A year ago, during my last few months of co-op days in the 4’s class, I couldn’t help but wonder, is my daughter really ready for kindergarten?  I knew TPNS was about “kindergarten readiness,” but how?  What does that really mean?  Well, I must admit that I didn’t truly understand “kindergarten readiness” until my daughter actually started kindergarten.

As my daughter and I walked into her school on the first day of kindergarten, I couldn’t help but notice the number of parents who looked like “sherpas,” carrying their child’s lunch box, backpack and coat.  My child, on the other hand, walked with her own backpack and lunch (both of which she packed herself), and promptly asked the teacher where she should hang her coat as soon as she entered the room.  I thought to myself … she learned it at Trinity.

During the first couple of weeks of school, I must confess that I (along with a number of first time kindergarten parents) secretly watched my daughter’s class while standing outside the window trying to hide in the bushes. When the teacher instructed the children to write their names on the picture of a train she had handed out to each child, cut it out and then put it in their cubby, my daughter was focused on the task at hand and followed all the instructions (along with the other Trinity graduates in her kindergarten class!).  As I heard other parents voice their amazement at this (as well as sitting still during circle time, raising hands to speak and taking turns), I thought to myself … she learned it at Trinity. And, when my daughter and her fellow Trinity alumnae were assigned to “color groups,” (just like the color families in the 4s class), they jumped right in, already knowing how to cooperate and work together with their teammates. 

I also watched my daughter from afar during recess (again, along with the other first time kindergarten parents!).  When my daughter resolved the age old game of chase between the boys and girls in the class by telling the boys, “Stop! I don’t like it when you chase me,” I realized that she knew how to resolve her own conflicts … she learned it at Trinity.  And, when I saw her empathy for another child in the class, it reminded me how she had “learned to be a good friend” … she learned it at Trinity. 

During parent teacher conferences, my daughter’s teacher wanted to know – what was the name of the pre-school that had taught my child to be independent, and “do for herself,” for this was the key to giving children confidence and preparing them to be ready to learn on the day they walked into kindergarten.  I told her … Trinity.

Well, you are probably getting the picture – and I am more than willing to bet that you too will be thinking “my child learned it at Trinity” when your child starts kindergarten.  So ….a special thanks to all the TPNS teachers for getting our children “ready for kindergarten” – and by the way, I think that I finally know what it means!  I just can’t help but wonder, will she really be ready for first grade?
 
Blessings,
Suzanne Pritchard,
Former Chairperson
NSMT Board