Should all 5 and 6-year-olds be in kindergarten 7 hours per day (8+ with transportation) 5 days per week? Is this really the best thing for our children? Below we outline research which suggests that, as long as parents' schedules allow for it, a half-day school schedule may be better for many kindergarten-aged children. While the typical "full-day" kindergarten schedule is 5-6 hours long, the only available schedule in our school district is 7 hours long. With this petition we are proposing a change that would allow for a half-day option, as well. 

Kindergarten is usually a child’s first experience with formal education in the public school system. With all the changes to school curriculum, kindergarten has become less play-based and more academic. There is a substantial body of research that shows the importance of play in young children. Play creates the neuropathways children need for formal learning. As play in young children declines, evidence shows that the incidence of psychopathology, such as anxiety, depression and ADHD/ADD, increases. Similar effects can be seen with a decrease in time spent with family at a young age. When 5-6 year-olds are in school for 7 hours per day (8+ with transportation) they are left exhausted and often without the time or energy to play. School leaves them stressed out and tired; not loving the system they will spend the next 13 years in. 

Numerous studies have been conducted on half-day vs. full-day kindergarten programs. Full-day kindergarten students do achieve higher academic success initially. Those gains have been shown to be short term, though, and are erased by the third grade (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0034654309359185). What is not erased is the negative attitudes and behaviors the children in full-day kindergarten have about school. Those who start in half-day kindergarten are more likely to have a positive attitude about school in later years. The importance of having students engaged in the learning process cannot be overstressed. This is less likely to happen if they developed a negative attitude toward school early on.

Many parents of children who have been through full-day kindergarten have expressed the stress and frustration that these young children go through. It is heart-breaking to see your child mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausted to the point that they are unable to connect or spend time with you after school.

Full-day kindergarten is the best option for some students and their families, but not for all. The Addison Central School District has the ability to give families a half-day kindergarten option. This option will give our kindergarteners a chance to ease into the public school system. It will allow them to develop a love of learning. It will give them the time they need to play and develop the brain pathways they need to be successful in school and for the rest of their lives. It will give families more time with their young children. Please agree to offer families this valuable choice in the early education of their children. 

* It should be made clear that this is in no way an attack on our local kindergarten program. We have an excellent kindergarten program in ACSD - one which values creative and play-based learning. We believe adding a half-day option would simply strengthen this (already strong) program.

 
* Research references will be provided to the ACSD School Board with this petition