He's five, a late birthday put him in pre-k this year. He just likes his pre-k class better. I taught him too much before I sent him to school, and I'm still teaching him. He probably should have gone straight into first grade this year, academically. I asked the teacher if he could do map testing, but she said this school doesn't use that test. I just wanted to know, ya know? I do wish I could say, put him in a tough class, just to see if he takes off there, kwim? But they put him in kinder for language arts something like the first week of school. So, it's not like they didn't try. Right now they said it was maturity, he'll do better next year, he needs to go to pre-k and get it out of his system. At home he'll do what I can only call "stalling", dragging his feet and walking slow or getting dressed slow when you tell him to do something (not just school related). So when the teacher said he just wasn't doing his work, but that he could do it. I said, stalling. She shook her head yes.
Honestly, I'm kind of a little mad. Sending him to school this year has taught him nothing eductionally. What I really wanted them to teach him was to sit still and do his work, how to "do school". He's not extra wiggly at inappropriate times very often. I have sat with my kids through most of a town hall meeting a few times. They can behave.
What he will really learn is that he doesn't have to do work at school if he doesn't want to. He has coasted now for half a year without doing any work (apparently) and this is the first I hear of it, "oh, by the way, it's just not working out." I heard about it at the beginning of the year from him, but this time the teacher's the one who's unhappy and I didn't hear it from her until it's too late.
But I just smiled and said, okay. Is there anything I have to do different, or just drop him off at school at time and y'all will take care of it. They answered with a smile and said he'll be more mature next year.
What I would have done differently is make a weekly checklist that he's responsible to show the teacher everyday where she checks "homework" or "no homework" and send home any work he doesn't do in class. When he has to work at home instead of play in the yard I'll bet he does his work in class.
Short answer: the work is below his readiness level, but isn't school always?
