that was an experience in itself.
Monday, we had a regular day of school. But for the rest of the week, we had conferences. Those students who came to school for Kindergarten came to school in the morning for one hour each. The student still needed to come to school this week for academic reasons...but not to my classroom as I had conferences all day from Tuesday through Friday.
For some dumb reason, my first conferences had my more challenging parents. I dotn know why i scheduled them that way. Overall my conferences went well. As an afterthought, I think I might have worried more parents than I wanted to. I have a number of students who have little knowledge of the alphabet or sounds and this is a big concern for me. They need this knowledge by the end of Kindergarten. If I see that they have next to nothing, I told the parents I might start a process for their child to see if they would eb ready for first grade. There are two reasons I do this. One is because I need to cover my butt and let them know that hey this is an issue that I am very concerned about and that they cant come back and tell me I didnt tell them. Second, this helps them to get motivated to work with their child more now.
I think that some parents dont like knowing what their child is doing in class...so they often try to come up with something, and it often makes them think their child isnt learning anything. For example...I had two parents tell me they felt their child wasnt learning anything. These same two parents come into my classroom as helpers and should notice that their child is learning. For example...they dont learn as far as me lecturing them. But they learn by procedure and process and practice. I have many centers set up throughout the room such as a magnet center where they can make simple words using cards. The blocks center lets them make long cube trains, mosiac patterns, etc. The writing center has them practicing a letter of the week and the thinking center has them using their brains, having to think about something.
As I teach Kindergarten more and more...Im learning more that its not just about them learning....but also learning procedure and practices. Most often..the student hasnt been in school before, and if they have, its been in a less structured daycare.
When I came to the classroom...the class was known to be extremely loud, so much so that the kindergarten teacher next door to us, had to close her door that connects the two rooms because it was so loud. Since i have been in the classroom, there has been a night and day difference in the noise level, discipline, and basically everything else. While I have no experience per se in a Kindergarten setting, I do have a veteran Kindergarten mentor teacher next door, along with my many years of early childhood classes which have me very prepared.
I recently have been observed many times, as required, by my assistant principal who has many years of early ed teachign under his belt. He told me Im doing a fine job and that the areas I need to work on...are mostly not related to the academic setting anyways. For example, I need to make sure my lesson plans are out and visible, along with makign sure the bulletin boards have student work. He does want me to work more with the students one on one, but that is basically it.
I understand that most often...parents who have kids in Kindergarten....its their first child in school and they dont really know what to expect. And when it looks to them like their child is playing, they think the kids arent learning. Kindergarten is not like the rest of the grades. Its a combination of home, daycare, and school. They play....its more structured than normal...but not totally, and its getting them ready for first grade.