I'm with you on the St. Patrick’s Day thing! I don't think most holidays belong in schools because they have ties to particular religions. But the way this is “celebrated” at schools is annoying. I hated the idea that my kids came home in Kindergarten with homework to build a leprechaun trap (great STEM activity, but do you realize you are assigning this to the parents?). Then they go to school, and the leprechaun eats their candy lure and gets away?? My kids were unhappy about this, plus it took me a lot of time to convince them that leprechauns are not real. Big waste of instructional time!
Speaking of harming kids, thanks for sharing Nancy Bailey’s article. Expecting reading and writing in kindergarten puts kids with disabilities at such a disadvantage. Neurodiverse kids often need extra time for reading and writing skills to develop, and all kids need to work on social skills at this age. In tutoring practice, I let kids decide what challenges they are ready for. The NT kids generally start to read around age 7. ND kids can often begin learning letter identification and letter sounds around the same time. There are so many reasons to wait.
I'm with you on the St. Patrick’s Day thing! I don't think most holidays belong in schools because they have ties to particular religions. But the way this is “celebrated” at schools is annoying. I hated the idea that my kids came home in Kindergarten with homework to build a leprechaun trap (great STEM activity, but do you realize you are assigning this to the parents?). Then they go to school, and the leprechaun eats their candy lure and gets away?? My kids were unhappy about this, plus it took me a lot of time to convince them that leprechauns are not real. Big waste of instructional time!
Speaking of harming kids, thanks for sharing Nancy Bailey’s article. Expecting reading and writing in kindergarten puts kids with disabilities at such a disadvantage. Neurodiverse kids often need extra time for reading and writing skills to develop, and all kids need to work on social skills at this age. In tutoring practice, I let kids decide what challenges they are ready for. The NT kids generally start to read around age 7. ND kids can often begin learning letter identification and letter sounds around the same time. There are so many reasons to wait.