Would it really be any better if the learning outcomes for kindergarten were to be able to read at a level J (first grade level: Little Bear) at the end of kindergarten? That would be something I would run away from as a parent of an early reader, because that means a lot of time is going to be spent on reading, something my DD does not need help with.
It sounds like she is still in "preschool". We chose a preschool for DD that was only a few hours each week and completely play-based. We did not want the emphasis to be on reading. Instead DD learned about dinosaurs and science through art and songs. The pre-literacy skills that she had obviously picked up on her own were cemented through finger plays, story telling, and rhyming games.
For Kindergarten we chose a reggio emilio school because in our area they offered the most differentiation and evidence-based approaches for early childhood (which Kindergarten still falls under.) Again, there is actually little emphasis on reading--there is very little group instruction about it other than story elements which is awesome for any level reader. Reading is intertwined in other themes and areas of instruction, which allows for differentiation and exploration of things like fractions and division. What little 1:1 DD is getting in language arts is at her level.
