| Money Talks: A Test for School Readiness |
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| Written by OHmommy | |
| Wednesday, 28 May 2008 19:00 | |
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In Ancient Greece, scholars would test young boy's readiness for school by asking them if they would prefer a bag of sugar or a bag of coins. If the young boy reached for the bag of coins he would be ready for school. This I learned while researching material for my Master's thesis in education. Standardized testing for school readiness in Ancient Greece seemed so simple. And so incredibly accurate. Is your kid smart enough to realize money is more valuable than sugar? Great. He is ready to be schooled! Kindergarten screening in modern day United States is so incredibly complicated. Rhymes. Letter recognition. Numbers. Eye exams. Motor development. Pronunciation. Sentence formatting. Coloring in between the lines. Mothers drilling their children. Upper case letters. Lower case letters. Mothers sweating bullets while waiting. More rhymes. Fill in the blank. Days of the week. Algebra. Calculus. Latin. Wha? The state of Ohio determined that Jay was ready for kindergarten, by the date of his birth, for the 2007-2008 school year. One year ago, to date, after his first kindergarten screening he failed MY Ancient Greece test by reaching for the skittles, so I held him back. The school counselors confirmed that I would not regret my decision. That is all. He was not ready. He was extremely sensitive. I wanted one more year with him to encourage his confidence and embrace his love of learning. I wanted him to LOVE learning. Is there a better gift in life than buying an extra year of confidence? I think not. Holding back boys, who were born close to the cut-off, from kindergarten in our neck of the woods is very common. I have heard that most mothers do not regret the extra year with their sons. I would agree. Jay is a gazillion more times confident today than he was a year ago. This weekend he passed MY Ancient Greece test. My husband took Jay and Lola to the fair. Two hours went by without a phone call. I cleaned house preparing for our BBQ and enjoyed the silent house while Fifi slept. I cranked up the volume to my favorite CD and scrubbed the kitchen floors on my hands and knees. The phone rang. "Dude. Will you talk to YOUR son?" The husband asked, emphasizing the YOUR. Which in turn meant he was emotional and crying. "What is up handsome?" I asked MY son. "Daddy... daddy... sniffle... sniffle... he won't let me play the games.... sniffle, sniffle.... he won't let me.... sniffle... sniffle.... play the games at the fair." I can barely understand MY son through his emotional sniffles. "I can not understand your tears. I can understand words." I confidently tell him. "Daddy. DADDY will not let ME play the games!!!" I can see him straightening up and confidently yelling in the phone. Without even thinking I reply, "Oh... Handsome. Tell Daddy he owes you ten dollars from two weeks worth of chores. Okay?" I remind him that he has been unpaid for two weeks and his charts have been checked off and Daddy has forgotten to pay him. "Okay." Sniffle... sniffle... "Okay, Mama... I will tell him. But...." I interrupted my son and told him to put the daddy on the phone. "Dude.... we have not paid Jay for his chores in two weeks. Give him his $10." I told the husband. "Okay. But what if...." My husband started to say and I interrupted him... "He won't. Show him the price of one game. He know how to add. He will figure it out." I get off my hands and knees and wonder if my mom-rader was correct. Will Jay realize that playing a game at the fair is a waste of money? Still on my knees when they came home, I see Jay approach me empty handed. "Did you play a game at the fair?" I asked. "No, Mama. That is so silly. It is a WASTE of money!!!!" He confidently exclaimed. "I am saving my money for some new Legos." My boy. He is sooooooo ready for kindergarten next year. Stay tuned as I cry a river in August 2008, a full year later after he was "supposed" to start school. |
