachers. They used their past experience of visiting the police station to initiate a cooperative effort in which they made plans, evaluated their progress, checked one another, offered criticism and information, and exchanged ideas. The result was a real and invaluable experience in intellectual growth and academic achievement.

7.
Are children taught to recognize all 26 letters of the alphabet, both lower and upper case, and to make letter sound correspondence?
You get 10 points if children do NOT have to master knowledge of the ABCs. If mastery of ABCs IS the curriculum take away 10 points.
It's not that children will not learn to recognize and even write some of the letters. In a quality program, however, knowledge of letters and how to write them is secondary to children's real learning.
When the curriculum is based on children's activity and experiences, the need for reading and writing is soon demonstrated. Experiences demand expression. As children think about their experiences, they develop images, feelings, and ideas about them. E xpression can take a number of forms. Children may draw or paint a picture about their experience, dance or tell about it--or they may dictate or write about their ideas.
Little by little, children take responsibility for their own writing. They begin by copying letters, words, and sentences, or by actually writing-figuring out and inventing their own spelling as they go. Volunteers, perhaps upper-grade students or memb ers of the National Retired Teachers' Association, can help in this process either by taking dictation or showing children how to form a letter or write a word.
When read aloud several times a day, books help to extend and expand first-hand experiences so that children have a richer mental model of their world and the vocabulary describing it (Snow, 1983). The entire range of literature, from poetry and folk t ales to encyclopedia entries, serve to help children sum up and clarify ideas.

Kindergarten children DO achieve academic
8.
skills in a good program. But the knowledge of letter names and their sounds, numerals, and number facts all have more meaning when they become tools for the broader goal of teaching children to think.
How many children fail Kindergarten and are placed in some other program before attending first grade?
Give your program 10 points if no children are placed in a transitional class: take away 5 points if less than 20 percent must attend a second year of Kindergarten: and take away 10 points if more than 20 percent fail.
If too many children must attend a second year of Kindergarten, then it is apparent that the program's curriculum is not appropriate. Unrealistic academic demands are being made and too many five-year-olds simply cannot master an accelerated academic c urriculum. Transitional or second-year Kindergartens have been established to handle large numbers of children who are unable to succeed. The problem is that children placed in transitional groups know they have failed (Shepard and Smith, 1988). Repeating Kindergarten seems to carry a negative stigma and harms self-esteem. Further, the extra year does not seem to boost achievement.
Kindergarten children should not be expected to have the abilities and capabilities of six- or seven-year-olds.
When the curriculum is designed for fiveyear-olds and individualized with experiences selected to match each child's developmental abilities, capabilities, and interests, children do not fail.

9.
How many poems, songs, or fingerplays should a Kindergarten child know by the end of the year?
Give yourself 10 points if children know more than a dozen songs, poems or chants by the end of Kindergarten: 5 if they know less than a dozen; and 0 if they only know a couple.
Children memorize things that have appeal. Every single day in a good Kindergarten poems are read, songs sung, chants, rhymes, and fingerplays repeated over and over. Although not required to memorize them, children win learn many by heart if they are integral parts of the curriculum.
Auditory memory develops as children listen to poems and sing songs and chants. By listening and repeating, children are building the base for the phonics and word attack skills they will need when they are in the second or third grade.
Poetry, chants and songs are eassntial for another reason. It is through the oral tradition of reading aloud to children that the cultural heritage is transmitted. The nursery rhymes, folk tales, silly fingerplays, and songs carry with them significant messages about who we are, and our cultural traditions.

10.
Before children are permitted to attend Kindergarten, must they pass a test or some type of developmental screening to guarantee that they can do the work successfully?
If your system uses any type of screening to keep children OUT of Kindergarten, then you have to take away 20 points. You get 10 points if you do not use any type of screening procedures to keep unready children out of Kindergarten.
No public school program should deny access to children of legal entry age on the basis of lack of maturational readiness (NAEYC, 1986). Children should enter school on the basis of their chronological age and legal right to enter, not on the basis of what Key dready know.
We know that all children are ready and eager to learn many things. To deny them access to learning is to say that "the choice has been made to serve the needs of the system rather than those of an individual child" (Shepard and Smith, 1988).
Screening, raising the entrance age, or adding a second year of Kindergarten may do more harm than good, and none address the real problem: an accelerated, academic, and inappropriate Kindergarten curriculum.
Add up your score. Congratulations if you scored 100 on your Kindergarten report card. If you scored the maximum 110 you have an outstanding Kindergarten program.
If your program rated over 80, you have a pretty good Kindergarten. Which questions did you fail? Can you make changes in the program to get the extra points that would make the Kindergarten outstanding?
If you rated your program between 70 and 80, then certainly your program isn't a failure. But this score raises the fear that too many children may fail.
A score of under 70 is a sign that things need to be changed. There are plenty of resources available to help in moving toward an appropriate and successful curriculum for all young children. Contact some of these associations, read some of the listed books, and start improving your Kindergarten curriculum.

Note: For the list of associations and books referred . to, please check the references cited after this . article in the '[Evaluation" section of Children First: A Curriculum Guide for Kindergarten, 1994.