Full Day K vs. 1/2 Day K?

CareBear0607

I am hoping over from the preschool board to ask you all your opinions and experiences.  I looked a few pages back and didn't see anything, so I apologize if this has been discussed recently.

Next year, DD will be going into kindergarten.  I have the choice to put her in full day kindergarten or 1/2 day kindergarten.  I know that each child is different as is each family's situations.  I am just wondering what you ended up doing with your LO for kindergarten (assuming you had a choice even), how they did, and anything else about the experience you would like to share.

I keep going back and forth as to what  would be best for DD. 

TIA! 

jlw2505

My 6 year old is in full day kindergarten right now and I am hoping that my younger DD gets in full day next year.  At our school, you pay for full day and half day is free and you can also do half day kindergarten with a half day of a program called KinderConnection which is run by the group that does the before/after care programs.  Full day is 6 1/2 hours and half day is 2 1/2 hours.  That alone made my decision so easy.  In full day, they have gym 2-3 days a week, music class 2/3 days a week and go to the media center 1 day a week.  On top of that they have 1-2 recesses a day, they have a 30 min 'Brain Break" for the 1st half of the year to help the kids adjust to being in school all day and they get the kids up and moving a lot during the day.  They are able to take their time going through all the school work and can spend extra time as needed during the day.  The half day kids only do gym and music 1x a day and never go outside and they miss a lot of the all school events and actually have less school days due to the late start days (the half day classes rotate between morning and after kindy on those days which we have 1x a month).  It is just a very different experience doing half day when its only 2 1/2 hours and you have to fit in the same thing as the kids going for 6 1/2 hours.  My older DD also gets speech services 2x a week for 30 mins and they do that during some of the down time in class so she doesn't miss anything and with half day, you lose that option as they don't have that down time.  The KinderConnection program has less kids than a regular kindy class but the staff are not ceritifed teachers and while they do work with the kids on the things they are learning, it is very different and more daycare like than kindy like.  Now as I say all of this - I am a full time working mom and my DH also works full time, my kids went to daycare full time since they were infants and did an amazing PreK program at the elementary school.  My oldest was more than ready for full day kindy due to this PreK program and my younger DD is in the PreK program now and loving it and I have no doubt, will have no issue being in full day kindy.  At our school the kids in full day have for the most part all done PreK or a full time preschool or daycare before starting kindy and the kids that are in half day either did not get a spot in full day or have a parent that stays home with them.  The kids that I know this year in half day from my DD"s PreK class all do the half day with the half day KinderConnection so they are at school full time but didn't get a spot in the full day class.  (Sorry that was really long)

Angela814

We didn't have a choice, but if we did, I would have chosen full day. Full day is standard in our district. 4K is only half days, which I think is a good prep for 5K. 1st grade has been a lot more academic so far, and I think it would have been a harder adjustment if DD1 was also adjusting to a longer day.

neverblushed

When my DD was in K, it was still 1/2 day in our school.  By the time my son went to K, it was full day, so I have had a kid in both versions of kindergarten.

1/2 day kindergarten is just a tiny step up from preschool.  The day is really 2.5 hours, maybe a little more for bus time and announcements.  During that time, the teacher has to work on language arts/reading instruction, writing, math, science, social studies, and learning how to be a student.  There is less time available to spend on the academic subjects and more time spent on the "learning how to be a student" stuff, which is the niche kindergarten was originally intended to fill.  Most of the academic time was spent on literacy, with little time for math.  Much of the day is probably organized around centers, and a 1/2 day program may have traditional K centers like "pretend play" and "blocks" although they may call these activities "dramatic literacy" and "construction."

Full day kindergarten = what we all did in first grade.  Kids go to specials, have recess, and eat lunch in the cafeteria.  They have a full 6 hour day, much of which involves working while seated at your table or desk.  Full day K is all about starting on academic skills.  Most kids now learn how to read early in the year in kindergarten.  They do substantive writing every single day.  Math gets its fair share of time.  Kids were put into small groups by ability for both reading and math, and there was a big focus on whether or not kids were "on grade level." Yes, time is still spent in stations or centers, but there's no "pretend play" station or "blocks" station.  The stations are all language-arts based activities.

My DD turned 5 the week after she started K, but she was very bright and could already read well when the year started.  She was quiet, but very independent.  Still, I liked that she was in 1/2 day.  As a younger student, I felt she needed that social and emotional transition from preschool to "real" elementary school.  1/2 day K really filled that gap for her.  If it had been full day, I would have sent her, and she would have been fine. In fact, she would have thrived in the more serious academic setting.  But I was glad she had "traditional" kindergarten for a year.

My DS would have started full day K within a week of turning 5, and he probably would have been the youngest kid in his class, perhaps in his whole grade.  He was not even close to being ready for full day school at that age.  I decided to keep him in pre-K for another year.  When he started K at age 6, he did just fine in full day.  He was not even the oldest kid in his class.  There were a few other boys who had even earlier birthdays in the summer or spring, whose parents had "red-shirted" them as well.  In full day K schools, this practice is not uncommon, especially with boys, who can be behind the girls in terms of maturity.  So, if your DD is small and has a summer birthday, she may seem REALLY young in a full day class, if "red shirting" is common where you live.

On the other hand, if your DD is fairly independent and ready for the "big time" academically, no matter when her birthday falls, full day is probably your best bet. 

HTH! 

Littlejen22

Is it real fullday or is it halfday plus enrichment? I think full day learns more but my DS is ahead and I think halfday is working for him and honestly think full day would have been a lot for him this year.

shouldbworkin

Full day.  From what I've gathered, the academic requirements for KG are no different if your child goes half or full day.  But, if they go half day, they are cramming a full day worth of learning into a half day.  It can be intense and there is not much time for fun or activity.  5-6 yr olds needs to move.  And, I think it is good for their first experience with school to be fun and positive. 

If she is in PreK now, I would make sure she is there for a couple lunches a week, if possible (most offer this now as most schools offer full day KG).  It is a great way for PS kids to learn to be independent for KG.  

mrsseguin

We are switching DS to a french school which is M-F, 8:55-3:15.  I was hesitant at first, but now I think it will be a better choice going a full day, every day.  The previous school was T, Th every other fri, 9-3:30.  He should be starting his french school next week sometime. 

penguingrrl

Our school only offers half day, so my daughter is in that. I feel like she would really benefit from full  day school, but we don't have the option. Luckily next year our school district is implementing full day K (they finally got it approved but need to renovate the building to add three more classrooms before they can start) so our other two will get full day.

K is not what it used to be and it just seems like there's far too much to learn in K to fit it into a half day of school.

AquaFlowers

We do full day because we both work and it works great for us!

fsumom

My DD goes to a private school that only offers full-day kindergarten from 9-3.  I guess you can say we had a choice as it's a private school, but Dh and I work full-time so half-day kindergarten wasn't really an option.  Not to mention that DD started at the same school when she was 3.  We love full-day because I feel it's the perfect amount of time.  Half-day is so short, IMO.

fancynewbeesly

I would for our schools to have full day. Unfortunately a few years ago they had it on the budget vote--and the town voted it down.

Now I heard that we will never get full day kindergarten--unless NJ mandates that all schools must have full day kindergarten. Which is when hell will freeze over, because apparently kindergarten (any kindergarten) isn't required yet in our state.