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a few thoughts about readiness and the placement of

Pre-school/Kindergarteners.....

Readiness:

Every child is different and so readiness for school depends on each and

every individual child and family. Just because child ! is ready for

schooling at "# doesn$t mean that child % will be...they may want to start

earlier or later....also alot depends on whether the child is a boy or a

girl....&for the most part# girls are more ready a little sooner than boys'.

(f a child is as)ing to *play* or *do* school# starting to mimic reading to

you# as)ing *what letter/number is that+* or *what does that say+* ....then

it would be safe to assume that they are starting to *be ready.*

,owever# remember that children all have different attention spans as well#

so another thing to consider is how long will/is the child willing to sit

down and listen. (f your child can sit still while you read a " minute boo)#

then that is great ry to )eep activities to that time frame.....(f theyli)e to play games that ta)e ! minutes or so...then that is great# too.

Just ma)e sure that whatever activity you are doing is within *their* time as

a pre-school/)indergartener...otherwise you may end up with a very frustrated

- burnt out - first grader. 0ll this to say# let your gut instincts help you

with when you child is ready. 0nd...if you start schooling# but see their

frustration point rise# then slac) off some...maybe only do school %-1 days

per wee)# or brea) up your day with other activities.

2ow on to (2R3456(327 vs. 835240(327.

(2R3456(327: his is geared for the pre-school/)indergartener. (n it they

will begin to wor) with....number recognition# practice writing# one-to-one

correlation &this means ! item e9uals the *number !*'# place value# geometric

shapes# counting to !# beginning addition# to s)ip count by %s-"s-!s#

money# and to tell time to the nearest " minutes. 23E: his curriculum is

for them to be introduced to math. (t does 23 re9uire mastery...ust for

them to begin to understand how numbers and math wor). 7tudents would be

able to do more of a *page-a-day* type wor) at this level# however# it is

still set for you to be able to determine the speed that your child goes.

his curriculum could ta)e anywhere from ; months to % years to complete

depending on your child$s age# s)ill and readiness.

835240(327: his is more geared to begin with the brighter Kindergartener

to the 8irst 07ER Place ?alue# @riting

numbers to AAA# 0ddition B 7ubtraction# 6arrying B Corrowing# 7olving for

5n)nowns# 7)ip 6ounting from the %s all the way through the !s# 3rdinal

2umbers# Car B =ine inute# >oney#>ultiplication facts !s through the !s# 0rea of Rectangle B Perimeter and

>56, >3RE......his level RED5(RE7 >07ER of each topic before moving

on...so therefore each lesson on average will ta)e at least F-! days to

complete &although you may find that you spend even longer on certain

topics....depending on your child'. his program on average ta)es between

%-1 years to finish.

ou may find that you finish it at the end of %nd grade# the middle of 1rd

grade or the end of third grade....all of these times are appropriate

8/13/2019 Placement to Intro or Foundations Thoughts

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depending on your child. (t is much more important for them to 524ER7024

and >07ER the topic.... than how fast you can get through the material

4E6(7(327....4E6(7(327....4E6(7(327....@hich one do ( start with+

8irst# consider your child....consider their abilities. @e as >57 Reps don$t

*usually* recommend starting (ntroductions until a child is at least G....if

they are showing interest then it is fine as long as you remember to go at

the child$s speed# you should be fine.

@e don$t *usually* recommend starting 8oundations until your child is " or

older....and demonstrates a readiness for formal instruction...... hey

should )now how to write their numbers -A# be able to count to at least

!....&0lthough# ( must admit that ( personally li)e to hear that they are

counting to about " or more...this ust shows more of a readiness for the

8oundations =evel'# and are starting to understand general adding

concepts...&li)e...here are 1 of us# and grandma and grandpa are coming for

dinner# so we will need " plates at the table'.

2ow# please note# if they have already finished the (ntroduction level# then

they can easily move right into 8oundations with 23 troubles whatsoever.

Remember if you start a *young* child in 8oundations# that they >57 >07ER

each topic before moving on# so this can be a little more time consuming with

a *little* one...meaning that they could be on a lesson for a couple of

wee)s# even several months if they are not ready for the >07ER style of

learning. 7o if your *little* one is more interested in the *boo)* part of

school right now# ( would start them at the (ntroduction =evel....in order to

prime them for math# so that when they get to 8oundations they will be ready

for the more *mastery* style of teaching.

(>P3R02: 2one of this is written in 732E# so use your best udgement and

gut instincts...if you have 9uestions regarding placement# call your local

representative...they will be more than happy to help you place your child.