I think the schools view kindergarten as mainly a social thing, IMHO. That isn't a bad thing, I guess. Some kids have never been in daycare or preschool, so they need to learn how to sit quietly, how to wait their turn, that type of thing.
We switched schools at the end of kindergarten for my little one to ensure that he got a spot at our highly ranked local public school. The teacher sent home books like "Hop on Pop" which he had read in preschool. I told her several times that he could read very well, could do math, etc. but she always just smiled.
So... I don't think kindergarten or even first grade is all that academic. It's mainly social. Just do academic things at home and hopefully your child won't be too bored.
Actually, at the start of first grade, I asked the teacher how he was doing. I figured she would say something like, gee, he is a great reader! He can multiply things! Etc. All she said was that "well, he said penis, penis, penis very loudly in the class and I had to take him outside to explain we didn't talk about with our friends in school." I was like, oh... I didn't know what to say since he had never said that at home before! She probably thought we were all perverts or something!
