Expanded Day Kindergarten
Class Schedule
9 - 9:15 — Opening Choice
9:15 - 10 — Circle
• greeting
• calendar
• weather
• days in school
• days of the week
• months of the year
• seasons
• predictable charts
• introduce theme
10 -10:15 — Outside
10:15 - 10:45 — Guided Reading/Writing activity
10:45 - 11:45 — Theme-Related Projects
11:45 - 12:30 — Lunch and Recess (outside)
12:30 - 12:45 — Self-Selected Reading
12:45 - 1:15 — Small Circle
• math activities
1:15 - 1:45 — In-Depth Activities
• construction
• easel painting
• experiments
• puppetry
• making and playing games
1:45-2:00 — Wrap up
Expanded Day Kindergarten
The needs of both parents and children are changing, and based on our recent survey about those needs we're pleased to be adding a new Expanded Day kindergarten class for the 2007 – 2008 school year.
How It Works
The Expanded Day class runs from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. (We're still offering our half-day morning class, and an afternoon class if enrollment merits it.)
The Expanded Day curriculum is the same as our proven half-day program, just more of it. (See the typical day's schedule to the right.) . It provides more time for individual and group learning, and includes a lunch break and two outdoor activity periods.
Parents will co-op in class one day each month, and we'll continue to work closely with parents to find the best fit for busy schedules. Some days we won't have a parent in class, but we will provide sufficient staff to more than satisfy the NAEYC teacher-student ratio guidelines.
Why We Offer It
Many parents have expressed a desire for more opportunity for development than our half-day classes can provide. Others can also benefit from the longer time under which their children will be in our care.
Developmentally, the longer class extends the learning experience with additional chances for small group interaction and more time to complete complex, long-term projects. Other benefits include:
- The smaller class size enables even greater individualized instruction.
- Teachers can get to know students even better, helping to fine tune individual education plans.
- Teachers will have longer blocks of time in which to conduct science experiments, have more detailed math lessons, engage in journal writing or acting out stories, and other time-intensive learning activities.
- There will be even more time available for read aloud's, shared reading, and other proven means to build phonemic awareness and vocabulary.
- Greater opportunities for academic focus will allow more work on foundational skills like the conventions of printing, making predictions based on test, using context clues for comprehension, and alphabetizing.
- Students will have more time to spend exploring the science center, math center, and other areas of personal interest.
- The longer class may decrease the number of home/school/day care transitions, a benefit for some children.
- The longer class helps students get used to the longer day they will experience in first grade.
How to Choose It
Enrollment in our first Expanded Day kindergarten class will be limited. If it sounds right for you and your child, please express this on your registration form, and be sure to register as early as possible.
Background and Resources
Visit these sites to learn more about the details and benefits of a longer kindergarten class.
- On the Indiana Dept. of Education's Prime Time division website — Benefits of Full-Day Kindergarten
- The Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory's research summary — Full-Day Kindergarten: Exploring an Option for Extended Learning
- A research summary report from the Long Beach Unified School District's Office of Research, Planning, and Evaluation — Full Day Kindergarten (downloads a PDF)
- FAQs, references, and links to other resources at the University of Illinois' Clearinghouse on Early Education and Parenting site — Full Day Kindergarten