I am glad we have the 4k program in our district. I sent my son to the public school when he was 4 even though his daycare offered pre-school. My daughter currently is in a 4K program at a public school and then she goes to daycare afterwards. It's a great way to prepare her for Kindergarten as she's familiar with the school, the rules and what is expected of her. As a parent I would be willing to pay higher taxes for this if it's preparing them for Kindergarten and making it an easier transition. Maybe it will give some kids a better opportunity to keep up in Kindergarten and have them succeed more.

We start with early childhood education for children that are showing signs of being cognitively delayed or delayed in speech and language, motor skills and such, at age 3! Kindergarten starts on average for children age 5. Mean while these kids continue learning how? Being cheap and whining about an increase in taxes for your child or grandchild’s education is ridiculous. It's not free daycare for most. It’s about giving children the resources they need to have to succeed in life better then we ourselves have. Life doesn’t get easier as years go by.....

I think we should send kids to public school right from the womb. It's obvious that the state knows how to raise our children better anyway. Forget about the cost to taxpayers. It's for the kids!

Well, I have been a teacher since 1990 and most of those years have been in Kindergarten. When I started it was my job to get the children used to school rules, teach them about shapes, colors, numbers and letters. Somewhere through the years it became more academic (pushing the skills I used to teach down to 4K). I am at a school that has over half of our families receiving free and reduced lunch, most are English language learners...As a teacher I feel it is a shame that we are pushing so much onto children (starting at a young age) but with NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND we've had to change how we teach regardless of what kind of learners and families we are dealing with. I went down from Kindergarten to teach 4K in a public school in Walworth county. I love it and my students enjoy coming to school to play with their friends. We have come a long way from the beginning of school and I feel that my students are ready for all day Kindergarten next year. When my own child was 4 I was glad my community had 4K. As a single working mother I could not afford to put her in a private preschool. She learned so much that year! She played, sang songs, made some projects and had a year of school (1/2 day) before starting all day kindergarten. For anyone who says these little ones belong at home a little longer are either fortunate enough to stay home with their children or are living in a dream world. I deal with parents each day who leave their children unattended while they are sleeping because they worked 2 jobs. Some parents are just clueless as to what to do with their children and they come to school at 4 years old and still can not identify any colors or shapes have never been read to and for some being in school offers them stability that they don't have at home. In no way am I a babysitter. I take my job seriously. For anyone who objects to 4K you really need to visit a classroom to see how relaxed and happy the children are. It's not the schools or teachers fault that we are pushing academics down. Blame it on NCLB. I am glad to see that these children are getting a jump start in school and am proud to be their teacher.

4K is in the elementary school where I live. I've never heard of it being at a pre-school. Isn't 4K a government run program? Why would it be at a private pre-school? If it is then it's really free pre-school!

Actually, 4K is being offered in some elementary schools and also at community-based sites (such as daycares). I have mixed feelings on 4K because yes, it will provide many kids the opportunity that others get from going to day cares, but it also seems to me that the government is covering the "it's not fair" issue that's all over this country...so it's like the people that go to work and have to take their children to a day care program and pay a lot, get a slap in the face. I agree with the need for socialization skills for many children such as those that stay at home or go to a in-home babysitter...but shouldn't some things be taught at home too? I also wonder.....aren't those things taught in kindergarten? And then in a large suburban area, such as the example of New York, I couldn't believe how comepetitive my sister and other moms of 4 year olds were talking about the 4K programs they were going to and making sure they got their children "ready." Guess what, they will eventually learn to read whether they went to preschool or not. So it does have it's good points, but it also has it's negative points. There never will be a perfect solution to the way people parent their children.

I have a friend that lives in New York City . If your kid isn't in a pre-school by the age of 3 ,you might as well forget about getting into a good school at age 5.What is wrong with this picture ? Parents don't raise their own anymore!!!!!

Grant money is for start-ups. It is never free and will quickly run out for these pre-school programs. Once it is gone, keeping the programs running will be up to the taxpayers. Will you cut other educational programs to pay for them? Or will you increase taxes?

Thank you ryno66nmu for the clarification. I did not know this was at the preschools and assumed it was at the elementary schools. Goes to show assuming without the facts can get you in trouble. Your response is very helpful, will do more reading about 4k and may change my opinion.

This program is mainly at the preschools, not at the elementary schools. So the overcrowding shouldn't be an issue there. Plus with it only being a couple hours long, they can have multiple sessions in a day. I agree that children grow up fast enough, but the interaction with a teacher and other kids in a school setting is good for them. If it was an all day class, I wouldn't like it as much because they are young, but a couple hours out of the day is good in my opinion. My daughter went to preschool at 4 years old, and now my son is going to attend the 4K program this year. I would be sending him either to 4K or preschool either way. I think it was very beneficial for my daughter when she went.

Have the people who think this is "free baby-sitting" looked at the statistics that show getting children into school at age 4 has a positive impact in the long run? Or is this the new thing the paper to complain about?

I agree with offierfriendly1 on free pre-school. School should start at five years old. Children grow up fast enough. If you are worried about date cutoffs for school, then maybe better family planning. Can you count to nine? Yes I consider school free compared to daycare or pre-school. I read about over crowding in schools and yet they keep taking on more students. Then they need to build new schools at the tax payers expense. Where is the logic.

It is hardly free babysitting for parents. If you had children who were going to attend this program you would know that. First of all, it isn't all day, its only a couple hours long, just like preschool. Yes it is cheaper than preschool, since it's funded by the government, but not free. I personally think it's a wonderful thing. Many children who would not have been able to attend preschool are getting a chance to because of this program. Besides the learning that they will do, many kids need the interaction with other kids their age, especially if they don't go to daycare normally.

I agree with belisamasana. My daughter's birthday is September 26, so she just misses the cut off. She is SO ready to go to school and learn. She is so excited about going to school. It can only help the kids, especially those who really want to learn.

I like to call it free pre-school.

who~ you obviously dont have kids in school. if so id like to know which one cause there is nothing free about the school we go to.

Free babysitting? I don't think so. I'm thrilled my daughter will be able to go to 4 year old kindergarten this coming fall. She doesn't turn 5 until October 21 and misses the cut off date for regular kindergarten.

Another example of Gov't wasting money and providing free baby sitting for the parents.